The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1894-01-17
A BROKEN LADDER.
Intimation That Davis Fixed
Things After the Escape
on Sunday.
FRESH PAINT MARKS.
Miller Sticks to His Story-How
Did He Get Those Four
Saws?

The examination by the Court of Sessions
into the causes and means of the escap of
the three prisoners from the County Jail,
Sunday, was furnished yesterday. The re-
suit was that the stenographer's report OF
the testimony will be presented to Judge
Lippincott and by him turned over to the
Grand Jury. The examination disclosed one
absolute fact, and that was that perjury was
being committed. The prisoner Miller's
story made the case look bad for Jailer
Davis, and the stories of the other witnesses
strongly reminded the listeners of con-
spiracy.
Patrick Reilly, who was discharged from
custody on Monday, and arrested on a capias
yesterday, denied that the prisoner Keller
gave him the keys to the room from which
the prisoners escaped. He said that Hallinan
Mcdonald discovered the open door, and
that Mcdonald went into the room. Reilly
denied that ne was in the bathroom,
The prisoner Coppers, alias Thorpe, who,
fifteen years 60, tried to break Jail, and
who had been made a Mailman by Jailer
Davis, testified that Keller opened the door,
and that Keller got 800 for doing it.
MLLER's DENIAL.
Miller, the r~ecaptured prisoner, denied
that he sawed the iron bars over the window,
and said he did not kno who did it.
Prosecutor Winfield at this point showed
him four small saws, which had been found
in Miller's coat pocket. As soon as Miller
was shown the saws he said lmpresSlvely:-
"These saws were not found in my coat.
l was searched four times and the saws were
not found. When the saws were found ]
was not permitted to see my clothing
But" said the Prosecutor, ''didn't you
lave these saws i'll a hole in the sole of your
shoe when you were brought here Monday?'
"No, sir; l did not. l ask the Court if ]
could lave walked with these saws in this
hole" showing a hole in the sole of his shoe,
"Why, your Honor" he continued, "Jailer
Davis asked a woman who came up in the
van with me if l did not have saws and she
said no, but after Davi took her to one side
and talked to her, she said | did have saws
in my shoes and that | tried to saw through
my handcuff. When / escaped a disused
iron door was placed on a sawdust barrel
and a stepladder leaned against the wall.
The ladder was not broken and was hooked
together. l don't know how Talbot and
Morrel escaped. There was no one in the
room when / fed. | knew | would hav tc
suffer when Jailer Davis said the saws had
been found in my clothing. 1t was a very
mean job to put upon me, because these saws
were not in my clothes"
Kate Rollins, a notorious character who is
in Jail charged with an atrocious assault and
battery on her sister, is the woman that Mil
Ter says first told Davis that Miller did not
nave any saws on him, but that after Davis
talked to her alone she said he did have the
avs. She was made a witness yesterday
and she testified that she saw Miller taxi the
saws from the sole of his shoe. She said he
had some other sharp instrument, n that
he tried to saw through his handcuff. When
convinced that he did not hav time enough
to do this he replaced the saw in his shoe
Thu woman admitted that when Davis frs
asked her if Miller had the saws she denied
it, ''for," she said, II didn't want to &C
against him"
FRESH BREAK
Miller was recalled. He denied that the
step ladder used by him to escape wa:
broken. The ladder was sent for by the
Court, and when produced in court one Of
the legs of the back part of the step ladder
was broken. Miller said that it had beer
| done since Sunday, and he called the atten
| ton of Judge Hudspeth to what he claimed
was a fresh break. The ladder was ex
amined, and Prosecutor Winfield commented
that fresh paint had been put IN the breal
as if it was the intention of some one to dis
guise the appearance of the break. Boil
Davis remarked that the Prosecutor wa.
mistaken, but Mr.. Winfield emphatically
said no, and that ''the paint was put on pur
posely, because the paint was nowhere elst
on the ladder"
Keller testified that Nelson, who was taker
to State Prison last week, had offered hin
500 to lock him in the bathroom. Keller
refused, and he told Mcdonald of the offer