A PRISONER SHOP BY A WARDER.

Dunstan Times, Issue 1174, 29 August 1884, Page 3

A PRISONER SHOP BY A WARDER.

r of ' A 'prisoner a in mfr i ateroolonh telegrams a few days ago, we find the fol ■ lowing in Australian panel's. Three determined pris mars' underjoin sentences at; Pentridge, on the sth ins', unsuccessfully attempted to tsbaiM-from f h'> , ontaide .portion of the Pentridge prison en closu-e where the workships aio placed The three men wore— Fee lorick J imieion ;■ Iwho is undergoing a sentence of five yean ; and two floggings of 20 lashes, for rohherj | with • yiol“noe, received on. tin 15 hj o ■ February, 1882. Charles Coggins, who if • nnder a'sentenca of four years, recei-'oi or Joth of October,' 1882, for robbery. Thom .1 : Kell whb 'vwas tried at the Melbonrm General Sessions fbr burglary on the Is', ol October, . 1833, and wis sentenced to four yoaiy hard labour. The trio were employed maquarry jang at the north eastern com 3l of thu stockade, which is supervised, by Qyerscpr Bird, and \yera breaking stones on the fop of the’ quarry. Availing tliemscl ves of the opportunity of the overseer being down in the quarry, the three prisoners sneaked from the works and wont along tho tramway Hue in the direction of the old workshops, which are not utilised now, and made a rush for the boundary wall where there is a sentry post, wh’ch has been vacant for Some tuna past. Thov had with them a ropo, to which a Weight was attached, and this they threw over to enable them to climb over the w ill. Warder Forsyth, who was on duty at the flat, on seeing the prisoners running to wards the wall, immediately gave the customary Challenge, “Go back,..or I’ll fire.” Finding that the men were determined to escapii lie dis. charged his rifle, thinking that this would stop them ; and Warder Leary, Who was on duty at tho gate, also challenged the prisoners with a view of stopping them, but without avail. He'immediately raise d uis rifle and fi-e l, the result being that tho prisoner Keiy was shot dead, and the oilier two men were quickly secured. An examination was made, and it was found that tho men had made a holt with a short ladder and a rope, which were in the workshops, Kelly was. the first man to attempt to mount, and wai then shot. The other two escaped uninjured,rami were conveyed to the A' division and placed in cells. Dr Stewart, the medical officer, was at onco communicated’with, and was promptly in attendance, -dipt pronounced Kel y to be dead. On examina Jon it was found that the bullet entered just below the be-ul at th i back, snattenug the two first verlebraj, aud severing the spine, death being almost instantaneous. The bullet emerged on the left side of the nose. Tho deceased was 21 years of ago.

The Argus of the 6th August says “'Considerable cxc.teineut was occasioned in the quiet district of Coburg yesterday afterjiuqn by a daring but unsuccessful ■ attempt by three incorrigible prisoners (one '•of Whom met his death) to the effect their 'escape from the Pe.utri Iga Stoek ide. It appears that shortly after half-pa«t two o’clock in' thb afternoon three prisoners—named Xltomas Kelly, Frederick Jameson, and Charles alias Henry (rogues—succeeded in eluding the vigilance of Warder Bir I, who was acting as oveisjer at tho-quarries where th-ywere employed at the nor'h aid-* of tho open -division known as the ‘ works,’ and nude their escape across thu open s ace for a distance of about 300 yards to the southern' wall, which thev attempted to scale by means of a light Udder and rope which they, cv.'rie ybh them. By shdtering- themselves .behind some old workshops which occupy a somewhat central posbi n in the op •(! space, i.lie uieit escape i observation until they had,reached within about fifty yards of the southern wall, at whipii paint their movements attraa-ed the attention of Warders Forsyth, L’>a y. and ollihs, a ol they were imaiodiatery cliillenge I, and c died lipn to -.reuirn to their work Instead of doing so, however, they made a sudden dash for the wall, and appeared determined to,car-y bus their purpossVlm ever iniuht be Mx; cons-q lencas. The challenge was repeated, accompanied by a warning f the'cons q nances that would io.lowif they did not insrantly desist ; but they took in* notice, and were in the act of planting* the Udder against the wall, wh«n" WarileV Forsyth fired a shot from the rifi wbich.-h.e carried, niore with the object of I r ngin ; them to their senses than anything else. Jameson and Hoggins wavered in thrir, purpose on hearing the report, and appear ol t ■ be in the act of turning about th return, but Kelly threw the rape, to which was attache 1 a heavy weight, over thenron railing on ilia top of the wall, and proceeded to climb up. Fearing tint the prisoner would effect, his escape, and that bis escape ought lead to serious trouble with the other, pi i ssuers, 3)0 of wh mi were working in the oivision at the time, Warder Leary, who'was on duty at the southern gate, upwards of 103 yards away took a stea 'y aim under shelter of tho wall, an 1 fired. The shot proved fatal Tho pri souer had just place t his hands on the top of the-wall when Warder L ,vy fired, and he immediately fell to tho ground on his back dead, the ball having eiitc-ro) at the nape of tho neck, passed through :ho head, and.out close to the nose,.-just u’ml- r the left eye. The oth r two prisoners were completely cowed on lioann; the second shot, ana fell flat on their faces in Ihe grass, with the view of protecting their lives ; but after tho laps:* bf-.a few seconds they returned, hastily to. their positions at the quarries, and endeavoured to avoid detectrim by an unusual amount (of attention to their work. They were identified, however, andat onio rpmoved from the works and placed under arrest.

