The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-10-11

an.a,ion of Clinton prison - Tho aAfest
I'll IN the country was shaken, last July,
t ,lo escape of four men, very few Of tho
de,uls of the affair were allowed to be
t,oun 10 the public. Now that several
~a,,bs have passed since the men got
"r,v Warden Deyo is not unwilling that
'Lo er,ire story should be told. Taken
sI,ossfher. it was one Of the most remark
ohle escapes from prison ever accom-
nr.bed In this or any other country, and
nnlv the ISOLATION OF Dannemora. standing.
~ !, does, in the Adirondacks. made 1t pos
s,ble to get the men back again.
The four men, or rather one OF the four
,or il was the skill of one man that 40
nomnl.hcd it all-tunnelled their way out
=, clinton prison right under the noses
If their guards. 1t took them four years
- complete their tunnel, and every bit
n the work was done during working
hours, when every minute Of the time
Of the consicts was supposed to DO GO
counted for 10y the keepers In charge. It
was done by convicts in the most desperate
and carefully watched gang In the In
stitution.
The discipline at Clinton Ia iron. 1t u
never relaxed, because the State OF New
York sends the most desperate OF its GRIM
finals to this prison.
Inside the forty-foot walls arc many
shops, where the oonviots are employed
hy dav. One of these shops. the tin shop,
is within twenty-five feet Of the south
wall and at this very point on the wall 10
the station from which the armed guards
march on their daily patrols.
In the tin shop gang are several life men,
and for that reason there are two keepers
there to every one in the other shops.
Among the life men employed In tho tin
shop last July was Peter James.
James will be remembered by New
Workers as the leader OF the gang OF bank
burglars who raided the town OF Bedford,
n Y, seven or eight years ago, robbed
bank and the post Office, secured a large
amount of money and were making their
escape, when confronted by old Adams,
the village postmaster, and his son, both
armed with repeating rifles, which they
knew how to use. 1t was james who put
a bullet through the aged postmaster's
heart, and it was for this murder that no
was sentenced to Clinton prison for life.
Peter James belonged to the old school
Of bank burglars. He IL q master ms
chanic, can make key out Of stiok
Of wood. figure out q safe combination
with piece Of wet tissue paper and tho
keenness Of his ears, and tunnel his way
like mole into . bank vault and loot 1t
at his leisure. He is much tho Same
manner OF man a. the celebrated Mark
Shinburn.
He could sec opportunities that no other
man could. and the minute he cast his
eyes around the walls Of Clinton prison
on bis arrival he saw q chance for escape
that equally desperate men had never even
considered His plan was simple. 1t was
TO tunnel under the walls from the cellar OF
the tin shop.
For months he was a model prisoner
but secretly working to get into the tin shop
gang. At the end OF year his skill as
mechanic won him the place he sought.
The next thing was to get into the cellar
of the tin shop.
His opportunity came to him quite I'M
eypectedly. There is small stationary
engine in the cellar, and when the convict
who attended it was taken i'll, James as
sisted keeper to run 1t for day. That
day in the cellar gave him the "lay" Of the
land He picked out the very place to
start his tunnel, but 1t was weeks and
weeks before he got chance to take out
a spoonful of dirt.
When the convict who ran tho engine
recovered, he was sent to another shop.
A new engine was put in, which would run
itself All that had to be done was to look
at the steam gauge and the indicator three
or four times day, and James, who had
shown himself a competent engineer, wa
told of from the gang just so many times
each day to attend to that duty.
For weeks James made so many trips
each day to the engine In the cellar. He
was never away more than few minutes
at time, but at least two minutes out Of
each trip was spent in picking at the mortar
Of big stone in the cellar foundation
with piece Of tin he had struggled down
with him.
At the end Of the first month James had
the stone loose Then one day he took II
out and began his tunnel, arranging the
opoaing so that he could slip the big stone
back in place at the slightest alarm.
With only few minutes day to work
James managed to got five feet Of his tun-
mel done without having to enter the hole
Itself to dig Then for brief period he
stopped all work.
II was necessary for him to get some
protection for his prison uniform, else the
dirt on it when he came to the surface
would excite suspicion. Where he got the
materials for a suit Of overalls to slip over
his stripes no one will ever know; but he
did construct such a suit. and he kept 1t
hidden in the cellar where he could get it
when he wanted it. As for the dirt he
took out of the hole-he brought it into the
cellar and slowed it away in dark corners,
Stamping it down hard.
From this point on James realized that
few minutes at time would not suffice
Tor the work he had to do. So he dis.
arranged part of the engine SO that 1t would
need more attention, and for week was
called on more frequently to 60 into the
cellar
For a time keeper went with him. not
from any suspicion Of what he was doing
olt to help to fix the engine. Then James
began going down alone and staying q
n'fe longer each time. The keepers al
lowed am certain amount Of freedom
and although once in a while keeper
would drop into the cellar while he wa
thel", it wasn't often.
W.. L. L