The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1912-03-10

You can't do it."s'replied the guard,
Taylor made the attempt, and while Z!
resting at the top of the ladder on the
upward trip no viewed tho conditions
IN tho prison yard. lncldcntly, Taylor
won the wager.
From accomplIces on the out side,
they finally succeeded in obtaining
money and Information regarding tho
time Il train would leave for Cinciu-
natl. Then their preparations were
complete. all but bringing General
Morgan to tho lower tier. There was
no egrcss from the second row. whero
the general was locked up each night
This was overcom by Morgan's BROTH
or exchanging places with him.
Climbing Down Itorc of Bedclothcs
From Cell
The night of November 81, 1864, was
intensely dark, and the men decided to
trE their fate. The passage from cell
to tunnel and to prison yard was made
without mishap. IT was Il difficult task,
for the tunnel was only eighteen Inches
wide and thirty inches deep. A rope
was made of strips of bedclothcs a
graphing iron made of an iron poker
was thrown over the wall and each
man swarmed UP and dropped on the
other side.
OF the seven mon who escaped, two
were later caught. Morgan boarded tho
SiiI'hia'i Tram, sitting beside Union
major dressed in full uniform AS the
| train bore the escaped prisoners pash
their recent place OF residence. the ma
)or turned TO Morgan and remarked:
That is whore. the rebel General
Morgan is now imprisoned
Indeed" said the general ..I hope
they viii always keep him as safely
| as they have MIN now
The Southcrrers found 1t best to leave
INC train at Dayton before reaching
! Cincinnati, for they found that ~
would be daylight when they arrived
All but two won through to the Confed-
/ eiate lines. The escape created one or
Tue greatest sensations OF the war
now I was possible to escape from than
strong basti!c 1t was diincult to under,
! stand at that time.
Escape Through S-Inch Loophoic In
Boston.
mere was an escape from old Fort
warren In Boston harbor, in which a
young lad, slender but coura e GUS es.
caped through loopholc scarcely
over eight inches in diameter. Just an
lie landed two sentincls came. Licu-
tenant Alexander, the youth, slipped
INTO the water and lay motionIess. Ono
sentinel thought he saw suspicious
object ana extended his bayoneted gun
until the point pricked the lad But
he remained motionless until the two
had passed. He then swan to a small
island and boarded a fishing smack.
but was captured and again placed
within Fort Warren.
The prison guards were always on
guard for tunnels, as this seemed tina
faVorite method of escape. In soma
prisons the Inmates burrowed like
rabhils-numcrous defeats could not
destroy their hopes 1t was at tile
salisbury prison that an officer making
the rounds suddenly sank to his waist
In tunnel--thc digger had NEGLECTED
to leave a strong roof.
Tunneling. in some prisons, became
game OF wits. Andersonville has Il
story of II prisoner who started a tun.
mel from his hut. A spy evidently In
formed the guard and a sergeant came
TO inves tigate. With a steel ramrod
he prodded the ground. while the pris-
oners looked on innocently. at last
his dirininS rod sank into the cxcava-
ton, and a negro was sent to dig
cover how far the tunnel progressed,
The negro brought back the box in
which the dirt had been removed.
Hello" exclaimed tho sergeant,
that is the third time l have caught
that same box Take 1t and go to work
some where else. boys!'
One Of the longest tunnels on record
is that dug by Confedera tes-Sergcnnt
Benson ana his comrades at Elmira,
II extended for aiNty-slX feet and re-
Guircd two months In digging Ben
son and nine soldiers safely navigated
the tunnel and escaped at o'clock in
, the morning. After that sentries not
only patroled the elevated walk around
the stockade. but also IN tho street
outside
Humorous Plots I'm Prison Tragedies. 4
There is one instance where the
powers of Il ventriloquist enabled a
squad OF prisoners 10 escape. The
squad had been detailed to Bury a.
corpse. One of the detail was vcn-
| triloquist Tho body was placed in
the grave, and the earth began TO Mi
the hole. Apparently tho dead man
| began 70 protest, for nutllcd cries and
oaths came from the grave. The prison
guards gave one look at each other
and then fed, while the prisoners did
| likewise but in II different direction
The cXpedicnts of some plotters
showed great courage. AS rule Tho
| hospitals were outside the stockad<
and We're insecurity guarded. Tho
Keepers took ii for granted that a
patient In the hospital was too weaB
to go far. The prisoners soon dis.
covered this and went so far as Ia
thrust red hot needles or some othci
like instrument into the face and
hands TO require medical nttcndancn
He was taken TO the hospital as a
victim OF smallpox. From there II
was comparatively easy matter I'd
escape.
Not only must the prisoner conceal
his operations from tho guards. but
in most cases from his comrades *
number of prisoners planned a tunnel,
but the disposal of the dirt proved a
greet difficulty until one OF their
number hit upon plan. The men
dug during the night aud threw the
cNcavhted dirt into an abandoned we'll.
In the daylight they pretended to dig
the we'll for water. The onlookora
jcercd at them and waSercd they
would not discover" water. Tho
euspIcions of the guards were allaycd
oy the sallics OF the spectators. FINAL
~ tho tMnncl was Completed. and