The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1905-09-18
One Chance In a
Hundred For Life
rorlginaL1

5el for the defense, with a defeat for
the latter and an innocent man sen
fenced to death.
How a few days before the sentence
was to nave been carried out he got
/ mt of jail was never certainly known,
IlouGh It was admitted ut tie prison
Int Ills wife was admitted to see him,
nd when she went away a keeper re
..arked that she looked taller than
:. zen she went in, and another. seeing
.er ret ON to u trolley car, noticed that
he wore heavy boots The rest of the
tory goes thRt the wife WAS found
,ekel IN the prisoners cell alone.
He had been hiding during tie day
and had heard them beating the bush
al about him. Several times he be-,
ieyed that in d few minutes lie would
La, dragged from his hiding place. Bul
WHILE men are much more Intelligent
than dogs there are cases where dogs
,,say throw men into contrast OF stu.
r.dIty. His pursuers eo1ld not sIaell
| him.
Night came, and under It's friendly
cover he left a region where he was
known to be and must certainly be
discovered on the morrow, Is not dur
| ing the night. Crawling under bushes
between two men set to watch for him,
lie stole through their line and ran
| with all the strength lie had left after
two, days' FAST till he carne to a farm
house. There, knowing that he must
| have food for strength to struggle FUR
Their, he went boldly in. asked TOE
supper and ate his fill. Then he start
| ed on with one, and only one, advan-
tage- strength But his chances were
growing less.
Suddenly he stumbled into depres-
sion and fell. His hands struck
| smooth iron and he knew he was on
a railroad. BE got up and walked on
the track, soon coming to point where
he could sec station u Few hundred
yards from him. 1t was lighted, and
n single man walked back and forth
| on the platform. The fugitive watched
him, suspecting that he was there TO
prevent his escape by train II ne
| could only get aboard without the
man seeing him he would have q FUR
Their and a better chance than before
to escape A way train came along
md stopped at the station, but it was
closely watched. and lie did not dare
try to get on The watcher went
through it, and when 1t had gone left
the sutton Doubtless there could be
no other train for some time.
Two hours passed. A man drove up
to the station in a buggy and dragged
| n big bag to a post beside the track
n short distance from the station and
| attached It to a beam projecting from
the post It was the mail bag placed
in position to be caught by an express
train.
There is no such nourisher Of ideas
as self preservation. All that man is
TODAY may be traced to his one in
stfnct. The hunted man knew that by
and by an express train would pass,
nm iron hook on the mall car would
be adjusted and catch the bag around
the center and It would be caught and
swung into the car.
The idea flashed into the cugttiYe's
brain, Can be swung on to the train
with this bag?'' He calculated the
chances, and concluded that they We're
about as follows: Death, ninety;
thrown beside the track MANNED. nine;
taken in alive and recovering from
wounds, one.
While he was deliberating there came
from distance the bark of a dog, fol
lowed by another and another till their
number was lost in confusion of bay
His pursuers had secured blood
hounds and his capture was now GER
tain.
| Hark-the distant rattle of train!
1t must be the express. The mans
mind is made up. He will take the
! one chanee-In a hundred
When his wife had taken his place
in prison she had brought him rope
and a knife These were nll the ar
ticles he had asked for end lie had had
as yet no use for them. Taking the
rope from his pocket, he went to the
post, stood on a platform beneath 1t
and began to lash himself to the bag.
He first tied part OF tic rope around
! the bottom of the bag, then dashed his
| body under his. arms to the upper part
/ of the bag and, lastly, wormed his feet
into the rope about the bottom. This
left his middle free.
The barking OF the dogs and the
rattle Of the train came nearer, though
| from different directions. 1t was the
train alone In which he was Interested.
| Having finished hts iasIiii:G. Tic turned
with the bag. which, finally settling,
brought his face to the track. With
out this his one chance would nave
been lost AS the train Numbered
near he bent his body like bow
When the hook strnck the bag It
struck out his consciousness. When
he regained his senses he was lying
on the door of the mail car with sew
erai traInmen standing over him. His
pursuers would not have known him.
| for his face was drenched In blood.
| All he knew was that he was alive,
aboard the car and there was hope.
when he reached the city the train,
| 1888 - ~, az for