Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1881-02-19
ODD coNcEALMENrs.
How Some Wonderful Escapes were Ac,
complished

Odd methods of concealment were by no
means uncommon in old days when men
were imprisoned for years at time, living
under guard in some castle with pretty
much the same freedom they would have
enioyed in their own house, barring the
liberty of going out when they wanted to.
The little Duke of Normandy, who, after
the assassination of his father, William
Longswood, in the tenth century, was con-
fined at Laon by Louis dOutre-mer, who
had fixed his eyes on the throne, was
carried out in a bundle of grass by his
faithful steward, Osmond. The feat re-
Gently performed by couple of prisoners on
Blackwell's Island by concealing themselves
in dungheaps is no new one. More than
one captive in feudal times was joined to
liberty buried a load of manure. There
was an old German warrior in the time OF
Macmillan, who is said to have made his
escape from the castle in which he was
confined hidden In the carcass of horse
which had died in the stables, and from
which he had removed the bowels to make
room for himself. An Italian captive is
told of who in the fourteenth century was
taken from the prison house, and buried in
the church vault in the coffin of the castle
priest, whose corpse he had found an OPP
portunity to remove and conceal
under his bed, where it was not dis
GOV cred until it began to develop a decided
ly gamy flavor. The Marquis de Monteforio,
State prisoner at Cadiz, in the sixteenth
century, became State fugitive by stow
ing himself away in an empty wine cask.
Disguises have from time immemorial been
favorite means of escape. James Y. freed
himself from the power of the Douglases
in the makeup of stable boy, and Mary
Stuarts first attempt to get away from
Lochleyen castle was IN the dress OF
laundry girl When Flora Macdonald as
sisted Charles Edward, the pretender, to
escape after the battle OF Culloden, she
disguised him as servant girl and chris
tened him Betty Burke. Count Lavalette
ESCAPED from the Conciergerie in 1915 on
the Sharkey plan in dress of his wife's.
One of the most remarkable rescues on
record was that of the Earl of Nithsdale,
who, on the night before the day set for his
execution was gotten out of the Tower OF
London by his wife. Nithsdale was under
sentence for completely IN the rebellion OF
Ills. Lady Nithsdale had thrown herself
at the feet of George IL, imploring mercy,
but the King had refused to listen to her.
She obtained permission to bid her hus-
band adieu on the night before his execu-
tion, and went to the tower with two
women, who were in her confidence. One
had on two suits of outer garments and
after leaving a suit in the Earl's chamber
she Immediately quilted the prison. The
second gave the Earl her clothes and put
on those which the first had just taken
off. Wrapped in long cloak, and with a
handkerchief to his eyes, the prisoner then
passed through the sentinels, and took
ship for France Lady Nithsdale remained
behind in her husbands stead, but she
soon regained her liberty.
The escape of Grotius, the historian,
from the castle of Louvenstein was an
original one Involved in the ruin of his
friend John of Barnevelt, Grotius, in 1919,
when only &c years old, was condemned to
perpetual imprisonment. He was allowed
to borrow books from his friends and when
they were returned they went away in a
chest along with his linen for the wash.
Toward the end of the second year, when
the guards had ceased to bother about ex-
aiming the box as it came and went,
Madame Grotius contrived to have her
husband conceal himself in this convenient
casket, and he was carried to freedom by
some of the very soldiers set to guard him
so iealously.