Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-12-27
YeIl-Lad Plot for Escape OF 53
Cen,icts from County Basjle
Failed Just in Time
STRANGE BLACK AUTO ON HAND
Visitors Barred As Investigation
Proceeds WigerS Names Be-
LieYed Ring leader

well-laId plot for wholesale
all delivery Of the 53 convicts i'm
,.r,soned liz the county bastile was
discovered and frustrated by Sher-
IA ] :. WiEeFs. Turnkey c. c.
Eirsch and Special Night Guard
Wilbur Hepburn at 7:15 last even
ing.
eustom 70 lock the prisoners in sep
arate cells for the night, two in
.ach cell Preliminary to the per
formance Of this duty. the turnkey
usually makes = tour of inspection
u guard against a possible escape
While on his rounds at G:15 last
evening, Turnkey kirsch discovered
that the heavy boiler-iron roof in
cell No. u on the second floor had
beer twisted back. allowing suffi-
Gent space for the passage of
the body of a man.
Pretending that ne noticed moth
ing. k.rSCh slammed the cell door
To and sought Sheriff Wigers in his
apartments over the jail, notifying
him Of the discovery.
The sheriff's living quarters are
on the second floor of the jail
building and AZ the front, facing
Third avenue. Leading from his
rooms IS q short flight of steps, at
the top Of which Is a lightweight
wooden door giving entrance to an
unused attic Immediately over the
cell from which the escape was to
have been made. Through this at
tic extend the ventuauOr and air
e la 10
These outlets are constructed of
fIimsy material, some of soft pine
wood and thin bOiler-iTon, and
would permit OF easy access to the
roof OF the Jail from within.
Fearing that some of the prison
ers had already made good their
getaway. Sheriff Wigers called to
his wife to summon the police, him
self standing guard with drawn
pistol before the thin door leading
from the attic into his own apart
ments.
Auto Leaves.
Wilbur Hepburn, special night
guard. was dispatched outside to
watch the west side Of the jail, the
only side from which descent from
the roof could be made. AS Hep
burn ran ont to his station, big
black automobile. with drawn cur
tains, gIided away from the curb
south on Fourteenth street to Third
avenue on which it turned west,
driven at a great rate OF speed.
When the police arrived an in
vestigation was begun In the at
tic was found q straw-fiIled sack
upon which the men had kneeled
while working upon a large hole
evidently sawed through the one
eighth inch boiler-iTon of one of the
largest Of the ventilator ducts. No
trace Of the tool with which the
cutting OF saving was done could
be found. Indications are that the
escape was carefully planned with
outside help and timed just about
the hour when discovered by the
jail authorities. Once upon the
roof. descent to the ground is com
paratively easy via the roofs of the
bathroom. and kitchen on the west
side OF the old Jail building. This
route entails drops of perhaps six
TO eight feet. while almost a sheer
jump Of approximately 40 to so
feet would be necessary to reach
the ground from the jail roof on
either the south. east or north sides
Of the prison structure.
Zone Escape.
An inventory of the prisoners
was a. once taken and all So were
found to be present They were at
once locked up in their cells, where
fFav mill 10 hold for some time ar
cording to Sheriff Wigers.
Parole viOlators, many Of them
bad actors" were responsible for
the attempted outbreak say the
sheriff's forces. That they had
outside" accomplices is practical
" assured. Without a doubt the es-
cape was well prepared for as evil
denced by the big machine which
stood ready and waiting TO whisk
the fugiuves away John Jackson,
parolad negro, is thought to have
been one Of the ringleaders in the