Heppner gazette. [volume] (Heppner, Morrow County, Or.) 1892-1912, 1905-01-05
DESPERATE CHHvECTs s110T.
RCiG Attempt to- Escape From
Prison.

was clever in plan and hold in execu-
ton took place at the prison here tins
afternoon. The guards obeyed the
etandfuF orders Of tte WARDEN TO shoot
regardless of the danger to the free
men and asa result seven Of the niue
convicts, who planned to get away were
almost ridd ed with bullets, three are
now dead and three are in crtica
condition. Captain R. j. Murphy is
wounded by shot in the leg and two
slight knife wounds.
The break was similar in general
plan to that of last July. but the fact
that it was within the range of the guns
of seven reliable guards, all dead shots
and one of these within fifty feet, made
it the most bold and desperate
The convlcts who engaged in the
break were all employed in the rock
crueher, where 325 Of the most des
perate prisoners We're at work. Cap
tain Murphy was acting as general over
eeer ab0nt the rock crusber and four
other attaches, l.. Daley, NJ. Hogan,
Charles Taylor and Cha,les jolly We're
empoyed as "pushers" to keep the
men at work. 4 large sledge hammer
was thrown into The cruhor. causine
the pondaraus machine to come to a
standstill This attracted Murphy, Jol-
ly ana Taylor to the place. Th9Yenpon
the desperate conVicts rushed to seize
Murphy, Jolly and Taylor.
They succeeded only in catching the
two first mentioned Others endeaVov
ed TO take the other free men who man
aged to escape them During this time
the scene of trouble was under cover
and the guards on the outside could not
see the struggling men, although they |
soon had an iutimatiou that something |
was wrong The convlcts with their
captyes, made their way toward
small post commanded by guard W II |
Harris, who was armed with rife.
Five of the gang surrounded Murphy
and two of them had Jolly. The con-
victs he'd knives in position for an i'm
mediate execution should the guards
attempt to free Themselves. They no
sooner stepped into the open than
seven guards commenced fling, and |
within twenty seconds fully 100 shots
had been fred aud seven cOnyicts were
on the ground helpless.
The convicts We're very bold as they
approached Guard Harris, who stood
ready to act according to standing or
ders to shoot regardless of consequences.
When within forty feet of the outside
command "hand ont your gun or we
will stab Murphy to the heert"
Instead OF handing out his life, Har-
ris sent bullet into the fellows body,
and he fell TO the ground. In quick
succession Harris fred at each of the
,,,&, krx,, 80,
shield themselves behind Murphy and
Jolly. "Rough House" Kelly, the last
of the convicts shot, had borne Muir
ply to the ground with him and was
under the officer for protection. With
wonderful cooness and nerve, Murphy
wriggled about until Harris could draw
a bead on Kelley and one shot took all
the fight out of him. In the meantime
bullets from the other posts were flying
thickly about, many of them striking
the convicts. Murphy was struck by
one of them. slight wound being in
hicted in the leg and jolly was struck in
the neck, the bullet coming out through
the cheek and infiicting a very serious
wound, though probably not a critical
one.
Two of the convicts named Campbell
and Ford, intended to join the others,
but their courage fliled'them when the
shooting bega1. The following ccnyicts
were hi led
II. c. Hill. Placer county, sentenced