The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1903-02-08
UTLEY's STORY OF HIS ESCAPE.
Like Chapter From Romance With the Mys-
terry Still Unsolved

The story that f. L. Utley tells of his
escape reads like chapter from Gabor-
iau. He talked freely, and with an air
of absolute truthfulness in an interview
with a reporter of the Fayetteville OBJ
server, saying in substance:
Worried beyond endurance by the ter
rible monotony and restriction of confine
ment, l determined to escape.
A II o'clock, Friday night, l opened
my cell door and walked out l will
not say how l got the padlocks off, but
l got them off myself. l then went and
pulled the boards off from under the
steps, returned with them to my cell
and wrapped them up in a blanket to
resemble a human form. l waited about
half an hour and then crawled through
the hole under the steps and lowered
myself to the floor beneath with a blan-
ket. Then, ascending the steps, 1 went
out of the outer door on the second floor
and descended to the ground by the out
side steps. l went out of the small
wicket gate in the fence.
For sometime ] wandered about with
out getting my bearing. When l finally
located the surroundings, the l o'clock
train, which / intended to board, but
without any definite purpose except to
go, go, had gone by. I then took a
main road leading in a southerly direc-
ton and walked till daylight, when | sat
down on a log in a swamp about six
miles from Fayetteville. 1t was raining
and l got wet and cold. I spent the
day in this swamp, and at night started
off again My movements from Tuesday
night, L would rather not tell about.
Thursday morning, about noon, 1
came upon Mr.. McGirt's house, and APP
preached Mr.. McGirt with an offer to buy
a horse. l bought one with saddle and
bride for $3.50 Telling Mr.. McGirt I
would be back in the evening for it. I
went into the woods, built a fire and
went to sleep.
When | woke up I got to thinking Of
the awkward position I had probably
put Sheriff Marsh and the other officers
in. and of the uncomfortable position of
being a fugitive, and l decided to give
myself up. So I went back to Mr. Nc
Girt's about o'clock, and, telling him
who I was, I gave him a pistol 1 had
and a considerable sum of money and
told him / surrendered. | took supper
with him and went to bed. He treated
me most kindly.
Neither Mr.. Pate nor any of the Off
Gals had any knowledge of my escape,
nor did they have any reason to think
that l contemplated escape
When asked if any of the prisoners in
the Jail had any knowledge of his escape,
he refused to say.
He said that the locks he took off his
cell he carried away with him, and the
locks found on the door next morning,
he took from the adjoining vacant cell.
and locked the top one, but the bottom
one would not snap together.
Mr. McGirt substantiated Utley's state
ment in regard to himself, and said that
he did not expect or ask for reward.
When Utley told him who he was he
asked his advice, and he told him to
come in and take supper and spend the
night and then he could have more time
to decide.
In the morning he asked him if he was
still in the notion of surrendering and
he said he was. So they drove to the
station at Wakulla, about a mile and a
half distant, and boarded Capt. Camp
bells train.