The leader. [volume] (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1895-1905, 1900-04-18

Howell was locked up every night in
the big cage. The last thing to do was
to prepare way for his escape by
night from this by saving the lock-b bar
of the cage door in two, which could
only be done by some one on the out
side of the cage, and was most likely
to be discovered This bar, nearly a
half inch thick and about inches
wide, had to be cut in two places. All
this work, she said, was done by How
ell on the afternoon before they all es-
capped at night. The lock bar was
nearly severed in two places and the
crevices filled as the ones in the win
dow had been to prevent discovery,
when the jailor came i'm the evening to
lock Howell, Rutland and Jack Dewitt
in the cage.
| Asked where Anglin was when this
saving was going on at the cage door,
she said he sat up ON the box point
ing to it, at the front window at the
left of the door, alternately looking
out and watching Howell at work saw
ing.
That night, she said, about midnight,
after the first wind and rain, Howell
and the negro Jack Dewitt threw them
selves against the cage door together
and the small parts of the lock bar
which had been left uncut to mislead
the Jailor, snapped and they were out
i'll the main hallway of the Jail 1t was
an easy matter then to proceed to An
glins cell and remove the dummy"
bars already described Before this
final step was taken, however, she said
a part of the program was for Anglin
to call out to Night Guard Stewart,
with whom he was on social and friend
ly terms, to ascertain whether he was
on the alert. Not receiving any an
swer to his call, it was concluded the
way was clear on the outside and they
proceeded accordingly. They all moved
quickly and little time was consumed.
When the cut bars were removed
from the window by Howell and the
bed coverlid fastened to the window
framing and hung on the outside to
descend by, Mrs. Wilkinson said An
glin crawled out the window first, she
followed, then Howell and lastly the
negro, leaving Rutland lying on his
bunk in the cage, saying he was not
going to leave at all.
After getting out in the Jail yard, she
says, one of the tall pickets or palisades
was pushed off in the southeast corner
and that they made their exit through
this opening, she taking the road east
ward after getting outside the court
house yard, the three men going north
ward from this road, back of Guess's
gin, toward the next street and she saw
nothing more of them.
She said the court house clock
struck Il just little while before they
left the Jail, and it had commenced
raining again. She continued her
course eastward, and a mile or two
from town took refuge from the rain
in an old vacant cabin near the Brook
haven and Monticello road Next
morning about or 10 o'clock she
went to negros house close by, got
something to eat and remained there
until just little while before she was
arrested by Mr.. Higdon. She assured
the reporter, with a bashful-like air,
that by this time she began to feel
sorry for the part she had played in
the affair." but was ashamed to come
back to town by herself, and was ac-
tually glad that Mr.. Higdon had re-
lieved her embarrassment.
The reporter carefully examined the
Jail yard fence inside and out, where
Mrs. Wilkinson said the prisoners
made their exit, and the physical signs
were all against this part of her story.
No palisade was moved out of it's
proper place or showed any signs of
having been recently disturbed On
the contrary, all the physical signs
showed that the prisoners scaled the
Jail fence opposite the window where
they emerged from the Jail and de-
scended to the ground by an elm tree
which stood just outside the stockade
When her attention was called to
these facts she attempted to support
her first statement by saying that aft
er she and the other prisoners had
gotten out through the hole in the
stockade, Jack Dewitt had replaced the
palisade like it was before and nailed
it back-a story which bears absurdity
on its face, as if any prisoner, breaking
out of Jail, pressed for time and fear
ing discovery, would stop ON the out
side and begin hammering to repair
the damage done. This, to certain
degree, discredits Mrs. Wilkinson's
whole story.
Sheriff Applewhite carried Mrs.
Wilkinson to Jackson ON the noon
train Thursday, to begin her life SEN
tence IN the penitentiary.
ANGLIN VOLUNTARILY sURRENDERs.
A report gained currency late We'd
nesday evening that Moses Anglin had
communicated to Sheriff Applewhite
his willingness to surrender. This
proved to be true. About 5 o'clock
Sheriff Applewhite received a telephone
message from Anglin's mother, saying
her son was at home and requesting
the Sheriff to come out, that he might
give up. This he did, and on his arri-
val at the house, which is on the Ca
seyville and Brookhaven road, a short
distance beyond the corporation line,
he found Anglin there awaiting him.
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