Evening journal., 1896-01-20
THEY FLEW THE COOP.
A Quintet tie of PrisonersEasily
Cut Out of the City Hall.
TWO OF THEM GET SAFELY AWAY


while the Others are Chptured-A Mis-
take In Kicking Out n window Leads to
DstectioB-rhe Quarters Provlaed BY
the City Unsafe and Insscure-whst the
Commissioners May Do.
Half inch, soft wood Hosr boards,
worn and rottsd by continual scrubbing,
and then a layer OF ordinary Etsve- pipe
iron, rust eaten aud .corrsded with age
and watsr-thls is all that there IL be
tween prisoners conhnsd in tho apology
fer a jail which the city possesses, and
liberty. In may places Ia this floor are
spots whore the heavier prisoners have
to walk carefully for fsar OF being pre-
oipitated through into tho cellar. while
the wind leaking through the cracks aud
lily fitting joints makes IL decidedly
unpleasant for the unfortuuatss who
occupy the fser for sleeping purposes.
This is no fancy sketch but a shameful
reality. as was demonstrated last night,
when Eve prisoners, who preferred meet
ing the bnfistings of the cold world to
making e bluff Et Sheriff Gillis's stone
pile, cut their way through the rotten
0Dhthcloa aud ueu.
IL Was a Prizs Collection.
Saturday evening Detectives Mcvey
and Witsil captured one. William
WyncoOp, en- a charge Of larceny Of q
sweater. He had just served an eighteen
months tern In Georgetown all for
larceny. This evidently WAS not
particularly unpleasant for William as
he declined the temptation TO leave that
place, but ths prospect Of serving G few
days In New Castle was too much for
him and he concluded to give she otiicsrs
the 70 BY He was confined in the 6rst
corridor which Is separated from the
room occupied by the police BY the water
closet aud 3 short alley containing the
stair way lesding to the cellar. In this
corridor were also confined siEhtesn
tramps who were awaiting transportation
to the stone pile, and tvs or three
drunks whs were waiting fer Judge
Ball
How She Job Was Done.
A part OF thsss trsmps gathered at the
iron grated door which leads into the
main hall, ard bloeked eff the view Of
the turnkey, while William With some
instrument, presumably knife, cut the
and a foot wide, thsn removed the piecaB,
and ripped up the filmsy sheet iron. He
then dropped through into the cellar,
carefully stepped ever several sleeping
tramp lodgers, passed through a door,
aseeRded the steps and passed into the
City Hall park. William Lyle,
one Of the trtmps followed. and
made good his erssps. John Guyer aud
Thames Wffcow throurh fha
hole IN safety, aud then Jshu Hosk tried
his hsnd He became stuck and Ia his
struggles kicked pane OF glass out Of 2
window in the cellar, alarming Chief
Dolan, Police Commissionsr Monaghan,
DatsetiVes McVey and Wltsil, and several
ofioers who were In pslice headquarters.
Tive sot Away Safely.
WyncOop aud Lyle got clear away,
Wilson was eaught after a run at Sixth
and Poplar, while Hooks snd Guyer be-
came confused and lest their wsy In She
sellsr, where theY we're captured. None
Of the msn was known to have = knife, as
they wars Fearcned when put In tie cor
rider The deer 70 the cellar, as well IS
from the slley to the park, were both IN
locked, az they are used simply 10 re
ssovs ashes, and there is no connection
with the cells.
The cells have always bsen looked
upon ss unsafe, and whenever there Is an
important prlsoAsr csn6nsd there . care.
fGl watch Is kept on him. Ia this csHs
mono sf the msA we're charged with =
serious ofsncs and while there was no
lsxity in the guard, the espionsgs was
net as eloEo 40 under ether circumstances
Some Pertinent Suggestions.
No blame is attached BY the ollce
commissioners to any ons. although It is
understood that the hsuse sergeant will
be directed ta hereafter see that all
prisoners have their 6ugsr and toe nails
closely clipped to prevent them from
digging out. It is probable that .prissn-
srH will be snbject to a half hourly rsll
call and inspection. An attempt will be
made to sssurs the placing Of stone or
cement floors In the corridors and cells
net only az a MEASURE OF safety but Of
sanitation as we'll Ths floors could
then be hushsd once day and kept clean
With little trouhlo