The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-11-18
ESCAPES FROM ALCATRA2.
Sy SH,NciscO's 1Ufr,Rr PRfsov
UIHD 80 sIT or ~
The nsss1t ttp'aii ~ To.t 'ertist' N"'
NJ opt It,t,dsaL Ih"efh ont One
rusopsf wH' H.. SWAN ~ ih.nrei .
MtsisrT nd . TfassdI ~ the GIBSON

r.''1ry prisoner, nod os,r prd rHfn hlrn'H'
l.ip.l $40 l'H T. orc N'ru. lui 'h's uuHt
have I'rU slrU0t ., 60 AVu. ff"u tot slctu'.
."f'u.,'' fuDt On no rIlc'' - san lfmI.
1890 lUJl'r toc"ssfui oi.1yos tom A.
ut a. hU'H been rr,ceIIralv Jnfe usuc-
ua-.f a. 7''"' Um st esoape have been many
N'atr1l lsi.rd Ia q t|vo-batt.ry heavy mr.
tu"fy post 4 u tho -1lutirg sta Ion - San
ffanul,oo ha-lof. y " n sheer rock q for.
bldiiug aspect p'nrtitg ~ n sort 81 s'utiloI
within hug lIB ruso ~ M" Golden Cit" \
huge Ns lean olta.c. butt q rcd bl u, md
u, wall, NJ uirnost iuorcdlhlo th',snoss. crovrs
Alcl,rai leland Ine military prisoner. ~"
confined n a stout wooden PRISON built az tho
eastern hase u the ifRud. 10 fnr from the
wharf wHers The Government boot lard-
That Is ~ coy. they aye kept thcfc While they
ore not working A military s%"rtsrcc neGns
lard labor. and the military ,onyicts on Aica-
'ra7 NJ" kept NJ some sort Il labor on tho rock
from Tat. sIe call ealiy IN the morning until
'i, a" H4dtnE o' recall Into In ~" afternoon
They work IA batches of'hree with an artillery
man plls~inc a.uuE hch,ud them The ser
tucl', belt IS stuffed with bell cartridge, and
his INSTRUCTIONS are 90 shoot any prisoner who
make. an attempt 20 escape. ard 90 shoot TO
Nil. No p: i-uurr. low, yer, has'yrr ATTEMPTED
TO csclr' from Alra'rng ~ e." daytime. Sdch
n thing would b- ~,iriuDiiy impossible. la the
first p.aoo no boat c!coyt Tie Government tts
Is permi,tei 30 land ~ Alcsrrc2. ard when the
ting luis tleIe tho wharf H. Uttered with alert
guards whose business Il l. TO see that none OF
the prisoners sncass on board the tur All
Other boats q. vh''-cov,r sort must keep
their distance Of 200 wards from the island.
Al attempts d prisoners TO get away from
Alcatrn2 iellad have been made at nleht. The
prl-cuers alo locked in their cells by the SER
ccaut Of "a" guard and the other non-coIn-
m.-.iuuoi officers - u" guard at Q o'clock at
nisht FROM that hour until daylight there "a
n chain guard al around the ISLAND, aud a pTis-
onrr who al-ccods In getting out Of IDS cell
aud then ont ~ tho prison has the biggest
cnd OF lis sob yet ahead OF him in dodeins tbs
chain quart
within the past twenty years n number OF
desperate lon y~-tiruers have coutrived to get out
cf their cells and tho prison, have eluded the
chain guard. and have ossayed 10 swim to the
mainland. In every case except ono they have
had ~ give No the Job before getting very far.
and have swarn back to be collared bv ore OK
the chain ? ard, taken 10 the sergeant oil ta
gnard and deposited in a oil. 10 the first
place, the water about Alcutraz Is nearly always
tumululous. In the second place, II Ia very
cold waier-therc Is no rleasurnb.e sen bathing
" JIG ~ WA ShA
the chill Of the watar-and the nipping wind that
porpotuGlly blows IN san Francisco haIbor
makes It seem even colder. Finally, there are
enough strong currents and eddies and under
tows swlrl.ng around Alcstraz to drive hydro
rralhers 20 distraction and 70 render the ceter-
mined EFFORTS Of The most ACCOMPLISHED swirl
mprs futile and worse than reckless.
