The evening world. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1887-1931, 1912-07-08
Daring Thief Makes Getaway
in Sight of Boys Whom
He RobS.
FEELS AGED GUARD.
Steals Pistol, Frightens Engi-
neers and Scales Barrier in
Melodramatic Flight.

George Wilson. awaiting trial for the
theft from the wife OF Frederick L. Tay-
Tor. n lawyer. Of her engagement ring a
weeks or moro ago. ought TO be in the
Tombs this morning under close confine-
ment a. an ex-convict resting under q
now felony charge. But he II not there.
Warden Fallon and his deputies ad-
mitted sorro wfuliy this morning.
From the first light OF morning until
o'clock twenty-four deputies and a
number Of policemen from tho Elisabeth
street station searched every corner and
recess Of the building. every barrel and
dustbin. They went over the Criminal
Courts Building. even. which 10 connect
cd with the Tombs by the Bridge OF
Signs
Knowing Wilson for a desperate man
and knowing that at the beginning OF
mis- escape he had taken q revolver from
guard he had knocked unconscious,
they expected to be confronted with
battle and sudden death at every turn.
But the only sounds they heard were
the voices of the searchers.
The Tombs officials had the melan-
choly satisfaction OF knowing some
thing OF the way In which Wilson
escaped. He was quartercd on the
seventh tier. With other prisoners of
the tier he was taken out for exercise
At half past two o'clock yesterday
afternoon and presumably locked In his
cell again at half past three o'clock. II
was the duty Of the tier keeper. Coug-
nan. to report Il At any time Wilson
was not in his cell. Cougnan had IN
unhappy session to-day with Commiss-
Toner whitney. Deputy Commissioner
Wright and Warden Falion.
MADE HIS ESCAPE THROUGH
UTILITY SHAFT.
From the seventh tier Wilson ap-
parently made his way to the utility
shaft. through which run all the steam,
water and gas pipes and the electric
wires Of tho building. Marks Of his
fingers on the pipes are plain. In many
places there are marks made by his
shoes and some of the pipes are scraped
clean Of dust and grease where he slid
down them.
In front Of Engineer Frank Kelly
and tvs Of his helpers. Wilson doomed
up at half past eight o'clock last night.
The utility shaft opens into the engine
room. There is a grating across the
opening. but there Is a space above
the grating big enough to allow . man
to climb over. The engineer shouted.
Wilson caught up a heavy iron nail
pulling machine. and disappeared as
suddenly as he had come. Kelly and
his men wasted quite = little while
looking for him.
Meanwhile Wilson had worked his
way through the coal bins to a manhole.
He pushed up the iron lid with his head.
The marks Of his head are plain on the
coal dust which lines the cover. Then
he crawled out into the prison yard.
Here was william Houlihan, sixty
I'VE years old. who had been many
years In the Tomts without ever seeing
a prisoner climb out OF a manhole cover.
He wasn't watching 'manhole covers. lie
did not even turn to learn what made
the noise of the iron scraping over the
stones. Wilson crept up behind hin
and dealt him a cruel blow across the
side OF the head with the nail-puller
He snatched the revolver from Houli'
hans belt and made for the Franklir
street wall OF the yard.
SHOT FROM YARD; THEN CALL
FOR GUARDS.
Things began to happen In the prison
Just then. Night Warden Jones ant
Deputy Warden Drury had been count
Ing up" for the night They could onl,
md 6S prisoners. There should have
been dS. A second count verified tn,
first. Up from the basement came 4
| message from Kelly:
There's a prisoner loose. We Jus
saw him down here. and now We can
| md him."
A shot from the yard followed. On,