Brenham weekly banner. [volume] (Brenham, Tex.) 1877-1907, 1891-07-30
JAIL DELIVERY.
Lee Hughes, Condemned Wife Muir
derer Escapes. A Large Posse
in Pursuit.


ing that Lee Hughes, the con-
demned wife murderer, had escaped
from the Washington county Jail in
which $4,000 steel cages had recent
ly been placed, seemed so improbable
that it was not credited when
the report was started, but the fact
was soon verified by an examination
of the jail, and Lees absence.
The time of his escape is not
definitely known, the fellow prison
ers of which there were two, stat
ing that it was between one and
two a. m. Tuesday morning, but
Sam Allen, a negro, residing on the
Swearingen place, two miles east OF
here, says that he passed through
his yard at sun-up Tuesday morn
ing, bare-footed and in his under
shirt sleeves, which is pretty good
evidence that it must have beenda-
ter than the other prisoners stated
when he escaped.
The manner of his escape is inter
esting from the fact that he was
confined in these new cages of
chilled steel, which are supposed to
be inYulnerable.
There are four of the steel cages,
the doors of which open into cori-
der between them, the corridor being
closed from the outside by an iron
door locked, and which has combi-
nation bars. On each side of this
door to the corridor is an iron box,
on which is combination lock, on
the inside of which the levers that
work the bars that fasten all five of
the doors and in which the keys to
all of them are kept. On the back
of this iron box was an untitled rivet
hole not large enough for a cedar
pencil to. go through, but it was
through this hole that the prisoner
had to work. The inside doors
were all open, giving the prisoners
the privilege of the four cells and
the hall, and the other prisoners
say that he worked the lever that
unbars the door with the wire
through this small aperture, which
looks like mechanical imposslbility.
But the door was locked also, and
the key in that iron box. This he
showed to the front Of the box with
his wire, and with stick and nail
commenced springing the door to
the box, by inserting the point of
the nail and then driving it up and
inserting a larger wedge until he
could get his stick in there. which
gave him considerable lever power
and sprung the door SO that the
keys dropped to the floor on the
outside of the cage. This done, it
was but the work of a moment to
reach his arm through the bars,
pick them up and, reach around the
bars and unlock the corridor door
of the cells letting himself out into
the large room. Nothing but a
thin brick wall was now between
him and liberty, and heavy win
dow weight lying near by and some
large nails were as good tools as he
needed to go through it, which he
did just beneath a south window,
the opening striking the iron win
dow sill which dropped down sever
al inches below where he had calcu
lated it reached to but he didn't
take time to enlarge much, for be-
ing a small negro he squeezed
through very small opening. Be-
fore doing this however, he had fas.
tened rope to the bars of the win,
dow over his hole, of ample length
to let himself to terra frma below.
The rope was perhaps made prior to
Monday night as the workmanship
on it showed considerable skill, il
being twisted so smooth that il
could scarcely be told that 1t was
made out of one of the Jail blankets.
The other prisoners who of their
own accord remained in jail rather
than embrace this opportunity OF es
Gaping, are Johnnie Jones, a white
boy, charged with unlawfully carry
ing a pistol, aud Al Mcintyre, a ne
gro boy, charged with shooting at g
passing mixed train. They say that
their reason for not giving the
alarm was their fear of Lee Hughes
doing them violence with the stick
or window weight with which he
was armed, and the first intimation
of the escape was about 7 O'Clock
when one of the prisoners called al
old negro woman in the jail yarG
and told her to tell Sheriff league
that the jail was broken open.
A posse was soon formed and
started in pursuit, going in every di
rection, and no effort was spared tt
re-capture him.
THE CAPTURE.
About 600 o'clock p. m. Sherif
league and posse came in with Lei
Hughes, and-cufed and closely
guarded.
He was captured three and hal
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