Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1899-03-25
COLD SWIM TOFREEDOM
Prisoner Risked Life to Escape
From Randall's Island.
FLED FROM HOUSE OF REFUGE.

tempt.
Harry Mcdonald, 16 years old, of New
York, who had been an inmate of the
house Of refuge on Randall's island for
two weeks, escaped from that institu-
ton in a storm a few nights ago.
Mcdonald, who because of good con
duct had been made a "trusty, " slipped
out of the main entrance, where he was
stationed as a messenger, at 7 80 o'clock
in the evening and made his way I'M
seen to the north end Of the island. He
removed a part Of his clothing, threw
it on the shore and swan across the
Bronx kills to the Port Morris shore
against a strong tide and when the wa
ter was so full Of ice that even the tug
boats and other river craft were navi-
gated with great difficulty and were
sometimes icebound. Exhausted and
nearly dead from the cold and exertion
incident to his feat he reached the house
Of a relative. He was in such a condi-
ton on his arrival there that a physician
was called to attend him. Fearing that
he might have to return to the institu-
ton if caught by the police he crept
away the next night while his relatives,
who were in the next room, thought
him sleeping, and now the police are
looking for him.
Young Mcdonald was arrested a few
weeks ago at the instance Of his parents
for incorrigibility, the specific charges
being that he had a few days before
pawned a number of articles which he
had procured at his home and had spent
the money thus obtained among his as
~sociates, who were of a dissolute char
acter. When arraigned in the court of
general sessions a few days later, he
was committed to the house of refuge,
and the pawnbroker with whom he
pledged the goods was fined $15 for ac-
cepting a pledge from a minor. Agent
Diamond of the Society For the Proven
ton of Cruelty to Children, who had
the case, used every endeavor to learn
from his prisoner the details of several
depredations which by common consent
had been attributed to the "Bucca-
neers," as Mcdonald and his compan-
ions called themselves, but he steadily
refused to tell anything about them.
you've got me and l can take my
medicine, but I won't peach" he said.
After reaching the house Of refuge
Mcdonald appeared to have repented
Of his former misconduct. His apparent
sincerity led to McDonald's promotion
to the grade of trusty, and as he vas
intelligent privileges which were not
given even to the other TRUSTEES were
given to him. The hour at which he
made his escape was when the long line
Of boys were going up the main stair
way to the dormitory. The hall was
crowded and Mcdonald found it easy to
slip unnoticed into the entry and then
get outside unseen. The guards, who
were stationed 100 yards away, did not
see him, and it was not until an hour
later that his absence was discovered.
The guards turned out with lanterns
and traced McDonald's footprints in the
snow to the shore Of the island opposite
the New York, New Haven and Hartford
railroad tracks. There they found his
hat, coat, shoes and stockings lying on a
rock, but no return tracks could be
found. The boat which always lies
moored there was frozen fast in the ice,
and all the way across to the other
shore lay a rapidly drifting ice pack,
not strong enough to bear the weight of
even a boy.
The island was searched thoroughly,
and as no trace of Mcdonald could be
found it was concluded that he had at
tempted to swim the kills and, Of
course, had been drowned, they thought.
The police were notified, and a general
order giving a description Of Mcdonald
had been sent out, when his mother
went to police headquarters the other
day and said that her son had swum the
river in safety, but was missing again.
The police the next morning ascer-
tanned that Mcdonald had landed at the
foot Of st. AIMS avenue, and, borrow
ing a coat from a switchman in the
railroad yard, had started off on foot.
At about midnight a family of the boys
relatives, living at One Hundred and
Eighth street and Park avenue, whose
name the police would not give, were
awakened by the ringing Of the door
bell, and upon opening the door found
Mcdonald, his garments frozen, begging
to be taken in. A physician and the
boys mother were summoned, and after
working over him for several hours
they revived him and then put him to
bed. Mrs. Mcdonald the next day
bought a new outfit Of clothing for the
boy and decided to take him home with
her.
She went to the Park avenue house
to get him the other morning only to
find that he had lift IN the night, hav-
ing dressed himself in the new clothes
which she had left there. While i'll in
bed from the effects Of his cold swim
Mcdonald told his mother that every
body was down on him, and that some
day he would go away and never re-
turn. He would not tell her how he
managed to accomplish his escape from
the island except that he crawled over
the ice when he could and swan when
the ice cakes gave way beneath him.
The Bronx kills have been crossed a
number Of times before by boys desiring
to escape. Even in mild weather the
feat Of swimming the 400 yards neces-
sary to make the opposite shore, full as
the water Is of jagged rocks and eddies,
is u dangerous n A few have accom-.
plished 1t, but several have been drown
ed. The feat Of swimming it in winter
had never been tried before. New
York Sun.