The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-02-04
coNvIcTs SAVE A oomRApE.

| CoNvICrs SAVE A ooMRADE.
Thrilling Story of the Escape of the
Mare Island Navy ard Prisoners.
From the San Francisco Examiner.
Privates DAILY, Hall and Cliffy, who
escaped from the naval prison at Mare
Is land, last Saturday night, left United
States soil Tuesday morning on the
! steamer Walla Walla, bound for Victoria
B. G. Unless the Walla Walla breaks
down or is driven into some American
port there is no prospect of their being re-
taken on this side of the continent.
There is an element of dash and daring
and loyalty to comrade in the escape of
the trio that lifts it out of the ordinary
rut of jail-breakng stories.
| Saturday afternoon the three prisoners
were employed in patching the roof of the
| light tower in preparation for the winter
| rains. All their work was on the inside.
| There was little nail-driving to do, and
| it was under cover of the noise created by
| this that the break was made All the
| preparations had been made some time
| ago, but Saturday night offered the first
| opportunity for carrying the plans into
effect. Hall and DAILY, the original con-
| Spirators, had obtained possession of two
| fine saws and cold chisel, and took Cliffy,
new prisoner, hut an old shipmate on
| the Boston, into their confidence, because
| he was the nearest to them in the prison
and was usually detailed to work with
| them.
Saturday morning, when sent into the
| tower, the three decided that their time
had come, and when they climbed to their
| perch on the rafters they carried their
| tools with them and also their hammock
lashings. A hammock lashing be
it known, is twenty-foot length
of thin, stout BEDFORD, used to contine the
hammock in such roll as will permit of
its being snugly stored in the MEETINGS in
| the bulwarks or transoms.
The marines on guard in the prison
were continually on the move, but it was
| quite dark when they were called to the
| extreme south end of the prison on some
errand which promised to keep them for
several minutes All the while they were
within seeing range Hall and DAILY had
kept up a vigorous hammering and
| smashing uof their brushes, while Cliffy,
who was almost out of sight in the tower,
put in his time saving through three of
| the iron bars calculated to prevent escape
| by that route. His saws were well creased,
and the efforts of his pals covered any slight
noise the severing of the bars might make.
1t was not long job, and twenty minutes
before the hour forknocking off work and
! going to cells the trio were out on the
roof
| Here the hammock lashings were
| brought into play to bridge the gap of
/ thirty feet between the roof and the
| ground. 1t was an awfully slender bridge,
and not one of the trio made the slide
without the sharp cord cutting his
hands to the bone. Whether the
| prisoners expected to find boat or not
they did not state, but their outside
! friends had prepared for the emergency
| of there being nothing to ferry them
across the straits to mainland by slowing
| three ife-preservers away in nook near
| the east end of the Hospital Building.
! All three stripped to their I'M
| derclothes, made bundles of
| their uniform trousers, shirts,
| caps and shoes, which they strapped to
| the backs of their heads with belts, and
! inside of three minutes from the time
| they had reached the ground all three
were fighting their way through the
waves towards Vallejo.
| 1t was too dark for them to expect
| discovery from the island, and they felt
no fear on this score in
striking out from the shadow
of the hospital wharf. Hall
| and DAILY made good progress, but poor
| Cliffy was choked with the salt water
that splashed in his face. This, added TO
| his lack of knowledge of swimming, held
! him back, and the others generously
| stayed with him.
It was we'll for Clify that they did
| When little over half the distance had
been covered his awkward foundering
burst his preserver, and in an instant it
/ filled and acted as a weight to drag him
/ down instead of a support. He was sink
ing when Hall and DAILY appreciated his
plight and hurried to his rescue. Each
( contributed to holding him up until he was
! rid of the numbering wGter-tilled bag,
! and then there was a brief, earnest
! council.
CIify gave himself up for lost and so
| expressed himself to his comrades.
/ mot bit of it, old man" said Hall;
| "well stay with you as long as there's
a chance for any of US"
The waves were running so high that
I Hall and DAILY could not do any more than
/ take care of themselves, but they man
/ aged to put heart enough in him to take
grip of shoulder OF each of them, and
thus burdened, the two swimmers
renewed their battle The tide was
against them, and they were more dead
/ than alive when their feet felt the CRATE
! ful touch of the soft mud of the shoal
| below Starts Mills at South Vallejo, a
| good mile and half from their starting
! point.
Here Cliffy proved the savior He
! knew that an old, retired man-o'-warsman
! had a little farm somewhere DebWeeu
/ South Vallejo and Benicia, ana he led the
way in search of this ranch They found
! IL about MIDNIGHT. and the old salts cot
tage was veritable harsor of refuge. He
built roaring fire, gave them strong, hot
| coffee. dried their underclothes and finally
logged them out with all the old clothes
he could find.
They remained under cover until mid,
night OF Monday, when they were smuggled
aboard the Walla Walla. rearing search
If The steamer they descended to the coal
hole. where one Of them had friend and
tbev posed as hremen and coal-passers
until the turn Of the screw informed them
they were away from the dock.