The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1893-02-11
LIVING TOMB.
Remarkable Career of Eilly Carroll,
Convict.
tie Killed Georgetown Bank Waterman,
and while Serving Lie Term lie slew
n Fellow Prisoncr-Einally lie Is Re-
stored to Light and Liberty

COLUMBUS, Feb. G.-The penalty of |
solitary confinement for life imposed |
upon Murderer George Jones at the |
penitentiary Saturday calls to mind |
the wonderful experience of Billy Car
roll, the noted convict, who occupied a
living tomb for nearly twenty years.
Not since Carroll was pardoned by Gov. |
Foraker, on Thanksgiving day, 1889, has |
the punishment of solitary confinement |
for any length of time been inflicted
ut the Ohio state prison. CarrolPs
case is one of the most dramatic and in
tcnsely interesting within the criminal
annals of the state. The crime which
brought him behind prison bars was
the robbery of the treasury of Brown
county and the murder of the watch
man, an old man named Adam Rose. 1t
was committed October 81, 1856. The
Job was done by Samuel Huling, John
| j. Benton, David Jones and William
| Carroll, all desperate crooks They were
| discovered in the act of blowing the
yafe by the old watchman and shot
aim dead in order 70 escape. They fed
TO Cincinnati, where ell but Huling
we're captured few days later. posse
If deputy sheriffs started for George
| lown with the prisoners, Peter McCor-
nick, of New Richmond, being in
'harge of Carroll. McCormicll's man
| rot away from him at New Richmond,
ind every effort TO retale him proved
lutile The others were sent up ior
erms ranging from five to fifteen years.
md in the meantime large reward
vas offered for Carroll, who was sup
,osed to have done the shooting.
Eor about year nothing was heard OF
i'm, and then the authorities learned
hat man in Illinois answered the de-
cliption of the fugitive. The suspect
proved to be Edwin w. Smith, pros
jerous citizen of Joliet, and his arrest
or the Brown county murder caused a
Great sensation. He waived all for
nalities and came willingly to Ohio as
lie said, to show the people that he
vas not the man. Despite strong de-
ense Carroll was convicted and sen
, enced to life imprisonment for the
murder of old Adam Rose.
In Decemper, 1870, Carroll killed an
,ther man. His victim was james
Sothe, Hamilton county convict ant
elbow prisoner with Carroll. Th
!, rhine was the reult Of quarrel owe
,he ownership of patent that Carol
:. ,ad conceived. For this he was takel
,ut of prison and tried. Upon convic
lion he received the remarkable sen
.ence of ten years in addition to the lif
= ;erm he was already serving. Whe
he was taken back to the penitentiar
: | no
o Of solitary confinement for life upo
y Carroll, as it was feared his ungoverr
;. able temper would result in still al
h other tragedy if he was allowed t
mingle with the other prisoners. Th
= cell occupied by Carroll for ninetee
. wears was about four feet wide, seve
'' feet long and eight feet high. II
never stepped outside of this little hol
in the stone wall for nearly quartz
of century. He was an inventi'
n' genius, and managed to while awa
:, the dreary hours and days and yea
~ in works of mechanism. During h
u Imprisonment he invented car-heat
IL and several other valuable apparatus
10 for railroads His cell was in the ca
u wing of the prison and almost in t
~ shadow of the annex. Carroll used
A' say that he did not mind his confr
10 ment so much as the executions goil
d on in the death chamber. There w
10 always great doubts in the minds of t
i1 public as to whether the Edwin Smi
d. arrested at Joliet, Ills, was the Bill
10 Carroll who played the leading role
% the Brown county tragedy, and upon t
u discovery of strong evidence that it W
u not a case of DIR Jekyll and y
II = Hyde" Gov. Foraker granted the ce
!. brated prisoner his liberty. Mrs. FL
10 aker had become deeply interested
= the case, and on Thanksgiving MOI
g ing of that memorable day in Carol
a strange career, she drove up to the pc
y. itentiary gate in the gubernational G.
a riage. Alighting she carried to Ward
~ Coffin the pardon, and was the first
ha congratulate Carroll when he walk
"a out free man.