The Roanoke times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1897-1977, 1897-10-10
LOVE FIGURED IN 1T.
How The Fair Cossis Escaped
From Her Prison.

>""' Oc1. o-Ine escape of SenO-
RIGA Evangelina Cos.ie, otherwise Cossie
Cisneros has caused quite u sensation
in Havana
me investigation made by the author
lties has developed number of addi-
tlonaI Facts in the case. IT. is now as.
serted that the young woman escaped be-
tween IL o'clock and midnight of Wednes-
day over the roof of neighborinp house
ana through it to the. street below, O'Far-
rail- lane. and not into the street where
the police found hand ladder.
On the roof of the adjoining house the
auehorities found three planks, each
ABOUT three feet long and eighteen inches
wloe. joined together by strong hinges,
so as to selve.ss n bridge, enabling per
son TO rass from the roof of the prison to
the roof of the house referred to- The
authorltieE also found on the roof n
smith anu Wesson revolver of large cali.
bre, having the six chambers loaded, and
new knotted rope, which had evidently
been used ms Al life line or guiding lope to
enable the escaping prisoner to cross
the plankbridge which had been extended
by per accomplices from the house near
the casa de Recojidas TO the roof of that
prison. The revolver, the knotted rope
and the portable bridge, as well as other
discoveries made by the police, show that
the escape of Senorita Cossie was long
and carefully planned. She must have
Deen In constant communication with
those who enabled her to escape from
the Casa de Recojidns, where she was i'm.
prlsoned with all other women,
some OF the details of the roung Gu
pan S escape are quite romantic. 1t an
pears that real estate agent named Ma
riano Fernandez, who was in charge of
the house. No. l O'Farrall lane, declared
that he recently hot b,,;
two well-dressed young men. The latter
seemed to be highly respectable, hired
the house for two months and paid the
rent in advance. The building was
poorly furnished, the principal room In
it containing an old table, washsrapd.
a wardrobe, an antique sidebcard, six old
chairs, six plates and two cats. But the
young men seemed to be perfectly salts
lied with their surroundings, and little
or no notice of them was taken by the
neighbors or by anybody else, in spite of
the TACT that the house was situated close
to the prison in which the young Cuban
girl. whose story caused such sensation
In the United States, was confined.
When the rooms ut No. O'Fnrrall lane
were searched, in addition to the articles
already described, the police found a bag
OF lime, can Of paint and large brush,
which might have been used for the an
plication of either lime or paint. Inside
the window through which Seporita
cossle escaped, the police discovered
sheet. and as this apartment was her
sleeping room the authorities are in
clined to believe that the sheet was used
by the escaping prisoner to envelop her
self with the..object of deceiving her room
mates, if she was nnlucky enough to
awaken them, into the belief that she
was moving about in her night clothes.
The quarter Of the prison which was
occupied by Senorita Cossie is known ~
the New Hall. for the reason that it was
constructed only seven months ago. 1t
was get arart for the use of political pris.
oners, aud was quite comfortable COM
pared with other Spanish prisons.
The companions of the young Cuban
woman whom she left behind saw that
the day before Senorita Cossie ESCAPED
she received n package believed to have
contained drugged candies. In any case
the senorita, contrary to her usual Gus
tom, did not mt once distribute the can
aies to her prison companions, but waited
until wednesday night, when she urged
each of them to partake of the confec-
tons. This prisoners did SO, and they
express the conviction that the sweets
were drugged. for they soon afterwards
fell into deep sleep, and did not awake
ouiouSHouC lile HlSnI, although the filing
OF the iron bar of the senorita's bedroom
window must have caused enough noise
to have awakened the prisoners under or
binary circumstances
People living in the vicinity Of the Casa
de Recoiidas have informed the .authori-
ties that they heard the noise of carriage
wheels shortly before midnight on We'd.
nesday, and this fact is supposed to have
connection with the prisoners escape.
There is II division of opinion as TO
whether the escape of the senorita was
effected byAmericans or by Cuban insur-
gents. The police are hard at work in
vestigating the escape. and ali the Span
lsh authorities along the coast have been
communicated with, ill the belief thnt'an
attempt may be made to embark the Sc
norita upon some vessel leaving Cuba for
the United States or elsewhere
Fernandez, the jailer in charge rof the
Casa de Redoj!das, and four employees of
the government who were on duty there.
have been arrested, and are confined in
communicate pending the result of the
inquiry being made into the escape.
ALL LADIES cordially invited to at
tend the Grand Millinery Opening at