The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1908-04-30
IN A TIGHT PLACE.
Edward Carmody Has Hard Luck
at Jail Breaking
STICKS IN A WINDOW
Attempts of Two Bad Men to Break
Out of Stearns County Bias tile
Ends in Failure

Edward Carney and Patrick Shee
han, the two men imprisoned in the
Stearns county Jail at ST. Cloud,
charged with the shooting of Officer
Henry Becker, made an unsuccessful
attempt to escape from the bastile
last Saturday morning.
Carmody sawed off two steel bars
of his cell window and started to
crawl out. He got his body part way
through and then stuck. He was in
4 tight place and could not go eth
err backward or forward. 1t hurt
him and he began to groan and cry
for help. Sheriff Moritz heard the
noise and went to the cell and found
what was the matter. He sent for
assistance and after half an hour or
so Carmody was released in an ex-
hausted condition.
AS a result an extra guard in the
person of James Connolly of Sank
Centre, former chief of ploice of this
city, has been placed on duty. Sheriff
Moritz sent for Mr. Connolly Saturday
afternoon and that gentleman went to
the county seat Saturday. Carmody
and Sheehan will not be left alone
now for minute. That they will
be carefully looked after while Con-
molly is on guard goes without saying.
Carmody and Sheehau have given
more or less trouble ever since their
arrest. They were placed in cells on
the second floor Sheriff Moritz has
repeatedly asked for additional helr
to guard them but the county COM
missioners have not granted the re-
quest. The sheriff has done the best
he could with the force at his COM
mand.
The story given out at St Cloud
relative to the Jail breaking is to the
effect that the saw used by Carmody
was made from a piece of strap iron
OF an old trunk that stood in the
corridor near the cell door. Carmody
and Sheehan managed to pull the
trunk up near to their cell doors,
take pieces of the iron off it and
then push it back into place. With
the iron thus obtained they are said
to have made saws with which they
sawed the steel bars.
Carmody had sawed off two of the
bars and Sheehan had sawed off one
in his cell window. This shows thai
both the desperate men intended to
escape. A careful examination OF
the cells revealed the fact that the
prisoners had torn up their bedding
and made it into rope ladder to
use in descending to the ground af-
ter getting out of the windows.
When Sheriff Moritz arrived on the
scene Carmody was stuck in the win
dow and was in great pain. The
sheriff Immediately summoned his as
sistants and several members of the
police and after hard work released
the fellow. Carmody had stripped fol
the job and had soaped his body to
make it slip between the bars easily
Sheehan was standing by applying
more soap and water. CarmOdy man
aged to get his body through as far
az his hips, but there he stuck. 1t
was necessary for the sheriff to saw
Off another bar of steel before he
could release the prisoner.
After the man was released and
Carmody had recovered his wind and
the affair had quoted down the sher-
if gave both Carmody ard Sheehan a
taste of the strenuous life by hand
cutting them to the doors of their
cells for six hours as a punishemnt.
The men, referring to their attempt
to make a getaway, laughed and said
it was the sheriff's business to keep
them in and theirs to get out.
No blame attaches to Sheriff Nor
itz for the occurrence. He has watch
ed the men carefully and done all
that could be done with the force at
his command. Now that he has ad-
ditional help he will undoubtedly be
able to keep the fellows inside their
cells.
Carmody had his hearing at 10
o'clock Saturday before Justice w.
H. Alden. Officer Henry Becker, the
victim of the shooting, was present as
witness. Mr.. Becker is still weak
but is recovering.
Becker was the first witness. He
told the story of the burglary and