The evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1907-1908, 1907-09-27
Frederick ". HOss, Charged
With Forgery, Walks Out
Of East Orange Station.
POLICEMAN WAS OBLIGING
O'NeiIl Permitted HOss to Wash
in Corridor and Says lie Then
Locked Him Up Again, but
Chief Bell Is Investigating
It..Hoss Not Found Yet.

Frederick w. Hoss, 26 years old, of 46i
Fourth avenue, this city. who was arrested
last night at the Ampere depot of the Lack
awanna Railroad by Chief of Police James
Bell, of East Orange, and Pnkerton de-
tective on a charge Of forgery preferred
by New York concern, escaped from the
East Orange Police Station between 7;so
and $3.50 o'clock this mornings The police
OF surrounding cities and towns have been
asked to look for him.
Hoss is described as being about feet
s inches in height and weighing about i6o
pounds. He has dark hair and is fairly
well dressed.
Hoss evidently had an easy job escaping.
1t looked as though he simply walked out
He did not cut any bars and as he was
thoroughly searched when taken to the
station house II is not thought that he
picked the lock on a big iron door of the
corridor. II does not look as II the lock
was toached. He had not been in cell
but was allowed to walk about In the
stone corridor that is located In front OF
the tier of cells.
When Sergeant Frank Patterson came
in early this morning to relieve Sergeant
William Hpff he asked II any prisoners
were locked up, and was told Hoss was.
The latter, was apparently asleep at 7i2O
o'clock, and IS policemen walked near the
corridor Hoss awoke and asked if he
might wash himself. Sergeant Patterson
granted the request and Policeman Harry
O'Neill who does reserve work, was dele
gated to take the prisoner to a basin out
side the corridor, and when Hoss had COM
pIeted his toilet he was nut back IN the
corridor. The officer believes thelSdoor
locked as he pushed It back. but this pos
sihly may not have occurred.
At $3.50 o'clock Chief Bell asked II Hoss
had gotten his breakfast, and he received
negative answer.
"Well. he has lots of money with him."
said the chief, "and he may not like our
bill of fare, so you had better ask him
what he desires on his own account"
O'Neill walked back to the cell room and
called several times, but received no an
swer Then it was discovered that the
prisoner had made his escape o'Neill told
the chief that he was certain he had closed
the big iron door at 7:20 o'clock.
Sergeant Patterson was called TO the
telephone at 1850 and was asked to send a
policeman out to arrest an intoxicated man
who had committed an assault, and he
sent O'Neill. When the drunk was put
behind the bars at $40 o'Neill said he no
ticed that the door, as he now remem-
bers was slightly ajar, but at the time
he did not think anything about It. He
thinks Hoss must have escaped sometime
near O'Clock.
When 1t became known about the police
station that a prisoner had escaped there
was great excitement and every nook and
corner of the building was searched. as
was the iron roofing over the cells where
t was first thought Hoss had gone to hide.
but the search was fruitless The police
men continued to look IN vain and a gen
eral alarm WIS sent out to every surround
ing department.
Just In front OF the corridor door is a
stone walk that leads to the rear old sec
tion OF the police station, interrupted by II
wooden door. Hoss might have walked
out this way TO another rear wooden door,
left unlocked, jumped fence fronting an
open lot or have walked past either drive
way leading to Main street, which runs
past both sides of the police station and
City Hall.
Or he might have walked out the front
door Of the station house. There is a pas
sageway going past the sergeant's desk
and courtroom with a wall between but
he would have had to pass four open doors
that lead into both departments. No one
can remember that he passed out, but the
belief Is pretty general that he escaped
by means Of the iron corridor door, which
must have been open.
Hoss was arrested by the chief and
Pinkerton Detective Raymond Just as he
stepped off the AS train from New York
at Ampere last night
The chief hurried to the mans home
in this city today after the Escape. Mrs.
Hoss appeared surprised that her husband
had escaped. and said she was making
preparations to visit him at the police
station Chief Bell made a search of
the house without result
Hoss is a stenographer employed in
New York. 1t could not be learned this
morning with what firm he was connected
nor the name Of the firm which is pressing
the charge of forgery.