Arizona republican., 1895-11-24
MARICOPA COUNTY JA[LS. How She Has Kept Her
 Criminals. The Rude LoCkups of Bygone
 Days A noVable Calaboose That Was Carried Away by Two
 Prisoners.

A group of old timers, the other after noon. were seated in the area of the courthouse, next the sheriff's office. Dinner was over, pipes were in order, their feet were at the proper elevation and their minds were reminiscent.
 Someone had spoken of the excel lencies of the new county prison, and Jailors John Boyd and Charlie Slank- ard had told that they considered it the best in the west The talk naturally drifted around to the early lockups, of the time when few arrests were made for petty crimes.
 The first jail for the county was made about TO and was simply double box, without a floor. Each cell was about SxSx7, the material being several layers of inch boards, profusely spiked. There was a good lock on each door and all went we'll till prisoner escaped by the very simple method of digging out un- der the edge of the jail. Then Sheriff Reub Thomas got a great big boulder and had a ring bolt set in it. He buried the boulder in the center of the floor and shackled to it his worst prls- oners No escapes were ever made from the boulder, which probably yet reposes on the site of the old court house, where Talbocs hardware store is. on the south side of Washington, near Center.
 Later a double compartment strap iron cage was added and was in use till the building of the new courthouse in 'S4. Several of the old cells were then donated to the city and are now in use in the city hall basement Another pair lately were sent down to Gila Bend.
 Probably the worst jail of all was the one lately vacated. Through the brickwork and through the grated door prisoners escaped with seeming ease and they might as we'll have been herded in the open air.
 When the city first was organized there was no jail ready. One day the city marshal arrested Babe even now the most notable of the city's drunk ards, and a man of herculean frame Together with an almost equally power ful Mexican prisoner, Babe" was chained for safe keeping to a great cot tonwood log that lay by the sidewalk Of side street. Needless to note, both prisoners were "dry," so they picked up their log, which would have taxed the axles of a wagon, placed it on their shoulders and carried it to a saloon several blocks away, where they were afterWard found by the marshal, still safely chained to their 'jail"
 One tale contri bujed by a Hassayam- per was of the first jail at Tempe. Bill Fellows was the constable and in his front yard was 6 thick carpet of Der . muda grass, shadowed iby number oi sturdy and oaklike fig trees. When Bill had prisoner to hold over night in summer time he usually chained him to 8 tree, called his attention to the figs that fell from above and to a ditch of water near at hand. Then the con stable would retire to sleep the sleep oI the just while @ collie dog kept watcf over the criminal.
 There is no necessity for any of tha monkey business now" said Boyd, a: he arose to admit the Chinaman witt the prisoners afternoon meal. 'I anyone ever gets away from this plact it will not be the fault of the jail.