The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-02-23
PLIGHT Of CHURCHILL
Thrilling Story of Escape
From Pretoria Jail.
FREIGHT-TRAIN STOWAWAY
Hoboesque Experiences on
the Road to Freedom.

! l1our IN captivity, resolved to escape.
Many plans suggested themselves, were
examined and rejected. For a month ]
thought Of nothing else. But the perilS
n nd difficulty restrained action. 1 think
Il le news Of the British defeat at 81 orrn-
bt rg clinched the matter. All the news
W heard in Pretoria was derived from
B GER sources, and was hideousIy exag-
g Grated and distorted. Every day we read
il the Volksstem-probably the most as
t. )unding tissue of lies ever presented to
! Z public under the name OF neEwspa
p er-of Boer victories and of the ause
| 81 daughters and shameful flights of {he
Z British
! months feeding on such literary gar
Ebage weakens the constitution Of the
znind. We wretched prisoners lost heart.
Perhaps Great Britain would not perse-
ere, perhaps foreign powers would inter
', we, perhaps there would be another
dis graceful, cowardly peace
the best the war and confinement
wol I'd be prolongued for many months.
I do not pretend that imnatience al being
locke d up was not the foundatfOn of my
deterl nination; but I should never have
screwe d my courage. up to make the at
somethi 1g to help the British
The ST ate Model Schools the building
in which we were confined, is a brick
structure standing in a gravel qlfadran-
gle and 81 grounded on two sides by an
iron grille md on two by a corrugated
iron fence Dout 1e feets high These
boundaries o. Tered ilitth obstacle % any
one who posse ssed he activity of youth
but the fact t. rat they were guapded by
sentries armed uiti \ sife and revolver
made them wen Ms h INSTRUMENTAL BILE
barrier. No walls a re- so hard to pierce
as living walls.
I thought of the d 'netrati,ig power Of
They were incorrtot ible. The bribery
market in this coun1r has been SPOILED
by the millionaires. 81 } nothing remained
but to break out in sp tie of them. With
another officer who I'M " for the present
since he is still a pri soner-remain
nameless I formed a sche me.
It was discovered til ut when the SEN
thies near the offices walked about on
their beats they vera ceittain moments
unable to see the top of a few yards of
the wall The electric lights in the mid
die Of the quadrangle lighted the whole
place, but cut off thu sent~ies beyond
them from loking at the eastern wall.
For behind the lights a Il seemed by con-
trast darkness. The first thing there
fore was to pass the two sentries near
the offices. It was Necessary 20 hit off
the moment when both their backs Should
be turned After the wall was scaled we
should be in the garden of the villa next
door.
--1oky anna ~
thing after this was vague and uncer-
tain. How to get out Of the garden, how
to pass unnoticed through the streets
how to evade the patrols, and, above al,
| how to cover the two hundred and eighty
miles to the Portugu ese frontier s, were
questions which would arise at later
stage. All Attempts to communicate with
| friends outside had failed. We cherished
! the hope that with chocolate, a little
Kaff1r knowledge, and Il great deal of
| luck we might march the distance in a
! fortnight, buying mealias at the native
kraals and lying hidden by day.
We determined to try on the night of
the 18th Of December, making up our
minds quite suddenly in the morning, for
these things are best done on the spur of
! the moment.
| 1 passed the afternoon in terror. Moth
Ing has ever disturbed me SO much. There
! is something appalling in the idea of
| stealing off in the night like a guilty
! thief. The fear of detection has a pang
| Of its own. Besides we knew quite wei
| that on occasion, even on excuse the SEN
tries would fire. Fifteen yards is a short
! range. And beyond the immediate dan
| ger lay prospect Of severe hardship
only faint hopes of success. and prob
ability at the best of five months at best
| in Pretoria gaol. S
! The Afternoon dragged tediously away. !
1 tried to read Mr.. Yec1y's History of |
| England but for the first time in my
| life that wise writer wearied me- I |
played chess and was hopelessly beaten. |
At last it grew dark. At Z o'clock the |
| bell for dinner rang and the officers /
! trooped of. Now was the time. But the /
! sentries gave Us no chance. They did !
not walk about. One Of them stood ex-
/ actly opposite the only practicable part !
! of the wall. We waited for two hours. |
/ but the attempt was painly impossible. /
Tuesday, the 12th Another day Of +
fear. but fear crysta fltEed into despera- /
tioa. Anything was better than suspense.
! Night came again. Again the dinner /
! bell sounded
Choosing my opportunity I Strolled (
across the quadrangle and sec-eted NY
self in one Of the offices. Through a (
! chink I watched the sentries. For halls /
an hour they remained st0lid. Then one /
| walked Up to his comrade and they began (
/ 70 talk Their backs were turned.
Now or neveri
/ 1 darted out Of my hiding place and ran /
to the wall seized the top with my hands /
/ and drew myself up.
Twice let myself down again in siclliy {
1 hesitation. and then with a third resolve !
scrambled M. The top was fiat. Lying +
on It l had one parting glimpse OF the /
4 sentries. stiu talking. with their backs /
/ turned; but, I repeat. fifteen yards away. I
/ Then I lowered myself silently into the 4
garden and crouched among the shrubs. 1
/ was free, The first step had been taken |
and it was irrevocabie
II now remained 10 await my comrade.
The bushes save a good deal o. cover.
and in the Moonlight their shadow Law
black on the ground
Twenty yards away was the house ard 4
1 had not been FIVE minutes in hiding he .
fore / perceived that Il was fan OF qao- /
pie: the windows revealed Brightly light /
ed rooms, and within / could ses figures 4
moving about
This was freSc complication. We had .
/ 4 ryray-s fb1rrrr -. h~..- ..--..-s-s