The Arkansaw traveler., 1885-07-18

night the object being that the covering up of the "dummies on the night ot escape should not excite suspicion in the mind of the guard on his rounds, which were made every two hours These dum- mies-intended to represent the escaped prisoners asleep in their oeds-were curiosity in themselves. One of them, remember, was made up principally of lnaves ot bread, contribution of some half do1en prisoners from their private store. Excitement kep; me awake during good part ot the night. The next morn- ing, a while before daylight, my ear was | attracted by the sound of a guard walking rapidly down the hall ID front of our cells. was at once satisfied that the escape had been detected, which afterward proved to be true h mounting the guards upon the wall the beli-rope was found cut. and an investiga asion followed at once. Immediately the guard came in and, approaching the grated door ot each cell, called to the inmate to see he was there. As the cells of the escaped prisoners were reached of course no re- sponse was given, Instead of opening the cell long stick was punched through the gratings, the beds uncovered and the I this was done never knew, unless 1t were that the severed bell-rope so excited the apprehension of the guards that they feared to release even one prisoner at lime from his cell. When the fact of the escape had been rendered certain by these means, m any were the Speculations indulged as to the mode of scape. The doors of each cell were critically ex- amiued and found secure. Attention was then turned to the iron-grated windows, but these were also found secure; then an inspection was made of the hue, back of the stove, and lastly, of the stove-plpe itself as possible modes of exit. All this could be perceived from our cells partly by look ing through the grating, partly from con. versation that was overheard but not suspicion of the true mode of escape sug- gested itself until just about daybreak the qulck slppered tread of a convict was heard passing down the hall He dis covered the mouth of the tunnel just out side the prison wall He communicated his information to the guards. and the whole thing became clear The cells were inspected, the holes fpund and the escape explained. Even then, however, the wonder of the guards did not cease
 At little later period Governor Brough with the military authorities came to Tn. spect the priso, !, and when they saw the holes in the various cells, still the inq Iiry was: What had been done with the uirt,
 the mortar and the brick taken from the
 first hole before the air-chamber was reached It was not until a later period that they learned that Sam Taylor 1 be- lieve 1t was) had stuffed the cement nor tar and bricks into his own bed and slept upon them until the air-chamber was reached.
 An interesting occurrence took place at the breakfast hour Old man Heavey had been our first guard his kindness to the prisoners had induced his removal A fellow name Hoffman hao followed him, and he had been substituted by one named Scott, familiarly styled "Sco,ty.' There was a jealousy between Scott and Hoffman-the latter having been removed to make place for the former as our guard It was the abit for one range of prisoners to go to breakfast at a time, all teinating as to which should go first { The privilege had been accorded General Morgan to have his breakfast brough, to his cell, which was the last one in the upper range. This, It will be remem- bered, was now occupied by Dick Mor- gan, with whom the general had ex- f changed cells the evening before.
 When the escape was first discovered the fact that General Morgan had es- capped did not seem to occur to the prison officials, and this, suppose, is one reason why the telegraphng was SO long de- fauAd nn thaf rnnYpinU fha nnnAV ftAv was called first to breakfast. Alter they had gone to the breakfast room, Hoffm an came into the hall and, encounterlpg is General Morgan" stating that come to his breakfast responded
 man immediately went up, walked into the cell, and there encountered Dick Morgan. His first exclamation on gsxing at Colonel Dick was, By, knowed it 1" and he seemed to chuckle with de- light at the disgrace of his friend Scotty.
 This failure to discover the absence of General Morgan, and the failure to teIe- graph the fact of the escape when first discoveied, have always seemed to me among the strapgest circumstances con- nected with this affair. If the telegraph . had been freely used as soon as the es- cape was discovered, it is almost certain that Morgan and Hines would have been captured before reaching Cincinnati They had taken that route supposing hat-they would reach Cincinnati before the guards were mounted in the morning. A detention of the train caused them to reach there suppose not less than an hour after the discovery was made. 1 have always supposed that modification and chagrin caused the warden to lese his presence of mind. and that he shrank from revealing to ihe military authorities the escape of the prisoners who had been intrusted to him for specific safe-keeping.
 This article would hardly be complete without another incident in which Mir.