The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1893-06-08
THAT CONVICT GENIUS,
SHOWS HOW HE GOT OVER
THE WALL.

Haz rd"us But welI-PIaunsd Feat
Buried Tcoa.uro What Hs Went Out te
Get-His Wonderful story.
COLUMBIA, :. g., May 27.-There is
another chapter in the story OF the es.
cape OF Albert Jenkins, the red haired
and crippled inventive convict genius
OF the South Carolina Penitentary. it
Is the concluding chapter of Jenkins
escape, which for it's ingenuity and sue
cess has excited kind of admiration
for the rascal.
Jenkins, as was announced yesterday
was captured at an early hour on Con-
ductor l}abb's train at I.eesville. The
conductor took him on to Augusta and
there placei him in Jail to await the ar
IlVal OF the penitentiary authorities.
Capt. Allen Of the penitentiary guard
le1t on the early morning train for
Augusta, saw the execution in the iall
lnere and returned at 3.3O yesterday
afternoon with his prisnoer. a corp
or guards met him at the depot and he
turned jenkins over to them. The
prisoner was made to walk back to the
penltentlary. Every one all along the
route from Augusta here had heard of
Jenkins remarkable escape and at each
station they filed in the car to take a
LOOK at the man. At the penitentiary
there was quite crowd of officials and
newspaper men awaiting his return.
Jenkins did not seem to be downcast
but was in rather a happy, joking hui
| NOR. lie is Il young man and is Grip
| pied, his back aad legs being so injured
That ne can hardly walk, and is pita-
bic sight when in motion. He has a
good and Intelligent face. His voice
Is soft and altogether nine men out of
| ten would pronounce him very good
negro 1t is only when In conversation
! that the sharpness and wit Of the fel-
low Is made apparent. lie parties all
questions prOpounded to him like a
skilled lawyer.
Nhen the negro WAS broaght in he
wore what appeared to be Il solid suit
OF clot hes, looking as If they had be-
longed to some turpentine hand. lie
stood in the crowd inside the gate and
with broad smile on his face dotfed
his hat and saluted Col. Neal when he
appeared. lie had already told Capt
Allen how he had accomplished his es-
cape and among other things told how
he managed TO get over the wall of the
prison 10y means of a long iron rake,
which. after he had used it, he had
thrown into the canal Just below the
collier dam. Capt Alien ordered the
sergeant to take a detail and carry the
fellow around to the canal to find the
! implement referred to. jenkins took
OIL his shoes, Waded out into the water
and had no trouble in liuding the rake
When he came back Col Neal made
nm show how he managed to scale the
wall. Jenkins sad that after coming
down the long pole at the end of the
| building he had Sleaked to the wood
| Wlacn hA had hpnn io1 D, - Il;
DAILY duties, and had hidden the rake.
| Here be began the reprodr ction of his
| escape.
lie event to the high brick wall near
the wood pile. 1t was directly under
the point where Il smoke stack guy
wire was fastened to the wall at the
top. lie got on some barrels which
raised HIM high enough to catch the
wire, whlch was about eight feet high,
with the rake. He then proc eeded to
go up the rake handle, hand over hand.
with wonderful agility, reaching the
Top OF The wall IN few moments. The
descent on the other side Col Neal
would not permit him to make. 1t
was too hazardous. lie told how he
had done it..
On reaching the top Of the wall ne
had craWled along towards the guards
post about 100 feet distance, until he
reached an old scatlold bracket which
had been left when the stone cappings
had been placed on the walls 1t was
iully forty 1eet to the ground and Jenk
ms dld not wish to leave his rake on
the wall Below the bracket about ten
1eet was an iron bolt projecting about
eight inches from the wall and at the |
same distance below was another of
similar kind. Jenkins says he caught
ms rake in the bracket and lowered
himself to the first bolt He swung to |
TINS with one hand while he released his |
rake winch he then caught on the bolt. !
IlnS ne repeated until he reached the |
giound. 1T was perilOuS feat. The |
convict then went IOWn the canal bank |
ana chunkcd hi' rake into the water,
so AS To leave no trace Of his escape.
lie then went down the river, and
reached the COngaree river bridge of
the Richmond and Danvile road about |
daylight. He crossed over and went
into the woods at once. lie lay quietly
IN the woods all that day, and the next
day he moved further on towards Lex
lngton. All that he had to cat was
hucklcherr!cs, and never tasted any
other food till he reached Augusta yes
terday morning.
lie ielt pretty certain Thursday
morning that he was going to be cap.
tured lie was asked why, and an
Swered that he Lad been lying down in |
the woods sleep, and had dream that
he was under Il shed and woke up to
llnd man standing over him with Il |
pistol. That scared hlm. He woke I'D |
and never had any hope Of getting |
away after that.
When he got into the woods he knew |
that his convict stripes would give him |
away If any one should see him, and |
he thought ont and executed a scheme |
that was in keeping with his other
acts. lie happened to be on Il turpen-
tine farm. lie went to one of the |
"cups" and poured turpcntine all over
his clothes. Then he went to a spot |
covered with black soil, and rolled over
and over in il. After an hours work |
he had black suit Of clothes and lost |
no time in making the front part of his
pants shiny, TO make them resemble
the clothes worn by the ordinary tur-
pentine lab0rrr. Few men would be
able to detect the convict stripes.
lie said that ne had got tired Of
waiting about in the woods and on
Thursday night he walked into Lex
"a m inf cf al, to-.