ESCAPE OF CONVICTS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8308, 11 December 1906, