The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-05-12
BACK TO SING SING.
Man Who Says He is an Escaped
Convict Surrenders Himself.

II is strange story which comes from
Sing Sing prison.
At 3 o'clock yesterday afternoon, a man
who described himself as William Shipsey,
an escaped convict from Sing Sing, pre-
santed himself to Head Keeper Connaugh-
ton. of that institution, with the remark
mat he had come to give himself up to serve
ont the remainder Of his sentence.
He said that on April II, 1878, he was
sentenced by Recorder Hackett to five
Years at hard labor in Sing Sing prison for
grand larceny, he having robbed barge at
fhe foot of Pitts street, a then somewhat
notorious locality, where peculiarly afro
cious murder had been committed some
Years previously.
After having served four months Of this
time, Shipsey, or the man describing him
self by that name to Headkeeper Con-
naughton, says that, with two other con-
victs, he escaped from Sing Sing on Septem-
Der 25 1873.
He oShipsey) had since banged about the
country and had tried to make living, but
with Indifferent success. He admitted that
he had engaged in criminal practices in
other States than in New York, but declared
that he had done nothing since his escape to
render him amenable to the laws here He
had come to give himself up, after the lapse
of fifteen years, because he was utterly dis
couraged and could not make ends meet.
The man cried as he related the story.
THE STORY INVESTIGATED.
Keeper Connaughton, whose experience
in the management of criminals is scarcely
second to that of any man in the country,
did not know at first what to make of the
strange story related by his visitor. He
finally, however, recovered sufficiently from
his astonishment to ask State Detective
jackson, who was present, to send for the
books containing the records of commit
ments to the prison, and with the books be-
fore them the two officials began an exami-
nation Of the man.
The records showed that there was man
bv the name of William Shipsey sent to the
prison by Recorder Hackett in the early
part of 1878, and that he subsequently,
escaped in company with two other CON
yictS in September of that year. The other
particulars regarding the age, occupation,
etc, of the Shipsey who made his escape
from the prison correspondent, after making
due allowance for the interval of time
which has elapsed since the occurrence,
with the statements and general appear
ance of the man who came to give himself
up to the Sing Sing authorities. The fellow
was THU and careworn, but his height,
complexion, color of hair and other charac-
teristics were the same as those of the
escaped convict.
On his right forearm, moreover, there
uas a scar, which, he said, was caused by
the cutting out of certain India ink marks,
which the records of the prison showed the
original William Shipsey had borne on the
same part of his right forearm. The man
said he had cut out the marks himself some
years after his escape to prevent identified
ton.
ONLY AN INSIDER COULD HAVE KNOWN.
To further substantiate his story he re
lated certain circumstances concerning life
at the prison fifteen years ago, which in the
ordinary course of events only an inmate of
the institution at the time could have
known. For instance he told some things
about one Rake Donovan, a notorious
convict at that time, whic were true. The
man was quite we'll dressed, and seemed
really penitent and DESTROYS of serving out
what he claimed was his unexpired sentence.
Keeper Connaughton was not connected
with Sing Sing fifteen years ago, having
assumed a position there two years later,
and so he sent for some of the older under
keepers to see if they could identify the
man.
Several of them thought he was the es-
capped William Shipsey, but they were not
absolutely certain. To render assurance
dOubly sure, Keeper Connaughton required
the man to await the return of Warden
Brush who was not at the prison when he
came, and when the Warden put in an APP
pearance, the fellow was locked up to
await a positive verifcation of his state
ments.
WHAT WAS HIS REASON.
Little doubt is expressed by the officials
of the prison that the man is William Ship
sey, but they are all anxious to know what
can have been his true reason for surrender
ing himself From their standpoint of OBJ
bax 10
believe that the proceeding was dictated by
feelings of remorse or penitence. They
think he must have some stronger reason
Sor 1t than he has given, and that possibly
he wishes to bury himself in Sing Sing for
the next few years to escape the attention
OF the police of some part of the country
who may be looking for him for some
serious crime-perhaps murder.
In the Herald of Friday, Sept 26, 1878,
occurred this account of the escape from
Sing Sing on the preceding day:
"PoUGHKEEPsIE, n. Y, Sept. 25, 1875
Three convicts escaped from Sing Sing
prison this afternoon by jumping on pass
Ing freight train bound south. Their
names are Henry Lee, William Reilly and
William Shipsey"
In another account, published in the
Herdtd on the same day, appeared this I'M
der the CAPTION, Escapes from Sing Sing"
~ miniature panic occurred among the
ot1clals at Sing Sing prison about l o'clock
yesterday afternoon, when it became known
that three convicts had, in desperate re-
solve to escape, jumped on passing freight
train, which bore them southwark from the
prison at rapid rate of speed.
The escaped men were employed at stone
cutting in the prison yard and by some
means they contrived to slip away from
their work unnoticed by the keeper
btealthily repairing to the front of the
main prison, the men lay down on the
masonry work, which forms wall to the
railroad on the west side of the tracks, be-
tween the two arches, and there, after di-
Nestng themselves of the prison uniform,
which left them attired in garments i'm
provised from their cell blankets, the trio
anxiously awaited the arrival of a freight
tram. which passes the prison about 1
o'clock.
THEY BOARD THE TRAIN.
when the eagerly expected train came
numbering past the three conYicts jumped
on the roof of a rear car and in an instant
mad slipped down and secured temporary
shelter between the cars from any bullet
that might be sent in their direction.
None of the guards, however, saw the
movement, and consequently the fugitives
made good their escape. A telegram was
afterward sent by the prison officials to
Iarrytown to intercept the train, but a
search there for the missing men proved
fruitless. A brakeman said that he saw
Two men jump off the train short distance
-