The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-08-18
THE HISTORY or AN ESCAPE.
HOW TRAINROBBER PERRY
SCALED THE WALLS OF MAT
TEWAN ASYLUM.

How Keeper Hopkins Unlocked the
Cell Doors Himself, and Was 10
Have Hidden a suit of Clothes and
a Gun in a Convenient Place, But
Failed 10 Do II, Which Led TO Per-
rvs Rearrest-Mrs. "Mfssionary''
HasweII and Her Part in the Little
Drama-HOpkins' Arrest.
Poughkeepsie. N. Y, Aug. 17.-William
A. Hopkins, we'll known resident Of Low
Point, is locked in the Jail in this city
on a charge OF aiding and abetting the
commission of felony in bringing about
the escape of Train Robber Perry and five
other convicts from the Mattewan asy
lum last April. Hopkins has admitted his
guilt and duplicates Mrs. Amelia Has
well, Troy woman, who poses as mis-
sionary and a friend of Perry. in the
plot to let the men escape.
Mrs. HasweH is now at Ocean Grove.
She will be arrested, and as Hopkins has
expressed to District Attorney Wood his
willingness to turn states evidence. the
officials expect to convict the woman
and land her in prison.
Hopkins is about 40 years of age and
was a keeper in the Mattewan asylum.
When Perry was admitted there the two
men got acquainted, but what negotia-
tions passed between them at first Is
not known. AT any rate, oct. Is last
HOPKINS received through the Glenham
postofIice a package containing a gold
watch and various articles of jewelry, the
estimated value of the lot being $1,000. The
package came from Mrs. Haswell, the
= fhfarf
have since learned was given to Hopkins
in consideration of his agreement to aid
Perry to escape.
Hopkins turned the jewelry into cash,
but il is said. realized less than $500 for
the lot. The jewelry was a part of that
which Perry got in the first American
Express robbery at Utica and which he
turned over to his Troy friend, Mrs. Has
well, before he was arrested. After Per-
rvs transfer to Mattewan Mrs. HaSwell
visited him many times, and no one sus-
pected that she was anything but the mis-
sionary that she claimed to be. She
brought Penny Bibles and religious pa
pers and the train robber called her
Mother" and told those about him how
much good she was doing him spiritually.
Hopkins furnished materials for Perry
and other convicts to make into keys and
allowed his own men two keys to be used
as models. He also unlocked one OF the
two locks on the cell doors on the night
of the escape.
It seems that by agreement between
Perry and Hopkins, the letter was to leave
a suit of clothes and pistol near at hand
at the Brinckerhoff race track where the
train robber could find them after he as
capped Hopkins, however, failed to keep
this part of the agreement and Perry, al
ter his return to Mattewan was highly
incensed against the keeper for not doing
so. He made repeated attempts to reach
Hopkins, but the latter had in the mean-
time been removed from the asylum for
intoxication. Then Perrys father and Mrs.
Haswell wrote several letters to Hopkins,
through the Low Point postoffice, demand
ing the return of the valuables, claiming
the ex-keeper's failure to leave the clothes
and pistol at the pond had been the cause
of Perry's recapture. These letters were
important clues in fixing Hopkins guilt.
Perry was not content to remain at Mat
tewan once having tasted the sweets of
liberty and opened negotiations with Keep
er James c. NJ. Mcdonald to aid him to
escape. That was where Perry made a
mistake for Mcdonald reported the matter
to the superintendent, detectives were put
on the case and the arrest followed.