St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1879-05-16
Our New York Letter.

sAGEs FROM NAPOLEON AND Plus TX.
THE DARING JAIL-BREAKER - A
DIME NOVEL EXPLOIT-BROTHER TAIL
MAGE v1NDICATED-HOT SHOT FOR
HIS ACCUsERs.
New YORK, May 9, 1879.
To the Editor of the CaIedOnian:
The most noteworthy of recent de-
velopments in spiritualistic matters is
now agitating this city. Mr.. Henry
Riddle, at present and for number of
years past Superintendent of Public
Schools in New York, an educated and
able man, and highly respected Off
cial, has published a book on Spiritual
Communications" mainly filed with
alleged messages from the spirit world,
indited through the mediumship of Mr..
Riddles own children. Among the
number of the illustriOus departed, who,
according to the work mentioned, have
chosen this means of communicating
with world which they have forever
abandoned, are Moses, Plus TX, Arch
bishop Hughes, Sir Isaac Newton, By
ron, Shelley, Edgar A. Poe, A. T. Stew
art, the first Napoleon, George Wash
ington, and a small host of other celeb
rites, ancient and modern. The Ian
guage used by all the contributors to
this extraordinary symposium is sus-
piciOusly similar i'll style and Oracular
Stiffness, and is the sheerest rubbish
from beginning to end. The book
would have attracted no attention with
out the endorsement of so prominent a
man but as it is the papers have de-
voted columns to the publication of ex
tracts and reviews. The episode is uni
fOrmly regretted as indicating so COM
plete hallucination of Mr.. Riddle that
it will probably end in his resignation
from post which he has filled with
great ability and acceptance.
In addition to this curious outbreak
we have another and different subject
of wOnderment and conversation in the
shape of the mosHbrilliant jail breaking
exploit known to recent history. One
Leary, more Familiarity known by the
sanguinary sOubriquet of ''Red" Leary,
has been for some time an inmate of
Ludlow street Jail, which it will be re-
mem bered was the last residence of
VIM. NJ. Tweed, the reason being his
alleged completely in the great North
a-apton bank robbery of few years
ago. On Wednesday night messenger
from the jail rushed breathless into the
Central Police Office, and startled its
occupants by announcing the escape of
the notorious prisoner. Since that
time the ''finest police in the worldn
have been rushing wildly about, trying
to recover the lost sheep, but up to this
writing they have only "great expecta-
tiOns" of success.
After the discovery of the escape, in
vestigation of its methods were at once
Undertaken and the mystery was quick
ly solved. In a closet at the end of one
of the prison corridors was found a jag
ged opening in the solid wall of the
building, which being followed up, was
seen to lead to fireplace in a room on
the fifth floor of an adjoining tenement
house, and then the secret was out. 1t
seems that Leary's friends had hired the
room in the tenement house and slowly
and by dint of enormous labor succeed
ed in piercing their way through four
and One-half feet of solid brickwork to
the closet before referred to. The work
must have occupied many days and
rights, and had of course to be conduct
ed with the greatest silence and eau
ton. Leary was daily visited by his
wife, and was thus kept appraised of
the progress of his deliverers. He knew
just when to expect the completion of
their task, and at the appointed hour
sauntered down the corridor, as he was
free to do, and into the closet. All but
one layer of bricks having been remov-
ed, a preconcerted signal was given,
and Leary putting his pOweiiu should
er to the thin shell of wall, showed it
inward. making a jagged opening about
fifteen by twenty-five inches in size.
Through this opening the cOnfederates
dropped stout rope, and the burglar
was speedily dragged from durance vile
into freedom.
Leary, whose sinister sounding nick
name was bestowed on account of the
fiery hue of his hair and beard, is a tall,
heavy man, weighing 260 pounds, and
it seemed almost incredible that he
should have been able to get through
so small hole; but when a man has
the penitentiary on one side of him and
liberty on the other, he will usually
stand little crOwding to reach the lat
ter. 1t is stated that the probabilities
are good for his early recapture.
Our third sensation this week, or
rather end of a sensation, is the acquit- |
tai of Mr.. Talmage by the Brooklyn |
Presbytery after seven weeks of bit
ter and rather undignified trial. Broth
er Talmage's vindicatiOn can hardly be |
called triumphant, 25 of the members
voting for his acquittal, and 20 voting
for more or less complete conviction.
After the announcement of the final
verdict, Mr.. Talmage stood up and de-
livered one of his most startling and
characteristic speeches, thanking his
i.iends in the most extravaganza terms
and scathing his enemies in terms that
made them fairly wriggle with wrath.
OF these latter gentlemen, Mr.. T. said,
81 feel as though l would like to meet
them all in heaven, although l am not
very anxious to meet them the first t,cO
or three days! 1t is only through the
help of God that have not lost my
temper" His TRADE finished, Mr.. Tai
mage left the room and thus escaped
the storm which his invective aroused
among his baff1ed and indignant accu-
sers. Finally, the "Court of Jesus
Christ" as they call themselves, ad-
journed in frame of mind which, to
say the least, would have eminently
beftted court of Beelzebub.
A strange case has just been disposed
OF by the Grand Jury, which has excit-
ed much attention and comment on ac-
count of its mysterious character and
the high standing of one of the narties