Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1908-09-14
PRISON BREAK
N|PPED IN BUD.
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Desperate Fight Of TWO Guards
With Richard Deming
Who Had Knife.
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DURING SUNDAY SERVICES
Exciting Scene at State Prison Yester-
day Neutrality-suspicious. Orders
Urc to Shoot Convict.

Urc to Shoot Convict.
The watchfulness OF Warden Pratt
and Deputy Warden Uro of the state
prison nippcd III the bud, yesterday,
F carefully laid plans of three desper-
ate convicts to kill one or more
guards and effect their escape while
en- route to the court house on the
23rd of this month That is the
date on which Richard Deming is to
be tried for destruction Of public
property and attempting to escape
from the county jail; and Joe sulli-
van and Abe Majors, witnesses for
the defense, We're to he with him.
Warden Pratt was given a tip last
tuesday that DenltnE had a knife, and
later he Learned that the three des-
4 peraeloes mad put up the scheme to
XIII their guard and escape when be-
Ing taken to court. Deining, as the
+ accused has the right TO summon Wit
nesscs. and he had letter, found by
the warden, to his attorney, notifying
him to call sullivan and Majors.
s friendly convicts. as witnesses for
the defense. Tho men were to
{ provide themselves with knives, and
at 4 favorable moment, while on the
4 road, were to suddenly spring on
the guards. kill them and get away
#$Deming had boasted he would never
come back alive, after once leaving the
prison for the courthouse. Had the
( man kept ismouth shut, and kept his
own counsel, the plan might have, at
least been partially carried out. But,
as is usual among evil doors, the ten
b dency3 to boast OF what they propose
doing and their vanity in fancicd self
q security, defeated his intentions: so the
4 warden soon found out what was in
4 prospect.
SCENE AT SERVICE.
AT 1875 a. M. yesterday. the ward
EN- an, was va Quietly informed that Deming
had knife on him, and tho official
decided It was high time to act. Dem
ing was out In the corridors of the
south cell house, smingling with other
prisoners, and Guards Cleveland and
S Taggart We're directed to take their
4billies and go IN there as though they
4 had no particular errand, and seize
Denling as soon as they got along side.
3sof him: This they did, marching the
desperate toward his cell to search
him. At that moment, Dening reach
ed inside his shirt for the knife which
he pulled out, but In the scuffle it
i dropped 10 tho floor, where Cleveland
IQiChly PlChGtl= tlJreup.lsE DDlIlluGI broke
{ away, and before the two guards could
get hold of him again, a Gordon OF
Il conNicts had surrounded tho desperado
toTshield him from the officers Help
4 was summoned by 'phone from the Of
s flee by n 55trusty on call from the
guards, and immediately three bells
L Mere rung on the, yard gong. The en-
y u ta prison obeyed tile order, promptly,
K except Demitig. The State Prison Soci-
ETY. OF Christian Endeavor was holding
Its regular Sunday morning meeting at
the time. IN the prison chapel with
five EndeaVorers from town and some
prisoners; and Miss Fanny Thome
OF the Third Presbyterian church. and
4 q high school teacher, was in the midst
s5of an address, when the yard bell
s changed out Its warning. Instantly
s5Juard Dyer. who was in charge in the
chapel, rang three bells from the cha
pei, gong.Gand tho entire audience OF
d convictsl left in u body for their re-
+ spectlve cell houses. There was moth
ing left for the visitors but to with
q draw, which they did, and the regular
y services for the entire day were de-
clared off.
ALARM SOUNDED.
iss44 Warden Pratt sent all the available
guards Immediately inside armed, and
rang the alarm call in the neighboring
cottagse where the guards live This
1 brought out8the entire force. men who
We're asleep and all. The sheriff Of
Willard county was present he
having brought up a. prisoner,
and was anxiaus to take hand In
the game, but his services were not
with the guards, with Deputy Warden
IRE, who came off the wall. to find
!, Deming had taken refuge at the head
of corridor stairs. He and the two
guards had fought their way to that
d location from Demings cell, where
Deming dropped over the railing as
Guard Taggart struck him on the
head. and he dropped to the floor
y below with a bad scalp wound. The
two guards ran down after him, and
ii was here that the other convicts
gathered around to protect the des-
perado. But with the ringing of the
gong. the prison population disap-
peared In their cells, leaving Deming
raging around Ike a mailman. AS
Wardens Pratt and TIRE appeared
Deming ran up 30 the head of the
second tier stairs, with blood stream
ing down from his head. The warden
called for Deming TO come down OF,
he would be shot, But to
this, the convict replied only with
8blasphemN. Warden Pratt then
told his deputy to shoot but at that
instant Guard Cleveland. an old SOL
der from the regular army, had got
behind Daming, and gave him terri
BILE blow on the head from his black
jack The man came tunbltng down
the stairs all in a heap so the deputy
did not fire, However, had the guard
delayed his, action Il few seconds long
er, Deming would have been shot dead
8Deming recovered his wits in an In
stant, and was in for further fighting.
,,s-,.
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