“ A scans of alarm, and- snm j little confusion followed the occurrence, which was witnpsse I Ivy nearly • 300 prisoners ; but owing to tho cooioess an I determine! ion of the officials all danger of a general outbreak was averted. Mr Brett,the acting inspectorgeneral, was standing in the square opposite the entrance to the’ stockade, talking with Mr Gale, the newlv appointed superintend eht. whdn'the-alarm was first given. They at once proceeded to the ‘ works,’ and discovered that the fatal second shot had just been fired. Mr Gale directed that the whole of the prisoners should be quietly but ■quickly removed from their yards to their cells ; and this was done with what prom;) titnde could be commanded, without alarm• big the men, or giving- therti tho ali rhtesn opportunity or occasion to resist. Within 25 minutes of the occur.-once the whole of the prisoners were safely finder look and Key, and a- cursory investigation was then niado itiW the circumstances surrounding thh attempted outbreak, ft was a mystery how t life-throe prisoners, who arc probably the worst conducted in the stockade, succeeded in reaching tho wall without being intercepted," Their escape from the quarry was effected whilst the overseer, Mr Bird, wap at the bottom of the quarry examining the work in progress, some 30ft underground. They obtained the ladder and weighted rope, it is supposed, in the disused workshops, where tho articles must have been placed at night timn by their criminal associates at present at largo. Tho * works ’ division Was in charge of two overseers and seven ward ora at the t-imxth i latter of whom were armo-l with doublebarrelled breech-loading rifles expressly #T ' y e *'i

in ado -for leyvioe ‘fn t hisidiitirtil ish m siflfr Bad • tion.un Jiu while on duty in Mdi tiqil'tn'thd “Wo the rifle. yards away, front tho prisnnera at the tmn Vie, fired. The phetl yard in which-the ‘prji snnors were at the time prmaists ofohqqi lOOpgrea Of unduUtmjj Land at the nar hi the main prison bmldinvs. an 1' is sur .minified hy a heavy blueVoio wall about I.2ft in height. _ “The three prisoners wore the most incor rigihle in'the prison. Thomas Kelly, the man-who was shot, '"as 22 years of iige.and he had already served several '.sentences rle wa>, at the time of his death, serving a 1 terni of four years’ hard labour for burglary, having been sentenced at the Melbourne Sessions on-the Ist of October, 1883. A nrorions sentence was recorded against him on the 8 hj of June, ISB2, when he received six mouths for oeing found upon gaol premises, Since his present incarceration he his received thirteen days’ addttioral from the visiting Instico for shirking his work, shouting in his cell, quarrelling, and having tobacco and pipes in his poss-ssion. Frederick Jameson, who is twenty-four years of ago.rcn*i»ed a sentence of fivo years, with two floggings, at the Ceitral Crim'Dal Court, on tho 15th day of February, 1832 on a charge of robbery with violence in company. The flaggings were administered on the 19th May and on tho 19 hj July, ISB2. He had previously served three years for various offences During his incarceration ho receive I twelve alditioual sentences for .offences committed in j the stockade, including a terra of: three months ’for violently assaulting Warder Dunbar. ’The other sentences were Tor refusing work, quarrelling,:' pfSotoiice, an I hj iving tobacco in his possession. '.Chiller, alias Henry Cr iggius is 21 years oil. He was sentenced to four years at the Central Criminal Court on the 15 U October, 1833, far assault aid robbery, hut he had previously served 18 mouths for various offeno-s. On eight 'separate occasions recently he was punishe d for breaches of the prison regulations, and receive 1 six weeks’ additional ioionionmeut. One of tho offences was haling a hoary Inmme- and chisel in his cell, with which ho was attempting to break out of p-ison. Since their incarceration-in i’entridgo tho three prisoners in question had given more trouble to the authorities than the majority of their fellow c mvicts. Shortly- after tho prisoners had been re turned to their colls, and the Head body of Kelly remove 1. the acting inspector general called the wardr s together, ami in their presume complimented Warder Leary for having dona Ins duty without ivgai'-i to the consequence L ary was formerly a soldier in the 93th Regiment of tho line, but during tiio.lasl23 y -an he Ins been in the Victorian prison ser vice, lie is regarded as one of the most trustworthy, careful, and at tho suni time, determined warders, in the prism. The last occasion ou which a piisnner was shot • whi'st attomnting to escape was on tho 1 4th January, 1850, when a prisoner named Wilmott essayed the task in company with nine others, but signally failed. The present attempt is likely to have a deterrent effect upon several .if the most determined prisoners at Penlridge, -f who are known to bo anxious to take advantage of the fie-.t favo able opportunitv to sh ike the dust of the establishment off 'I their feet.

At thn irqnest the j.uy, efeer a few mmu'Ci’ deliberation, reliv-ned a verliot that tho dec-ased, Thomas ICcliy, wan l-’Cr-tUy shot dead whilst alternating to off et ids escape from legal custody, by Winter Leary, in the due avid proper' executi mof his duty. Tie fnrrtna 1 wished to a Id a rider to the cfKct that Warder Leary was deserving of a reward from tlio Govern-,. 1 ncfit' ai a reco'hHjmi of the pronnitness with which he discharged Ins duty ; hut the coroner intimate 1 that no such finding Could be taken, iiiiit-Ko-m-itter was allowed to drop.’" ' W- ■