Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1912-03-16
.CONv|CTS Who
BROKE PRISON
STILL At LARGE.

1g# OllCSC Ill OAAOW w +
for Three Men Who Killed
Prison Officials.
Lincoln. Neb., March 15.-The three
conyicts who murdered Warden Della
hnnty nenuty Warden Wagner and
fisher Hileman yesterday afternoon
are still at large and only one lntilna,
ton as to their whereabouts mas peen
received. Since the time tnat tnes
plunged into whirling sno" STORM
after shooting down the men VINO stoou
between them and liberty, the olly
clew as to their whereabouts was re-
port that they had been seen enter
ing q hay stack southeast OF Ftne cleS !;
A posse led by Sherin Hyers anu
CITY Detective Schmidt hurried 70 tne
spot and surrounded the stack. hnow-
ing that the men were armed, lucy
crept slowly upon the place ana mar
ly rushed it, only to find no one tneie
Horses had given out IN the lace
through snow which came up 20 tnelr
bodies, and were left at nelgnporlhs
farms. The posse then Waded througn
the snow to the railroad tracks mlie
away and exhausted by their exertions
waited for the arrival OF speclal
engine which brought them pacK 10
the city. Since that time posse mus
been kept on hand at the sherlns once
but not word has been reported as
to the whereabouts Of the men.
Railroad Trains Garry Armed Men.
Strict orders have been sent out 10
train crews to keep sharp LOOKOUT
for suspicious characters. Burlington
trains are carrying armed detectives.
The men are thought to haveNaken to
the railroad tracks, probably following
the Nebraska city branch OF the Bur-
linpton which leads towards Kansas
city. the place for which the men are
thought to be headed. They cannot
make much headway except on the
tracks as the roads are waist deep IN
unbroken drifts Of snow. The men
were scantly clad and must have sui
fered severely from the, severity OF
! the weather, following their tremend-
ous exertions in breaking through the
snow. 1t is thought they sought
shelter in some barn during the night,
as it was impossible for them to have
made much headway through the
drifts.
\ orders have been sent to the sher-
iffs in surrounding counties and all
the constables Of the various town.
ships to keep on the watch. The or
ders are to shoot on sight as the men
are known to be desperate and 1t Is
certain that they will not be captured
alive. A fight is expected if the men
are run down.
Guardsmen Patrol Prison.
At the prison this morning condi-
tions are quiet. General Phelps, head
OF the state national guard. Is in COM
mand with fifty militiamen under
arms with him. The citizen sol
diery walked guard all night, both
within and without the prison. The
men were fed in their cells last night
and this morning. 1t was announced
that work in the shops would probably
commence this afternoon, with guards
more than redoubled and great care
taken to see that not hostile move
is made by the convicts.
The men who worked in shops A.
and West A. from which the three
fugitives escaped, are in sullen mood.
When they were taken to their cells
yesterday afternoon, they manifested
their pleasure at the escape Of their
comrades by whooping and yelling. 1t
was necessary to remove several from
their cells and place them in the
solitary" Cells were also searched
for clubs, which were rumored to have
been secreted, but none were found.
With strict discipline enforced by the
presence of the soldiers, the authori-
ties expect no trouble today. Careful
watch is being given particularly to
convicts Forbes and Evans, who were
In the same crowd with the escaped
men, but who were unable to make
their way from the workshops yester.
day.
The outbreak at the prison is believ-
ed to be the outcome of a spirit of un-
rest that has been prevalent among
the convicts for over a month
Sunday, February II, negro con-
Deputy Warden E. D. Davis during
the chapel service.
Friday, March 1, employees of the
prison saw former convicts pass
bottle Of morphine through the gate Of
the prison yard to one of the inmates.
Restrictions were Immediately placed
on the convicts with a view to stamp
ing out the traffic in the drug.
Last Saturday Chaplain Johnson Of
the penitentiary resigned after a con-
versation with the governor relative
to prison discipline. A week ago the
governor had issued an order barring
women prison workers and Sunday
school teachers from visiting the prison
during service declaring that their as
sociation with the convicts was unde-
sirable.
Mutiny Without Warning.
The mutiny came without warning
and SO sudden and apparently well
planned was the work of the convicts
that for the moment the prison per-
sonnel was in state Of panic. The
three men were employed in the broom
factory. Shortly after two O'Clock on
municate with the deputy warden, they
left their work in the factory building,
approached their outside entrance to
the deputy's office and raising their
-ight arms az . ,ken of obedience