The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1929-10-05
THINK LEADER
WAS SMUCCLED
ARMS IN COAL
Entire Penitentiary Aware
of Impending Riots Via
Grapevine
IL LIVES BATTLE TOLL
Smoke Still Issues From
Ruins, Representing Loss
of 100000.

CANON CITY, Colo, Oct. s.
In the -blackened ruins Of
the state penitentiary, scene of one
Of the worst prison riots in modern
times. authorities sought today to
discover how it could have hap
pened.
Investigators for eight agencies
we're treading the blood-caked cor
ridorS of the dollhouse where five
embattled convicts held off an army
attacking with machine guns and
dynamite and calling prisoners from
their emergency tents within the
peintentiary walls for questioning.
Colorado rushed it's official in
vestigation as it had it's National
Guard forces In the battle to ouell
the rebellion which had claimed
twelve lives and caused property
damage of $50O,00 before the harG-
ful of embattled convicts ended the
carnage by taking their own lives.
simultaneously the task of clean
ing away debris and planning new
buildings to take the place Of the
four destroyed and a fifth badly
damaged by fire and dynamite
blasts was begun by reorganized
penitentiary force.
Governor On Job
Governor William H. Adams and
other state and federal and county
officials personally supervised the
intensive search for solution of the
mystery of how guns and ammuni-
ton were Smuggled into the reput-
edly well-organized penitentiary.
They believe some sullen convict
among the 1000 milling about the
prison yard knows the answer. Al
though but handful of prisoners.
had an actual part in the carnage
many knew it threatened, Warden F.
Eugene Crawford said.
A low buzz of conversation ran
through the groups of prisoners and
the warden realized the elusive and
devious underground wires" were
humming with comment on the
reign OF terror.
Sleep on Grounds
With smoke still issuing from the
smoldering ruins of cellhouses. fired
by the mutineerS, many convictS
were forced to sleep on the ground
Friday night. Others were quar-
tered in tents supplied by the ma
tional guard and additional tents
we're being erected today.
AS official agencies sought clews
to accompliSheS outside the prison
who smuggled in weapons and to
possible connivance from within,
they counted the toll of the twenty
hour rebellion and massacre as fol-
lows:
Killed in battle three prison
guards.
Murdered while In hostage, four
guards.
Five convicts killed, one. the
leader, evidently by his own hand.
Seriously wounded, three guards.
Others hurt, seven, including
two civilians.
Besides that of Governor Adams.
Investigations will be conducted by
]. Edgar Hoover, chief of the bureau
of investigation of the federal de-
partment of justice; Sanford Bates
director Of federal prisons, state
board Of corrections, coroner'S jury,
state civil service commission, state
military authorities and Warden
Crawford.
Danny Daniels, who melted the
riot in the dining room of the peni-
tertiary Thursday noon which cost
the lives Of three guards, who shot
down other guards in the cell house
stronghold, and who finally ended
the terror by lining his fellow mutt
neers against the wall and shooting
them to death as prelude 70 his
suicide, may in death furnish clew
to the conSpirators outside, author
tiles said
Struggled in Coal
Daniels, born in Buffalo, N. Y,
but who considered Miami. Okla. as
his home, was a coal HEAVIER in the
prison and officials incline to the
belief that the weapons were SNUG
gled to him in cars of coal.
Father Patrick O'Neill of a local
abbey, who risked his life in the
prison yard to place dynamite
= against the building in which the
mutineerS were entrenched and
Systematically engaged in executing
helpless guards, recalled today that
his chauffeur, a truSty, remarked
shortly before the uprising;
I'm mighty glad I'm being re-
leased this afternoon, think some
thing lively is likely to happen"
What was the reason for the riot?
Because the food was poor2 The
prison overcrowded? Guards cruel?
Because liberties were too few?
The prison grapevine" claims
none of these factors was RESPONSE
bic. The prisoner are satisfied in
that Danny Daniels was bad man
and more" And they know what
was in Danny's mind when he read
in a newspaper that Governor
Adams of Colorado never has ex-
tended lenisscy to a convict and
there was no indication he would
change his attitude.
Guards killed in battle or executed
later in the campaign to force War
den Crawford to open the prison
gates to the desperadoes, were:
Walter Rinker, r. P. Brown, Z.
q. Erwin, Jack J. Eeles. Charles
Shepherd. R. A. Virgins and ]. w.
McClelland.
In addition to Daniels. convicts
who died In the riot were; A. II.
hOavis. James Pardue, Melvin tRed1
siors. alias GeoZge Kelley, ana