Beverly banner. [volume] (Beverly, N.J.) 1877-1964, 1886-07-31
COOL JACKS TUNNEL UNDER THE
PRISON WALL.

perseverance, and nerve. He was
sentenced to ten years for safe rob-
berry, which he committed alone, or
was attempting to commit, when ar
rested. He had no relatives in the
county, and could not depend upon
any of the fraternity" for assistance
from the outside. When he was lying
in Jail awaiting trial he formed the ac-
quaintance of crook who had done
time at Michigan City, and this man
gave him pretty fair diagram of the
buildings and yards. Mcdonald faith
fully studied it for weak points, and
he found one even before he entered
the place. When he arrived he de
MED that he ever worked at any trade
and also pleaded poor general health.
Owing to these facts he was made a
Jumper, which is the prison term for
man of all work, and was assigned to
a blacksmith shop. His duties were
to run errands for this shop and assist
in any piece of work where his ser
vices could be useful.
The place in which the stock of iron
was kept was the building nearest the
wall. 1t had no floor, but the earth
was hard. Some of the iron bars stood
on end in piles, while other portions
Of the stock rested on rough benches
made for the purpose. There was
another Jumper besides Mcdonald for
the same shop. and he was soon sound
ed as to his views on an attempt to es-
cape. He was on short term and
declined to enter into any scheme.
Mcdonald also judged him to be a
man who would not hesitate to betray
fellow convict who was working for
his liberty. and he realized that he
must guard against him. Fortunately
for the safe blower, the fellow was fat
lazy, and unsuspicious, and only too
willing for some one else TO do all his
work. 1t therefore soon happened that
when stock was wanted for the shop,
or there was anything to be taken to
the wood shop or storehouse, Melon
aid was the one called upon. If both
went to the stock house together, Pete
had no objections to hiding away for
half nm hour and taking a smoke while
Mcdonald got out what they were af-
ter.
Across one corner of the building Il
great lot of iron bars stood slanted up
in such way as to leave considerable
space behind them. 1t was stock sell
dom used, as the safe blower soon in
forned himself. After he had been
imprisoned three weeks and the stock
house had not in that time been visit
ed once by M official he began tun-
mel. He slipped in behind the bars
of iron one morning and made an in
spection and calculation. 1t was
twenty Eight feet to the wall, and the
wall was down five or six feet. He
had previously secreted IL spade in the
house and his work on the tunnel last
ed fifteen minutes. This was all the
time he dared steal. On that same
day his fellow Jumper met with an ac-
cident, and was laid up for six weeks.
his place was taken by a convict
known hs sucker, and not another
stroke of work could be done on the
tunnel until Pete returned.
Three months from the time Nc.
Donald entered the prison he had
gone down four feet and begun his
drift. S me days he got in ten min
utts' work, and sometimes two or three
days passed without doing stroke
The space behind the iron took care of
his dirt, but one had only to step to
that end of the building to discover the
tunnel. When the convict began the
drift he dug with II broken lrowel, and
hauled the dirt ont in and old paint
keg. Each time he went into the hole
he ran the risk of some one entering
the stock houses to look for him, and
each time he came out he had to care
fully brush his clothing lest speck
of fresh dirt would betray him. He
had the drift half way to the wall
when Il bar of iron fell on his foot, and
it was seventy.one days before he re
turned to work. During every work
ing hour in all those days his tunnel
was liable to discovery, and he was
never once approached by an official
without feeling for the moment that he
was to be charged with the enterprise.
When he finally returned to work
everything was as he left it. 1t was
now coming on to fall and Mcdonald
was anxious to go ahead with his tun.
mel before cold weather should set in.
For good many days he managed to
dig few inches each day, but it was
seYeeas4, naHstthi his before he struck the
prison wall. He had run his drift on
such sharp slant that it was a hard
task to back out of it, but he was not
deep enough by foot.
One day, just as the tunnel was un
der the wall, prison official came to
the stock house, inspected some of the
bars behind which the convict had
been working, and gave the Jumpers
orders to remove them to another por-
ton of the building to make room for
new stock. just the slightest suspic-
ions. Pete was ready to set about the
removal at once, but Mcdonald bar
gained to do the work if the others
would mind the light duties about the
shop. When left alone the safe blow
er entered the tunnel and began dig
ging as if for his life. For one long
hour he took his chances of being miss
ed from the shop, and when he crawl
out his work was finished. He had
seen daylight through the roots of the
grass on the other side of the wall be-
fore he quit. There was but one more
link to the chain. He dared not go
out by daylight. 1t was now dark as
the men knocked off, and he must re-
main behind MS they marched in. He
would be missed in ten minutes but
that would give him time. When the
bell struck Mcdonald closed the doors
of the stock house and entered his tun-