The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1898-11-09
A FEARLESS CONVICT.
sTeApMAn's DARING ESCAPE FROM
SAN QUENTIN PRISON.

by 3 feh1 " hich AAAAos9 Dc1~cHce -.
the Miraculous.
It is enc thing to catch thief and 1t
is another thing TO bold him During a
meeting Of the chiefs of police Of all the
larger cities Of the United States and
Canada, which occurred at Milwaukee,
there were "reminiscences Of remarkable
captures and Of escapes which hordered
closely upon the miraculous
'.The most remarkable escape from
prison that can recall. said William
A Pinkerton, was that Of Frank
Steadman from the San Quentin prison
But I'll not tell you about it. for here
is John Glass. who caught Steadman
and sent him back to San Quentin -
Chief Glass pinched the brown i'm
perial ON his under lip refiectively for
q moment before he responded to the
looks of inquiry hent upon him by those
not familiar with the story
The escape to which you refer, Pin
kerton, was made after ] sent Steadman
to San Quentin and not before. | was
not the fortunate one to get him after
that last wonderful break And tc tell
the truth, have never taken to myself
much credis for taking him the time
did. for il was to considerable degree
a matter Of good fortune. You see. we
were lust at that time keeping our eyes
open for bank robber by the name OF
Barnes. who lad gone into one of the
banks out there, covered the one man
who happened 10 be alone in the place
at the time. locked him up in the vault.
and then coolly walked ont of the bank
and out Of sight with all the funds he
could get his hands ON.
lone day man answering closely
the description we had of Barnes step
ped of the train at Los Angeles. We
took him in tow at once. but found
We did not have the bird we were after
However. we managed 10 hold him
long enough 10 find ont that he was
Frank Steadman, who had become no
torious even at that time asa successful
lail breaker He had four or five escapes
from prison in southern Indiana credit
ed to him. had got away from Joliet
and had still seven years TO do at the
Illinois prison; had also been at San
Quentin, and had escaped from there
with five years unfinished.
''Steadman was machinist by pro-
fession, and a burglar by inclination
When be was sent back 10 San Quentin
60 finish his time, he was put TO work
with other eonvicts in the engine room.
! Ii was here that an idea came into his
brain that for absolute daring and fear
lessness was typical of the man. He had
noticed that every evening at the time
the men working in the engine room
were lired Up to be marched away, the
machinery was stopped at exactly the
same moment He had observed as well
that a window leading to an adjacent
roof was not far from the top of the big
driving belt Of the engine. From that
roof it was possible TO reach the outer
wall Of the prison. Beyond the wall
was freedom. He had escaped so many
times that his mind reverted again and
again to tine window high up ON the
wall Of the engine room. Apparently 1t
was beyond all possibility of being
reached. No ladder was to be obtained
Had such a thing been even standing
in place against the wall. 10 break
from the line and scale il with catlike
dexterity, although the work of but q
few seconds. he well knew would be
futile, possibly fatal Bullets travel
faster than legs, and the guards were
not had shoIs But desperate deeds de
mand desperate means. Some minds
! horn nj
despair, but Steadman S was of a differ
ent caliber His plans were the out
growth Of steadfast optimism.
Zone day there came TO him as if by
inspiration the thought that the big belt
might be the means of carrying him tG
his goal He found that it was impossi
bic TO count the revolutions of the driv
ing wheel. hut there were lacings in
the broad belt, which he was able tc
distinguish as a sort Of blur az it passed
a given point For days and days he
counted, and in his cell at night be
spent his time in calculations He dis
covered the exact number OF revolutions
the wheel made per minute He learned
also by constant observation just how
many times the belt went round aftel
the engine was shut down.
Zone evening. when the line had
been formed as usual at the close Of tbs
DAYS work and as the big wheel began
10 lose IT'S momentum, suddenly con
vict sprang from the line. leaped TO the
belt with ontstretched arms grappline
beth edges Of the broadleather He had
calculated well the strength that would
be required, for the terrific wrench die
not loosen his grasp. Outward and up
, ward he swung until he reached the
topnost point of the circumference. The
nicefy Of his calculation had reaped il.
, reward The belt stopped He leaped tC
his feet, sprang through the window
and was gone before convicts or guards
had recovered from their astonishment
He caught up guards coat and hat,
dropped from the wall and got away in
, the dusk of the evening am inclined
, % believe that as mathematical propO
, tiiion that was about as perfect piecs
of work as any man ever accomplished. >
} Aud die be get away without re
! capture?'' some one sked.
"No, | am almost sorry to say, be did
: not, ' answered the Los Angeles chief,
, for that ought by rights to be the de
noCement of suoh story, which com
J biDes SO much of daring and cleyerness
J Steadman was taken again in short
! time ard put to work at his old job
There are bars over that high window
above the big drive belt now. Not long
after this Steadman cut and nearly XIII
ed one Of the other conyicts and is now
t rerving out an additional sentence fol
attempted murder at the Folsom prison,
2 ebich is situated some 2s miles from
Sacrameut0 Chicago Inter Ocean
Valuable Record.
/ When the furniture Of Charles JameI