The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1901-05-02
|. JAIL SENSATION
Plot to Release Prisoners
Frustrated by the
Sheriff.
TO Be WORKED FROM OUTSIDE
Tellerwyne's Letter to His
Wife Giving the Details
Was Intercepted.
TO Be WORKED FROM OUTSIDE

|. was intercepted.
deperate and well laid plan for a
| wholesale jail delivery OF the most dam
| gerous and daring criminals confined in
this county, was frustrated this morning
through the vigilance of Sheriff Ruempler
and Warden Terrence Sullivan of the
County Jail. The plans of the desperadoes
'nVolyed the saving of the bars of a
| window on the first floor Of the Jail and
the knocking OUT Of the night watch
man of Ward 3, where murderers and
the most dangerous prisoners We're con-
fined. While the plans for breaking jail
were arranged by prisoners within the
jail they We're to be carried out to large
| extent by confederates on the outside
Included among the latter were the
wives of several who intended to escape
AS far as the investigation has revealed,
| the criminals who evolved the plan for
escape We're John Hilton and John Seton,
the burglars who were captured after
robbing the house of ex-Aldermah VIII
helm of Harrison of $1,000 worth of jew
| elry These are the men for whom Major
Carl Lentz, the Essex Republican leader,
pleaded with Judge Blair week ago
/
charged was their first offense and had
been committed while they were under the
influence of drink AS told at the time.
Assistant Prosecutor Vickers surprised
the Essex lawyer-politician by producing
proof that his clients had already done
time at Sing Sing. N. Y, and that their
pictures adorned the rogues' gallery of
the metropolis.
Hilton and Seton were arraigned before
Judge Blair this morning and each was
sentenced to seven years in State Prison
on their pleas of non vult to the charge
against them. Major Lentz was not i'll
court.
Equally interested in the plan to escape
were Ben Hill, Joseph Fisher and Joseph
Tellerwyne, who were captured in Jer
sey City after committing a number OF
burglaries in this and other counties.
Their den was filed with plunder located
in North Hudson.
The plan of escape included Hill making
a confession in court exonerating Teller
wyne from all completely in the numerous
robberies with which they were charged.
Teilerwyne then expected to be discharg-
ed and was to furnish to confederates
of Fill plans of the portion Of the jail in
which the interested prisoners were con-
fined and data as to the change of
watchmen, etc.
The plot was revealed through the in
Perception of a letter written by Teller
wyne to his wife yesterday morning. 1t
gave detailed account of how the JOB
was to be done and asked Mrs. Tellerwyne
to assist the wives of Seton and Hilton
in procuring the assistance of the other
outside parties, friends of Hills referred
to as "Columbo and "Jules," who were
! to do the saving of the bars from the
outside. The letter was as follows
My Darling Wife-I was SO pleased
to see you and if 1 could only have
folded you in my arms how happy l
should be. Now, darling, | have not
o'clock, but he may come tomorrow.
| wanted to explain something to you,
but l want you alone. But will tell
you as brief as possible.
B. and two other fellows in here are
going to try and make their escape
from this Jail, and | promised to in
troduce the whole plan Of the jail to
the friends of these two fellows, who
were going to cut the bars from the
outside, and that is the reason Ben
was so very anxious to get me out
before he goes away to Trenton. Now
the quicker l get trial the better, as
have Ben jollied up that [ shall tell
the outside friends of these two fell
lows just how to do the job But if
l don't get out by Thursday, as [
know | shall not for this reason, that
if do go up Thursday it will only be
Thursday l shall get trial and either .
let go free or held back another week
for sentence. That is If they can
prove anything against me. But if
not they shall let me go. l don't know
what you will live on all this time
Now, dearest, the wives of these two
other fellows will come to you in
court and ask you and Mrs. hill to
direct them to Columbo's house to try
and get Columbo and fellow named
Jules, who lives near Columbo, to help
them to cut way open out of this
jail. So let on to these two women
in the court room that you know all
about this scheme of escape and do
all you can to aid them as they are
quite well-to-do people and good
people The husbands of these two
women are doing all they can in get
wise Fisher. Tell them your address
and tell them you will direct the men
they send UP to our house to Column
bos-that is all you will have to do
Jules well for helping them. If you
act as though you did not want to
help these two women they will write
to their husbands in here and say
you are no good and then they will
not aid me in getting Ben to make
statement to clear me.
These two women are determined to
get their husbands out and Ben is
| going with them. These two fellows
are very good friends to me, but they
! don't like Ben much. But they want
Ben with them So as if it is neces-
sary, Ben is strong and can knock out
the night keeper if he wakes up while
they are making their escape. | have
] nothing to do with this, but as the
two wives will be in court they will
look for you and Mrs. Hill. One
| woman is about as tall as you, with
| blue serge suit. The other is a
| woman as tall as Mrs. Hill, so if you
| see them trying to locate You just
| call them over to you and tell them
| that you understand and will do all
| you can to aid any one they send to
| No. sos Spring street, West Hoboken,
to find Columbo. That is all they will
| ask you to do. So look for them in
| court Thursday. Don't show Mrs, Hill
! this letter. Only tell her that Ben's
| going to try and get away from this
| jail by the aid of Columbo, Jules and
| friends of these two womens hus-
| bands. These two women's husbands
| are to be sentenced Thursday, so you
| dressed young fellows. So act very
/ friendly with the two women. | am
| too nervous to write. am much
1 worried to write neat. 5. H.
| Warden Sullivan at once notified Sher-
| if Ruempler of what he had learned, and
together they notified Judge Blair, who
warmly complimented them on their
| vigilance
| The Sheriff and Warden then visited