Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1921-09-07
BREAK JAIL TO
SEECOUNTYFAIR
CRIMINALS HEW WAY TO
GREAT AGRIC. SHOW.
BREAK JAIL: CAPTURED.

Sheriff Holmes Friday morning
rounded up Art. Crane, 10, Oklahoma
Indian, at Cassville, and the excite
ment that had reigned at the Grant
county bastille for a day was quoted.
Crane, Dicky Richards and Grover
Burns broke jail about one o'clock
Thursday morning. Their absence
was not noticed until about O'Clock
when the prisoners were fed. About
half an hour later Richards and Burns
came walking back. Crane was still
at large. Another prisoner, one Bier
man of Platteville, made no attempt
to get away.
The means of egress was through
the stone and brick wall On the north
side of the jail cellar. Tue men
slipped through an air-hole in the
cement and stone floor of the jail
corridor by the simple means of rails
ing up an iron grating. They used
an iron rod to break away the stone
and brick of the outer WALL making
o hole about three feet long and
eight inches or SO across. This work
was apparently done day or two be-
fore the escape. The sheriff has been
away good deal the past week on
official work but his wife and sister
in-law heard pounding within the
Jail. They ordered it stopped but
thought nothing much of it as the
prisoners sing and make various
noises to kill time with. In this case
the noise was apparently made to
cover UP their operations toward the
clear air of freedom.
Richards and Burns, held on a
charge of stealing DR.. Kraut's auto,
placed all the blame on the redskin.
They said they had followed him to
bring him back to justice as they felt
he was doing an injustice to such a
kind-hearted man as the sheriff by
breaking out. They claimed they fol-
! lowed the Indian to Potosi but reach
ed there just after he had taken a
train north. With sad hearts because
Of the failure of their quiXotic but
well-meant mission, they had dutifully
come back to Lancaster at once.
Sheriff Holmes and his trusty, Joe
Klaas, went to Cassville via Potosi on
Thursday. They traced the Indian by
means of the section men and found
that he had walked to Cassville. The
sheriff remained in Cassville all night
watching around the tracks for the
Indian to take the train north. Klaas
was nosing around the empty cars
about $50 in the morning and saw
Cranes nose sticking out of box
car. He was nabbed and brought to
Lancaster.
Crane made no ado about coming
and seemed glad to be back under the
fatherly projection of the sheriff
again. He readily told his part in the
affair, saying that he walked from
Do+oci @o oyd Woo II in o.
there to catch a train north but all
the cars went so fast through Cass-
Vile that he was afraid to flip them.
He rather shattered the popular belief
in the ability of the "Chi1d of Nature
to forage for himself by betraying a
wolfish desire for a square meal.
This was given him at once by the
sheriff. Crane had nothing to eat but
since leaving Lancaster. He waded
| into the viands provided by the sher-
| iff like an Armenian refugee.
| Crane intimates that the crafty
Richards played the old game of the
! treacherous pale-face with his trust
! ing red brother, and framed" him.
He says the British Hollow boys asked
him to accompany them, saying they
would go to British Hollow and
change clothes and get money. Then
with plenty of Jack" in their pockets
and clean raiment on their backs
they would make the Platteville and
Lancaster fairs for a good time with
the other merry roisterers! With
this captivating picture in his mind
the Indian youth went readily enough
and who could blame him. Crane says
/ that he and Burns crawled through
| the holes with ease but that Richards
who is much larger, had to be stripped
and soaped. On the way to the river
Crane says, the boys deserted him
Alone and disillusioned he made his
way to Cassville and there the story
ends The intimation is that Rich
ards Burns framed" the affair ex-
pecting to make heroic capture and
thus induce the court to deal lightly
with them.
! However, the we'll laid plan of Wis
| iting the fairs fell through. 1t isn't
| too late for the old Grant couny fair
which begins Today.