The Sun. — 1856-12-26 (London, England)

THE CAREER OF A NOTORIOUS  CONVICT.  We gave in The Sun a short time ago a brief account of a desperate convict named George Woodcock, who was sentenced to six months' imprisonment at the recent Devon winter assizes for escaping from Dartmoor Prison. It appears that, although so young—being only 25 years of age—he boasts that he has been in almost every gaol in the country, and that he has committed " every crime short of murder." He has been convicted under various aliases—Sigismund, Colbeck, Johnson, Thompson, and Massey. In the spring of 1853 he coal witted a burglary at Bedferd, and was sentenced to 18 months' imprisonment. While in gaol he behaved with great violence, and made several attacks upon the governor, Mr. Roberts. He was threatened with corporal punish. went, but this had no effect upon, him, and in the following July he smashed the furoiture of his cell, and threatened to take the life of any one who approached him. The governor, however, with the assistance of the officers, overpowered him, and he was then placed under restraint. He afterwards kicked at the governor, and serious injury would have been the result had he net fortunately misstei his aim. On one occasion he closed the door immediately on the governor entering the cell, with the intention, as he afterwards stated, of stabbing him, " washing his hands in his blood," and then destroy ing himself. Frustrated in his diabolical design, be exhibited alternate signs of repentance and fury; and on being released from restraint he attempted to straegle himself. Being detected in this attempt by one of the warders, he endeavoured to dash out his brains by knocking his head against the floor. So violent was his conduct that for six weeks he was secured, hand and foot, to his bed. In the month of August he was placed in a lunatic asylum, and here Woodcock assumed a quiet and even pious demeanour, which threw the keepers off their guard, and on the 6th Oct. following he effected his escape. He was not at large long, for in the next mouth he was committed to Derby gaol on a charge of theft, and was sentenced to a month's imprisonment and 10 years' penal servitude. While in Derby gaol the governor, Mr. Sims, having ascertained that Woodcock was a notorious character, made sundry inquiries respecting him, and found out that he had been iu prison no less than five times in Wakefield for various offences ; was sentenced to a month's imprisonment at Aylesbury sessions for stealing shoes, in 1847 ; three months for some offence, in the name of Massey, at Durham, in 1848 ; a month's imprisonment at Leicester assizes, for stealing boots, i❑ 1849, in the name of Johnson ; 12 months at Retford, in 1850, for housebreaking ; and nine months at Northampton assizes, in 1851, in the name of Thompson, for stealing boots at Daventry. Besides this, Mr. Sims says he has reason to believe he has bee❑ i❑ many more prisons in London, Scotland, and France. The conduct of Woodcock while in Derby gaol was most violent and outrageous; he struck a fellow-prisoner, and attempted the life of an officer with a piece of wood which he broke off from the seatboard of an iro❑ bedstead in his cell. He was i❑ the dark cell of Northampton gaol for misconduct 72 days, was once flogged ,and several times put in irons for the safety of the officers. He boasted to the cbapiain that he had committed every crime short of murder. On o:,:e occasion he made a daring attempt to escape from Preston gaol by ascending the chimney, but was discovered. He retuned to come down again, but altered his determination when some fire was kindled and the smoke ascended the chimney. Being sent to Dartmoor he made his escape while doing some out-door work. He was apprehended at York, and was sent to the Dation county gaol, which is the receptacle for all the escaped convicts of Dartmoor ; for nu matter in what part of the country they are apprehended, instead of being taken back to Dartmoor, they are conveyed to the county gaol, and, after undergoing a punishment, they are sent bank to finish the period of penal servitude to which they bad been previously sentenced.