Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1882-06-06
HOW THEY GOT AWAY,
THE RECENT ESCAPE ~. ,,,y-,..,

Prison Officials Toll the inspectors wns,
| They know About the Jail i,eliyerx
| Nobody to Watch tho Prisoaers
! When the board Of prison INSPECTORS mar
| yesterday afternoon they agreed to allow
tienly Doerr cents per pound for b,ei
until the next meeting of the board, but
the application of the underkeepsr for AZ,
increase of salary was laid over
George A. Smith, first undcrk keeper, was
called to tell what he knew about the re-
cent wholesale escape of prisoners, and he
| SAID that his whole information in the
matter was from ether parties, as he was
not IN the prison when the escape occur
rel. All that had been told him showed
that the men had escaped few minutes
after IL O'Clock. and their absence was not
discovered until he returned at O'Clock.
The prisoners who remained say that from.
the time the men left their cell it was rot
twelve minutes before they were Oh the
wall. Tho hook they had at first was not
strong enough, and they went back TO the
cell and tore up water pipe with whici.
they made stronger hook. In response
to the statement that the door bell had
been rung there few times by boy who
saw the prisoners escape and no answer
made to tho summons, MIR. Smith said
that he knew nothing of it Us he was not
in the prison. But it might be. for when
he was alone in tho corridor, Mr. Burk
holders orders to him were that he should
stay there, no matter how much the bell
| rings. Sometimes, though, when the ba,I
| rang for q long time, he would disob.y
orders and answer the summons. Mr,Smi,h
also stated that he advised Mr. Brukholder
not to allow these prisoners to go into tia:
room rs he thought it unsafe; every day
he kept an eye on the inside of the build
ing. The underkeepcr went into tic
cigar shop very seldom ,as MIR. Burkhol,ier
vas OF the opinion that the cigar boss was
responsible for them. MIR. Smith ais,
stated that some of the men had too muci:
money III their cells, one of them, 4 colorcd
man, having $40 this he reported to the
keeper. Another thing he did not approve
OF was the number of men allowed in tho
corridor. On one occasion there were ft;
mon in the corridor and outside Il ladder
stOod against the wall. Burkhoider aaA
MUIR were i'll court on that OCCASION and
10 was alone.
MIR. Burkholder was called in and sla
there might be something in tho story
about the boy ringing the bell, though
the women in the house AMI MIR. MUIR
boil, denied hearing it. Smith had cat
toned him in regard to allowing the con
VETS IN that room, Us it was not safe, ais,.
that too much money had been drawn on
prisoners orders recently. But he has
stopped that getting money. He gener
ally stays III tho corridor during the
dinner hour, but that d,y wonr out to IT."
some work. Some of tho prisoners; I'D
dou5t secured clothes, for the room in
which they are kept has been broken into
before. The escaped convicts were, NO
doubt, informed of his whevcabauts. Mr..
Burkholdcr further said that he ha,! 20
doubt that plans were lai;l by the prisoners
who had the run of the corridor convers-
ing with those locked up. 1t was impossi
bic for tho underkeepers to do all the
wo:k, such Us giving water to tho prison
ers, etc, no matter ut what time they
wanted 1t, and in reply to q question from
Mr.. Hagan, lIe said that if man were
appointed to change the prisoners cothes,
give them water, etc, he would lock All
the prisoners up and allow none to remain
in the corridor.
Albert MUIR, underkeepcr, said the phi
soners in the cigar shop that remained told
him the work of cutting through the brick
wall WAS commenced 1T Q O'Clock on the
Of the escape. Tho noise of tho
cutting through tho wall could not be heard
in the corridor ON account of the noise from
the looms Of the weayers; was on duty in
the corridor when they left; 90 to dinner
at III o'clock and return at 12 o'clock, mt
which time am alone in tho cOrrdor;l
passed the cigar shop several times tlia.
morning, but heard n"thing wrong; it was
impossible to see what they were dong;
when looked in the cell saw some of the
men in and thought all was right cannu.
tell where they got the carpet chain from
it could be passed to them from another
cell through the window; had Il suspicion
that there was going to be Il break, but
thought it would be on the underksepe-s
don't leave the corridor to wait on the
bel! Charles Greiner, the foreman of the
cigar boss, discovered the escape when he
came from dinner the prisoners that re.
manned said Frankfort was the last to-
leave the cell did not examine the cells
IN which they worked in the day time, bus
each evening after the prisoners wcro
taken to their cells from tho cigar shop
he examined the room i'm which they
worked, but never saw any evidences of
an attempted escape.
Charles Grciner, the foreman oc the
cigar shop, said he discovered the escape
when he came from dinner; he went to
dinner ut 90 minutes Of 12 O'Clock, and
returned 10 minutes after 1 O'Clock was
in the cell at o'clock of the mornin. OF
the escape at 10 o'clock was at the door,
but did not go in the convicts were all a.
their Places, at work. ut that time ex.
pecteh that if Il break would occur it
would be at the dinner hour; thought
tina: il the Buzz ,rtls woald havo been re
moved from the cigar shop there would
have been no trouble ; two weeks before
the escape board had been cut in the
cigar shop after that stricter watch was
kept, and Mr.. Burkholder's dog was put
in the ice house never gave the men any
money the morning Of the escape was
busy liz the packing room.
Aldus G. Herr, tho contractor for tho =
prison labor for the manufacture of cigars,
Was next called. He said {: | was at tho
prison during the forenoon when | left
tho prisoners we're all there !; heard of the
escape on East King street; my impres-
sion is that there had been nO cutting of
the wall the evening before, for my fore
man goes into the shop after they quit
work my foreman On the morning Of the
escape was part of the time in the shop,
part of the time in the packing room and
part of tho time in the room where the
binders arc separated from the wrappers;
never gave prisoner 4 cent Of money;