Morning journal and courier., 1888-04-06
A MODERN JACK SHEPARD.
It Ks . Strong Prison Indeed That Ca
 Hold John Sansome.

From the San Francisco Alta.1
 Chief of Police Crowley yesterday received
 telegram from Auburn, Placer county, i'm
 forming him that John Sansome, the noted
 stage robber, burglar and safe-cracker, con- vieted in Auburn of a stage robbery, has been sentenced for life to State prison.
 By the incarceration of Sansome the crim-
 inal community loses shining light, and . genius who has achieved reputation \ throughout the State for reckless daring and ! cleverness in making his escape from almost every prison in the country. Indeed he ri- vailed repeatedly the daring deeds of Jack | Shepard, and the State prison at San Quen- tin apparently had no chains strong enough \ to hold him whenever he took it into his I head to leave that institution.
 Sansome's criminal career comm snced over twenty-five years ago, or at least it was then that his first crimination was recorded on the calendars. In 1863 Sansome was convicted of grand larceny and sentenced to serve one year in San Quentin. He completed his term, committed burglary and inside of three months after his release was arrested for cracking safe, convicted and sent back
 to San Quentin for three years. He made
 his escape in January, 1866. After 8 brief period of liberty he was recaptured and rs turned to prison. He completed his term and was discharged in 1868. Sansome was
 arrested several times during the next three years for burglary and other ofenses, but managed each time to escape conviction.
 However, in 1871 the law got grapevine
 lock on him and threw him into San Quen-
 tin again, this time to serve out eighteen
 years on conviction of burglary Sansoms enjoyed the prison comforts for year. and
 then tiring of the prison diet, again escaped.
 He enjoyed the sweets of liberty for two
 years, till in 1874 he was recaPtured. By
 the aid of some clever attorneys he was
 brought up before the Supreme court on
 writ of habeas corpus and discharged. He
 stayed out of trouble just about eight
 months. In 1875 he was arrested again for
 burglary, convicted and sent to his favorite quarters. San Quentin, for fifteen years. He was apparently contentcd with his surround ings, for he made no attempt to escape until in 1880, when he was transferred from San Quentin to Folsom. One year of Folsom was enough for him, for in 1881 he made his es- cape again and wondered through Tuelumne, Placer and Ell Dorado counties, robbing stages right and left. He was again recap
 tured in 1882, served four more years and in 1886 was pardoned and discharged Since then he has kept his hand in at stage-rob-
 ping, burglary and any other little thing that turned up. few months ago he tackled the Forest City stage, and because the driver would not stop Sansome fired into the stage, wounding two of the passengers. few days later he stopped another stage and robbed the treasure-box of several hundred dollars. A general hunt WAS made for him and he was caught on the train between this city and Sacramento. His life sentence was for his last exploit. If Sansome is as suc- cessful in the future as he has been in the past in leaving prison whenever he feels so inclined, it probably will not be long before he is again making it lively for Wells, Fargo 6 Go. s stage-drivers.
 This modern Jack Shepard is native of Missouri, about fifty years of age. His photograph, taken last year at Sacramento, shows him to be most determined-looking man, dark complexisned and apparently about five feet nine and one-half inches high. The most noticeable feature about the man is the expression of his eyes, which have most savage, determined look. They would be noticed and singled out from among thou sands as those ot reckless criminal. San some weighs about one hundred and fifty pounds and is mass of muscle. He is re- markedly powerful, as quick as cat and game to the backbone. Though utterly un- educated, he is cunning to 8 degree and sharp as a needle.
 Sansome had no particular method of es- csping-any way to get out was good enough for him. When he escaped from Folsom he tunneled through solid walls of masonry, and ran his tunnel over two hundred feet with only the poorest apologies of tools to work with