The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-04-04

did both the prison guards and the rebel
hous cOnvicts that October morning.
Shots were exchanged at a range of less
than twenty feet between the guards and
the prisoners. A dozen OF the latter who
were near the gates darted outside Of the
walls, and. rifles in hand. started for the
town OF Yuma No Calling gun was ever
worked more rapidly and unerringly than
on the penitentiary walls at that time,
and the WinChesters in the hands of an
other guard on the walls nred BAH eV-
cry three seconds. Nine OF the fleeing
conFicts dropped wounded in their tracks.
Three more threw up their hands as sign
OF surrender. and in this fashion walked
back TO the prison yard.
The attention of the guards was turned
TO the mutiny in the yard, but there the
Calling gun could not be used, because
of the angle in which il had TO be trained.
only the Winchester rifles could be used.
For few minutes there was a terrific
exchange Of shots, and few of them went
astray from their marks. Five prisoners
and three guards fell dead almost at one
anOJhers feet, while three prisoners We're
wounded for life. One guard was shot
four times through the body and lived
several years. The uninjured prisoners
threw up their hands because they were
out Of cartridges, and We're marched 20
their cells. The wooden building IN front
of which the guards stood in their hand
tO-hand battle is still shown in evidence
OF the ferocity of the fight There are lVl
bullet holes in it. Some of them Were
made by the lead after it had passed
through a mans body. The battle was ali
over in five minutes. Not a word was
spoken by any of the participants. Guard
Hartlee stood like = statue at his post,
shooting whenever he could get bead on
one OF the COnVicts. After the fight, when
asked how he felt during the contest. he
said: Il started in like l had a hard day 5
work to do and ! wanted to get through
as quickly as possible" The experience
of these ten cOnvicts during their five
minutes taste of liberty has gone far
toward preventing any similar outbreak
In the history of the prison only one
man has succeeded in crossing these
Mexican deserts and reaching safety in old
Mexico. This was a half-breed Mexican,
whose Indian blood came out in the skill
with which he eluded pursuit and pre-
served his life during his terrible march
ne obtained a gun after getting outside
the prison, and with this he was able
to Kill rabbit and a small bird, which
furnished his sole Sustenance for about
ten days. lie was traced more than 100
miles by Yuma Indian trailers, when they
lost all track of him in a long, rocky
canyon. 1t was learned afterward that
he applied for shelter at a ranch house
near the Mexican border and obtained
aid. The rancher, who was an Amerf-
tered and fOrlorn looking tramp. with a
face which looked Ike a mummy, so
blackened was the skin by the sun and
so trightful the emaciation, standing just
outside his fence gnaWing like a dog a bit
of old rawhide which bound two palings
together. The furnishing fugitive still wore
his convict trousers and the rancher could
easily see that he was an escape from
the .Penitentiary, but the poor Wretch's
terrible suferings appealed to his sym
pathy, and he fed and helped him on
his way to Sonora. There he was er-
fectually lost to all pursuit. Such was
the experience of the only convict who
was ever successful in Drawing the Ari-
IONA desert