The Globe-republican., 1904-05-05
St. Clair Brothers Do a Jail
Breaking Stunt.
WERE OUT ONLY one DAY
Mystery Connected With Affair.
They Lost Their Guns
and Money.

A daylight jail delivery wss made from
the Ford county Jail on Sunday afternoon
at some time between 8 and 4 O'Clock.
The two men who escaped did not 90
through the Formally of bidding adieu
to their landlord or legal guardian for
the time being, so it Is not known at
just what time they left,
The escape was made in the very prac.
tIcal way usually used In Ford county.
Friends furnished saws and the prisoners
sawed the bars and crawled out. There
was nothing new or original about this
method ofIesye taking, The reason that
they chose the daylight was because Of
the custom employed at the Jail of lock-
Ing the men in cells during the night.
If the escape had been made from the
cells 1t would have necessitated an extra
amount of saving. The time they Sc.
lected was a good one, as no one seems
to have had any suspicion that they
would attempt to saw out during day.
light.
The two men who left the Jail were
Rube St Clair Of Oklahoma and Albert
Wolf The latter was brought here two
days before from Bucklin where he was
convicted in Justice cOurt of stealing a
suit of clothes and sentenced to 60 days
in the county JAIL
st. Clair is the young man who was
< being held on the charge of stealing n
Ahorse from Ed Burrell. The horse was
found in his possession in Oklahoma
After taking the horse, st. Clair, who is
a young fellow, went to Oklahoma
where he killed bis BROTHER law and
was tried for murder, being acquitted on
the plea of self-defense.
A week before The Jail delivery St.
Clair's brother came here from Texas,
claiming that he was here for the pnr-
pose Of furnishing a bond for Rube. He
put up at the Great Western and paid a
weeks board in advance saying he
thought he would be ready to leave by
that time, He left a good gun with the
clerk saying he would call for it later.
Sunday afternoon be called for the gun
and said that lie was leaving town.
1t is claimed that the two St. Clairs and
Wolf were seen crossing the Santa Fe
tracks near the round house Sunday after.
noon.
The st, Clair, who helped his brother
Rube to escape, 1t is said, recently com
pleted a sentence in the state prison in
Texas. Whether or not there were others
here flom Oklahoma or Texas is not
known, but 1t is generally believed that
the st. Clair's were prepared to make a
good fight in case Of an attempted cap.
ture.
The above is one chapter o. the story
but the most mysterious part Is to follow
It has to do with the recaptllre Of the St.
Glars. After their escape Sheriff Miller
wired out a description of the men.
Eugene Williams an ex.dcputy marshal
from the Indian Territory now located at
Mlnneola got the news that the sheriff
here wanted the St. ClAlrs caught and
was willing to pay $50 for the work. 4
Williams says that just before learning c
this he had seen two men walking across I
country near Minneola. He thought they
might be two Of the men wanted so he
drove across lots and headed them off, .
Yhey proved to bo the st. Clair brothers 8
and be took them 10 to Mlnneola and d
wired to Sheriff Miller. .
Now bere is where the mystery comes Q
in. When the St. Clalp left Dodge City /
they had big roll Of money and at least t
one gun because the older brother got !
bis gun from the hotel here just before P
leaving, and the money was seen by 8
parties here. When Williams found
them they had only a few dollars In n
money and the gun had disappeared. h
They were totally unarmed and meekly a
permitted Williams to drive up alone and Il
take them In charge. Wolf was not a
with them. They claim that Wolf did P
not leave with them and that they were Q
not armed when they left town. The
two things that escaped prisoners need 6
are money and guns. They had both b
when they left town and neither when V
they reached Mlneola. The other prison. 4
er, Wolf, may have robbed the St. ClalT d
Sunday night. II be did they do not ad- II
nit II. They may have been captured t
by some one and bought their release. u