Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-03-13

mild fellow who will rather serve a
term in prison for minor offense
| than hang for murder.
THE four detectives were sadly un-
l. prepared, therefore, for what hap
pened when the lights flashed up.
The young fellow they surrounded
whipped up the revolver that lay
among the tools, shot out the lights,
then shot his way out of the room.
Two detectives fell PROSTATE, one
dead. Two others pulled belatedly at
their revolvers and shot wildly in the
dark.
When the lights were turned on
again all that showed in the room of
the burglar were his tools and a rope
at the window. He had swung out of
the room on the emergency fire escape
device of rope on a reel, with which
the room was equipped.
But it did the young burglar no
good The trap had been too thor
oughly prepared. As he swung down
to the sidewalk three strong pairs Of
arms closed about the young man and
bound him.
He was hustled into a closed car,
and with guards clinging to the run
ming board and literally sitting on him.
young Breitwisser put up such a
thrashing struggle that both he and
his captors were exhausted by the
time they got him to the city deten-
ton prison.
This prison was for temporary con-
finement of witnesses and accused,
and had not yet been prepared for
young geniuses like Breitwisser. But
throughout the next day it sufflced.
In the evening. however, Breitwisser
said to his prison guard:
I'm bet the papers are fun OF me
tonight
The guard nodded. '"They are. in
deed"
Listen" pleaded Breitwisser, won't
you get me several copies of every
paper and let me read them? I'll pay
you well for them
The guard saw no harm in that
Through another guard he sent for
the papers Breitwisser ordered. When
these were showed into his cell they
made a small mountain of paper.
For he was the sensation of the day,
and there was not a paper in Vienna
and neighboring cities that did not
already carry lengthy accounts of the
robin Hood who kills policemen" as
one of them described him.
The prisoner appeared consumed
with egotism. For he stayed up half
the night buried up to his waist in
newspapers, reading and apparently
rereading every word about him.
He had partly undressed, so that
the guard who passed his cell every
quarter of an hour or more was not
surprised to see him once with one Of
his shoes in his hand, as IL he had
taken it off for ease and then catching
sight OF something in the newspapers
forgot to put the shoe down.
Out Breitwisser was interested in
= something more dynamic than
newspaper accounts. He had always
counted on the accident of capture
and had long before prepared himself.
In the soles of his shoes, which his
captors had not thought to examine,
were several fine steel saws, made and
tempered by Breitwisser himself.
Breitwisser's cot was against the
back of the cell, where there was a
barred window. Each time the guard
passed his cell to be gone from quar-.
ter of an hour to 20 minutes, Brett
Wiser whipped about and filed away
at the rustiest part of one of the bars.
During one of the Commute alb.
| sences of the guard he had got far
enough to saw the bar through. With
powerful wrench he broke Ii loose.
1t left a space so narrow that 1t would
have given child difficulty to wiggle
through it.
The guard had noticed on some Of
his glances into the cell that Brett
Wiser, after reading each newspaper.
had twisted 1t as IL with fury and
thrown 1t to the floor.
AS the night wore on the floor of
the cell was strewn with these thick
twists OF newspaper. But the guard
thought nothing of it except that in
the morning he would make Brett
Wiser clean his cell.
Toward 4 in the morning as he
passed his cell the guard saw Brett
Wiser peer at newspa per as
though the type were too fine for him.
Sure enough Breitwisser called:
Are your eyes stronger than mine,
friend? Here is something printed in
such fine type that l can't make it
out with my eyes tired as they are"
The guard, a good hearted peasant.
was fiattered at the appeal by this
educa ted young fellow and. taking the
paper Breitwisser handed him,
leaned toward the light in the cell to
read 1t.
From behind his back Breitwisser