The OILY prisoner who, ~ossnyiny this win
worthy of Ieander. failed TO COM back. WAS "A
hure fellow wis had been sentenced for desor-
ZION. He was Of a good California family. but
had gone 10 tho dogs through drink and Ell
! tod. He desertsd. and when they got lin
they clapred him into the Alo8trez prison Tor
TWO years. Three months after he began TO
serve bis sentence he got word from his WHO. a
san Francisco young woman who had been a
school teacher, that their little girl was verv Ill.
that she had no money for medical attendance
or medicines, and that she WAS IN despair. On
that same nj sht the man got out OF his cell by
saving the bars with a saw devised from n Dit
OF steel taken from one OF his brogans. He got
out o! the prison Through Il skyIlsht, Jumped
10 the ground, inade the side OF the Island
that fronts the Gate without being seen
by any OF the guards @! the chain.
lerlei HIS coat. and loaped into the foam
irs waters. Ii WAS a wild night. but he got
pcross to the main land all riCht. He was
found desd on the Preside beach 1T sunrise
The next morning Making the beach he had
orawled 70 a ltle dune about a dozen yards
from the waters VERGE. and there died of eX-
haustion and exposure. Beneath his UNDER
shirt they found. suspended from his neck by
a string. a gold locEet containing q miniature
Of lis wife ana baby.
Two prisoner. got out ~ the Alcaua, prison
ore tlnck night about fifteen yenrs ago. and
lis -. IALl
Of them had secreted o heavy plank
behind tie prison. close TO the water, When
they got cut they dragged their plsnks Into
tho water and Jared forth side by side. hoping
20 maxi, land somewhere or other before morn
Ing Tho current that swlrls around Alcstran
picked them up twenty yards from shore and
carried them around the island al night. At
da wn, after having drlfted around tie island
ten or a dozen times. they were discovered
shiverins on their planks, Of exactly tie point
at which they had started.
In the little room OF the sergeant OF the guard
In the Aloatraz guardhotss there Is eth en-
bedded in the wall a bullet that has a history.
One night, more than a dozen years ago. q
prisoner get out OF his cell and away from
the prison by some mysterious meanA He
eluded the chain guard ard found a bost walt
Ing for him al the northwestern end Of tie island.
The prisoner had been a high roller II civil
lied lire. The eecupant OF the boat was q
handsome woman of the San Francisco half
world She had pulled the boat all the way
from San Francisco herself. The prisoner
jun ped into the boat grabbed tho oars. the
woman pcclined In the bottom Of tho boat and
IL all looked very well One of The chain guard
Heard the rattle OF the sarlocks and ran 70 tho
Io.ut Just IN time to ~ the boat, for the moon.
that had been screened by clouds. suddenly
shore clear in q rift Tie. guard .jabbed =
crIldsc in to hts Springfield and ordered
tho rover Of tie boat 10 return. The prisoner
rcdoubled his eyerticns at tho oars The
guard took careful aim and shot him through
ihe heart. The oma never made = sound,
ard tie guard did not know that the boat
contained any other occupant He raced
for ths sergeant of the guard. and while lie
was away on tins gues; The woman grabbed the
oars end pulled for san Francisco, with tie
dead man " the bottom of the boar. Tho
sentry found tie sergeant oi tie guard in the
liltIe guard office
I've i'st SHOT 40 escaring con. IN p boat over
~ the northwestern end" he reported.
That so!" said the sergeant oi tho guard.
-Ruu upCE, and III / q With you In a minute.
The sentry ran out If the guard office The
sergeant % NE guard stuffed 2 cartridge into
his gun, removed lis right shoe and -'oC;ing.
pQirted hi3 r.tc at his r!sat trHL2l"; pniloi tie
trigger with hs great 100. aud IT,. hullct won't
Through his bead, killing him i~nstalt!v md
turNiug t'self IN the WI. TIE wCnan had