New-York tribune., 1920-10-23
Stivers and Bassett Put
Up No Fight When They
Are Cornered While Eat
ing Apples in Orchard
Guards istol Is
Found ON Fugitive
Are on Way to Sing Sing
From Concord; May
Face 9 Serious CHARGES
Spectol Dispatch to The rrihnne


CONCORD, N. H., Oct. 22.-George
Stivers and Marcus Bassctt, the des-
peradoes who broke out Of Sing Sing
Prison, leaving three senselcss guards
behind them and drove across four
states in automobiles which they stole
as they fed, were captured to-day
without exchanging a shot with any of
the hundreds Of searchcrs who have
been hunting them in the forested
foothills Of Kearsarge Mountain, north
of Warner.
The two gaunt, unshavcn fugitives
had stolen out of the woods and were
squatting in an orchard munchinp
apples when they were discovered
Charles W. Rowe, of HenNiker, and
Edward L. Forsaith, of Warner, mem
bers of Sheriff George A. Wooster's
posse, found them. Rowe and Forsaith
had been posted on Tory Hill and were
sauntering past AT orchard on it's
slope, their guns under their arms
wheE movement in the orchard
caught their eyes.
Give Up Without Fight
Glancing over the stone wall which
separated them from the orchard, they
saw the two men at the meal of apples
Bassett vowed in describing his cap
ture later that, scared as he and his
companion were, the two countrymer
looked more scared.
|, I,
ever, who jerked guns to shoulders
order was one WHICH Bassett and
Stiyers are more accustomed to give
than to receive and it had been on
their lips many times during their
mad race from prison. They obeyed
it with alacrity, however, Bassett not
so much as making a motion toward a
loaded automatic pistol which was in
his outside coat pocket.
While Rowe kept the muzzlc of a
shotgun pointed in their direction, the
two prisoners were searched by For
saith for arms. In Merrimack County
man who carries a revolver does so
conservativeiy and according to prece-
dent Forsaith slapped both men on
their rear pockets and reported that
they were unarmed.
They were marched then a quarter
of mile to the home of George II
Sargent, who writes for The Boston
Transcript, and who has q telephone
Sheriff Wooster was notified by tee-
phone of the capture and came to Mr.
Sargent's home with Warden Lewis E.
Lawes, of Sing Sing. who joined the
hunt to-day with three of his keepers
"You've got them," said Warden
Lawes when he saw the prisoners
They are the men we want"
Bassett and Stivers were brought to
Police Headquarters in this city by
Warden Lawes in an automobile Dur
automatic pistol remained quietly in
his coat pocket. He made no attempt
to use it. 1t was not discovered until
he was searched at headquarters by
policemen who had no regard for the
conventions in pistol toting.
The weapon was the 32 caliber auto
matte which the pair Of convicts had
taken from the outside guard of Sing
Sing, who entered the key room of
the prison just after they had knocked
out his companion on duty there. There
were three cartridges in the pistol and
Bassett had thirty-two more in his
pocket.
Fired Only One Shot
Although both Bassett AMI Stivers
are regarded as men who are quick on
the trigger, and Stivers was sent tc
Sing Sing for shooting a New York
patrolman, they fired only one shot
from that pistol in the hundreds OF
miles of their lawless race.
That was fired yesterday in a farci
cal attempt at hold-up from which
the two convcts date all their mis-
{<Dr o. '
here, where they entered Ed Wilkirs's
grocery store in search of sandwiches
throwing $40 bin on the counte,
as they made their demand for food
1--WE weren't going to stick up the
guy" said Bassett, "but he flashed q
roll of bills when he was making
CONTINUED on page threel