Bonners Ferry herald. [volume] (Bonners Ferry, Idaho) 1904-current, 1917-04-24
JAIL BREAK
LAST NIGHT
HOMER DAYTON AND ]. ii. DON
NELLY SAW THROUGH
BAR TO LIBERTY.
DAYTON is FEDERAL PRISONER
Escaped Prisoners Had Over Hours
Start of Officers.

Homer Dayton, federal prisoner
being held in the county jail until
such time as he could be given a
trial on the charge of resisting fed
eral officers and ]. II. Donnelly, a
state prisoner charged with grand
larceny, being held for trial in the
district court, escaped from the coun-
ty Jail between the hours of seven
and eight o'clock last evening, Sc
curing their liberty by filing through
a bar in the southwest window of
the Jail and bending it back, far
enough to permit the passage of their
bodies, with the aid of four foot
length of a cedar post.
The officers of all nearby towns
have been wired descriptions of the
escaped prisoners and have been
asked to arrest them upon sight.
Deputy Sheriff Mcmahon spent last
night in a search for the men and
lis continuing the search today.
That Dayton and Donnelly had es-
capped was discovered shortly after
eight o'clock last evening when
Jailor Callahan began locking the
inmates of the county Jail in the
separate cells for the night. The
avenue of escape was soon found.
The officials of the county have
no clue of how the escaped prisoners
secured "a file with which to saw the
heavy inch steel bar of the Jail
window The prisoners evidently
took the file with them. After filing
through the bar near the sill of the
window it was bent inward, leverage.
for this purpose being secured by
wrapping. heavy piece of wire
around the bar and fastening it to
good sized cedar post which had
been brought into the Jail yester-
day afternoon to be used for fire
wood. The hole thus made was
barely tx inches wide.
Andrew Mathiesen is certain that
he saw the prisoners making their
escape. His home is near the coun-
ty jail and about eight o'clock he
noticed a man running from the
Jail to the Great Northern tracks.
A few minutes later another man
ran by. Mathiesen wondered about
the. matter at the time but con-
cluded that the men were officers
searching for illegal whiskev shin
ments. A little later in the eve
ming Jack Vaughan was scared out
OF a years growth when as he
was walking through the S. /. rail-
way cut a man jumped up nearby
and ran through the brush. The
runner stumbled and fell once but
lost no time in recovering himself
and continuing his flight At this
time Mr.. Vaughan did not know of
the jailbreak.
Dayton is 10 years old. He is 5
feet II inches tall, slightly stopped,
has dark hair, dark eyes, dark com
plexion. The top of his head is
shaved and bears several small scars.
He also has two scars on his fore
head. Two teeth of the upper Jaw
are missing and he is blind in his
left eye. He wore. mackinaw pants
olive drab shirt, blue serge coat and
a cap.
He was arrested on January IL
at Eastport, by. the U. S. customs
officers. He refused to submit to
arrest and in the fight which fol-
lowed his high power % calibre
rifle was discharged several times
and he struck the arresting officers
The officers found it necessary tc
manhandle him severely before he
was finally subdued. On February
End Dayton attempted to escape from
Sheriff Sawyer while he was at The
office of Drs. Fry and Faucet hav
, ing his wounds dressed. He wa:
! caught in the alley back of the En-
terprise building few minutes after
. he rushed from DR.. Fry's office anc
down stairs to the street.
ponnelly is 33 years old and il
5 feet S1sinches tall. He is darl
complexioned and combs his hal
pompadour. Smooth shaven, straigh
: nose, good teeth, wore blue worstet
L suit, derby hat and dark grey shirt