Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1902-02-06

Thursday to learn of the escape of the
Biddle brothers from the Allegheny
county Jail in Pittsburg, early that
morning, and astounded tc learn that
their escape had been made possible
| through the connivance of Mrs. Soffel,
the Warden's wife, who left the Jail
with them.
The men had been fairly tried and
convicted for the murder of groceryman
Kahney, of Mt. Washington, Pittsburg,
while attempting to burglarize his
house one night in April last. Their exc
cution had been fixed for the middle OF
January, but Gov. Stone had respited
them for one month, at the instigation
it is said of Pittsburg woman, whose
name has not yet appeared in print.
Mrs. Soffel appears to have interested
| herself in the spiritual welfare of the
! men from the time of their condemna-
tion and then to have either fallen mad
| ly and desperately in love with Edward
Biddle. or else to have yielded to the
hypnotic influence he was said to pos
sess.
She purchased fine saws for them and
stood in front of their cells, reading
aloud to them from the Bible and prayer
hook. while they sawed the bars and
concealed the cuts with black wax; and
though the men and their cells were oc.
OCCASIONALLY searched nothing suspicious
was found
Everything was in readiness for the
ESCAPE by the middle of January; then
came the Governors reprieve and the
DELAY until Wednesday night of last
week when Mrs. Soffel furnished the
men with reyolvers, chloroformed her
husband, dressed herself in her best
clothes and sat up all night. Towards
a o'clock in the morning she deemed the
coast clear, and so signalled the men from
an upper window of the jail residence.
whereupon one of the Biddles called to
the night guard that his brother was
desperately i'll of cramps; this guard
called to another who had charge OF the
tails supply of medicine, and he took
some TO the supposed sick man and was
grabbed and held from the inside; the
other prisoner promptly broke through
his cell and assaulted the guard and
disabled him; the ''sick' prisoner then
| broke through his cell; second guard
came running up, caught one OF the
Biddles and threw him to the floor, but
was disabled by being shot through the
hip; the other guards came running IN
only to find themselves covered by pls-
tolls in the hands of the brothers, who
then forced them to back into cells,
where they were locked up; the two dis
abled guards were dragged into cells
also and locked up; and the Blddles
we're for the time masters OF all they
surveyed. They helped themselves to
clothing and firearms, and then went to
the door leading into the Warden's res
idence. Mrs. Soffel unlocked if from
her side, and insisted on going with
them, a thing that, perhaps, the Blddles
did not apprehend, for with all their
carefully planned escape the amazing
fact has became apparent that they had
provided no hiding place, and they
passed out to a fate they knew not OF,
but which was inevitable.
Where they first went none of them
would tell, but it is supposed they used
the street cars to point near Perrys-
vile, and hid in an old building during
the day. When night came they stole
black horse, sleigh and harness, from
barn near there, headed for the Butler
plankroad, lost their way for while,
found the road. and reached Coopers-
town at daylight. cold and hungry.
The county commissioners of Allie
Qheny county offered reward OF 50, 00O
for the Biddles, dead or alive.
SNYDER'S STORY.
When J. A. Snyder, who keeps the
hotel and livery stable at Cooperstown
and drives the hack to Butler, opened
his back door about daylight Friday
morning, he found himself confronted
by two men and woman, who stared
at him stupidity. The woman was the
first to speak. well, tell the man what
we want" said she, turning to one OF
| the men, who then asked for breakfast.
Snyder showed the trio into the dining
room, and then went to the stable, where
the hostler was putting up the horse,
and asked the hostler who they were "a
pack of Jews" said the hostler. Il
think they are the Biddles, said Snyder
who then went back to the house and
took notice of the woman's mouth and
of the scars on the face of one OF the men.
Going into the kitchen he whispered his
suspicious to his wife, and asked his
little girl if she knew the lady who was
eating breakfast, Yes, said the child,
''that's the lady whose picture was in
! the paper yesterday Biddles might
as well have carried a sign with them
Upon completing their breakfast the
trio had their horse hitched up and
started towards Butler.
SNYDER communicated his suspicious
to Frank Holiday and Sam Ekas, and
Holiday sent word to Butler and hitch
ed up a horse and followed them; he
also told j. B. Gregory, who wired to
| Splane in Pittsburg and Splane notified
| the Chief of Police, who detailed three
men named McGovern, Roach and
Swineheart to act in the matter, and
wired Snyder to meet them at the p. q
W. station in Butler with rig.
! The Biddles arrived in Butler about
| 10 o'clock, but instead of coming up
| Main street turned to the right at
Muntz's and went up Etna street to
| Center avenue, to Lookout avenue, then
past the West Penn station to Clay OF
| Penn, and then west to the New Cas- tie
road, thus circling the east and north
sides of the town.
Frank Holiday arrived here sor6 ly
after and with Raney Hoon, policeman
Ray, and A. Thompson, traced the men
| to the Bowman House, and supposing
they had gone that way went out several
miles before discovering their mistake
| and returning.
SNYDER arrived shortly after, and
found that he would have to wait fol
some time as the Pittsburg men had
| missed their train, and came up town
and learned enough to convince him
that the Biddles had circled the town
| and gone west. The three Pittsburg
men armed with Winchesters. arrived at
| 1 o'clock and they and Snyder started out
| the New Castle road. inquiring as they
| went. AT Cranmer's mill he learned
| learned that the trio had passed but a
short time before and that their horse
| was very tired; saw no signs of them al
| Mt. Chestnut, drove on to Prospect. and
| found all trace of them gone. The
| Pittsburgers wanted to drive on, but
| Snyder insisted upon telephoning to the
| neighboring towns and soon received
| word from Mt. Chestnut that two men
and woman had eaten dinner at
Stevenson's and were there vet and tile
crowd started back with the Butler
crowd closely following.
| The Biddles and Mrs. Soffel, who had
become i'll, finished their meal leisurely.
rested awhile, and then started towards
Prospect stopping to steal an empty
I shotgun; the returning sledloads OF
armed men met them on the road be
tween Robb's and McLures dairy barn
Snyder stopped his horses and Mccoy
ern jumped out and went toward the
Biddles who had also stopped, and as
soon as McGovern recognized them he
leveled his gun and began firing, Che
| was partner of the murdered FitZger-
L old md caamnd datarnined To 70 l1n No