Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-02-13
FIFTY YEARS AGO
IN THE STAR

from Mexico, was not altogether uneX-
pected, as the logic of events inevita-
bly, tended to such a conclusion. The
frankness. however. with which the
emperor made the announcement and
expressed hope for the thorough res
toration of amicable relations with this
country are pregnant facts and will
have an important bearing on Amer
lean interests at home and American
character abroad. The course of Ma
poleon in this affair is not only another
proof of the sagacity of that able man,
but fully demonstrates the wisdom of
the moderate but firm policy of our ad-
ministration"
The condition of the District Jail was
such that the citizens lived in constant
fear of a wholesale
A Near-Escape outbreak of prison
- A. - ers. In The Star of
VAN February 8, 1866, is
an account of such a happening, which
but for a fortunate circumstance might
have caused the liberation of a most
desperate gang:
Might before last desperate attempt
was made by some of the colored pris-
oners confined in the county Jail to
escape, and it is believed that nearly
every colored prisoner and perhaps
some of the whites were concerned in
it. 1t is we'll known that the walls Of
the cells and of the building are easy
to penetrate, and it appears that some
time after the hours at which the pris-
oners were locked up on Wednesday.
John Butler, a colored burglar. who
was arrested a few weeks ago, charged
with six different offenses, and who
was confined in one Of the cells in the
the cell and got access to the corridor.
Here Butler, the ringleader, was join
ed by several accomplices. They
waited until one of the guards, Mr..
rounds through the building, when, as
soon as he had passed the door Of the
corridor, he was garroted by Butler
and some of the others. and at the
same time his keys taken from him
and his pockets rifled of about $35
in money.
THE gang then unlocked the remain
ing five cells on that floor, releasing the
inmates. thereby increasing their num-
Der to about thirty-five. The formidable
below, but fortunately none of the
keys would fit the locks of the cells on
that floor. The keys for that floor Mr..
Waters. when attacked, had slipped
down the leg of his trousers into his
boots. Fooled in their efforts to open
these doors. the prisoners commenced
to search on the stairs and in the upper
story.
while this was going on Mr.. Waters
dog, who usually accompanies the
VII hot dc A1,6i hot 10
master and himself were outnumbered,
set up a bark and thus notified the
other guards. who were in the lower
story, and they, with military guard
on duty. fastened up into the building.
and after some trouble succeeded in
securing the desperadoes. Fortunately
the prisoners did not get possession of
the keys of the other portions of the
building, else doubtless they would
have made a concerted attempt to pass
out of the building; a thing quite inn
possible without some bloodshed. This
is the most desperate attempt that has
yet been made to escape from this
prison, although scarcely day passes
without an attempt to cut through the
wall, which will be the case as long as
such a rickety old building is used for
the confinement of such desperate char
acters as are now within its walls we
hone that Congress will at the present
session make some provision for new
the fears of the community that the
lawbreakers there confined will some
day succeed in escaping in a body"
Washington was greatly mystified by
the alleged encounter between Sena-
tor Ben Wade
Senator Wade's Visitor of Ohio and
Denies an Assault. rrav" in the
senator's chambers early in January.
Subsequently some doubt was cast
upon the accuracy of the account of
this affair, which was given out by
Senator Wade himself. In The Star of
February 10. 1866, just month after
the first publication, is letter, nearly
column in length, from one w. L.
Fleming, setting forth that he was the
mysterious man in gray but that he
had not, as Senator Wade averred. act
ed in any degree menacingly. With
regard to the episode of weapon, Mr..
Fleming wrote, after describing the
interview, in the course of which the
senator was bearing himself with ex-
IRENE reserve:
AT this time. there being a strong
smell of gas in the room. l called Mr..
Wade's attention to it. He got up and
opened the door and raised a window
and sat down to reading a newspaper.
Said j. Judge, what makes you so cross
tonight? We've always been good
friends since 1857. and strong free
states men together. and now you are
giving me the cold shoulder I then
got up to spit in the fire, and being
something of a tobacco chewer. took
out a large piece of tobacco and COM
mon sailors jackknife-a blunt-point-
ed, wide bladed affair, about as fit for
stabbing purposes as a tallow candle,
and having cut off a chew. returned it
to my pocket and took my seat again,
saying. as did so. Judge, those men
in Charlestown have told you a lie AS
he still seemed inclined. to be sulky
and to profess to believe that I had
talked about him in Massachusetts. l
babe him goodnight, civilly, and opened
and closed the door after me and went
away. He did not follow me, or even
rise from his seat, and as to the story
he has told about drawing a pistol on
me, and his story told since about kick
ing me out, l want to say that had he
drawn a pistol 1T would speedily have
found its way out of the window, and
IL he had attempted the kicking proc
ess he would have followed his pistol