BUCKLEY TELLS THE SUN WHY HE BROKE GAOL

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 405, 13 July 1928, Page 1

BUCKLEY TELLS THE SUN WHY HE BROKE GAOL

EYES WERE INJURED

Glasses Broken in Quarry Editor Receives Letter from Escaped Prisoner THIS morning, when the Editor of THE SUN opened his correspondence, he found a letter from the escaped prisoner, John Leslie Buckley. In the letter Buckley protests against being accused of committing several crimes, and gives his reasons for escaping from Mount Eden Gaol. The letter was posted at Christchurch on July 11, though in a footnote Buckley says that he has made provision against his whereabouts being obtained from the postmark.

With a companion, Frank Bailer, Buckley escaped from the Mount Eden Gaol on the night of May 26. Bailer was recaptured some days later at Shark Bay, Birkenhead. After several exploits in the Birkenhead district, Buckley made his way to the King Country and was last heard of at Kakahi, near Taumarunui. Buckley’s letter to the Editor of The Sun runs as follows: July 11, 1928. Somewhere in N.Z. The Editor of The Sun. Sir,— I feel that it be time for me to protest against the manner in which the various newspapers are, and have been, connecting ray name with all sorts of sensational “Penny Dreadful” escapades. It appears to be that I am being made out to be a real desperado. I must admit that I am not a fit being to qualify as a Sunday School teacher, but, really, I do not think I am, at heart, quite the bad man the newspapers, your own included, are so evidently endeavouring to lead the public in general to believe me to be. I ask you in fairness to mv many relatives, to please refrain in future from accusing me of being responsible for any crimes, which may be committed, until definite proof has been established to show that I really am the actual perpetrator. Surely in this I am not asking too much!

My Side of Story I would like to write my side of it with regard to the many crimes I am supposed to have committed since escaping from prison but to do so would necessitate the use of a considerable supply of writing paper. My supply is somewhat limited, so I shall use up that which I have in explaining my side of it re my breaking away from prison and leave the remaining crimes connected with my name till a later date.

I intend writing up a truthful account of my movements since leaving the prison and shall post to your care for publication in THE SUN. If you decide to print it I ask that you make a donation to Jasper Calder’s City Mission.

But of that, more anon. To deal with crime number one: I am charged with escaping from Mount Eden Gaol. Sure I did! Do it again, too, under the same circumstances! If the doors of the cage are, literally, left open, can you blame the bird for flying away? At any time during the last two years I could have, with comparative ease, escaped from Mount Eden, but until the beginning of May, or thereabouts, of this year I had no wish to. The wish came as the result of my being transferred to one of the prison stonecarries to work. “As has been stated In one of the newspapers, I have defective eyesight. In consequence, I am compelled to wear optical lenses. Now, in -the first few days while I was working in the stone quarry, I found that I was running a big risk of having my lenses broken by flying chips of stone. During the second week of my employment in the quarry I had one lens broken by a chip of stone, and then naturally began to feel afraid of hav°ne or °f m y eyes injured. A few days later, while wearing a difPnir of glasses, I had them, too, broken, and fragments of glass were driven into my eye. Repeated Complaints “I immediately ceased work, and complained to the warder in charge having something in my eye. At niy request, I was taken to the gaol ispensary, and had my eye examined y the warder in charge, who failed o locate anything in it. The next ay i be pr * son doctor. Dr. Tewsley, ,mined ray eye. but be too failed of °v. Cate in if- I complained the intense pain, and he prescribed

a lotion—which was administered by a warder three hours later. A few days later, after I had made repeated complaints daily, a different doctor examined my eye, and immediately ordered that I be sent up to the public hospital. I was taken to that institution, the next day, and had three minute pieces of glass removed from my eye by an eye specialist. This was exactly one week later. “The eye specialist told the warder, who accompanied me to the hospital, that I was to be taken back to the hospital for further treatment if the pain in my eye persisted. I complained the next day to the superintendent of the prison that my eye still pained me, and reminded him that the eye specialist said I was to

go back for treatment. He did not answer me, but a principal warder who was present said that I was not to go back to the hospital for further treatment. That was enough for me! I could see by that that the prison officials did not care a damn if I lost my eyesight or not. I escaped that night. My intention was to go and see an eye specialist on my own account, have my eyes attended to, and then stroll back to the prison. But owing to an accident to my ankle, which occurred while negotiating the prison wails, my plans miscarried. My eye still pains me in the daytime. Thoughts of having an extra two years’ term of imprisonment to do pains me too, so I deem it advisable to bear with the pain in my eye until such time as I can visit an eyespecialist without having to fear very much the possibility of being arrested and having that two years’ term of unpleasantness inflicted on me. That, sir, is my version. You may publish this letter if you wish to. At a later date, when I have a more generous supply of paper on hand, I shall pen you that account of my movements. Till then I shall remain. The Victim of Unjust Accusations, JOHN LESLIE BUCKLEY, Late Convict 289. P.S.—Yes, I have foreseen the possibility of having my whereabouts ascertained per P.O. stamp-mark. Duly provided foi. —J.L.B. The letter is not a hoax, as it was checked at the Police Station and proved to be in Buckley’s own handwriting. Since his escape from prison Buckley has been accused of breaking into a residence at Birkenhead and helping himself to food and clothe* He was also accused of stealing a motor-car from Remuera and driving it to the King Country, as the car was found near Taumarunui lying in a ditch some days later. It was also stated at the time that a farmer had given Buckley a lift for some miles and that he had later made away into the bush in the King Country.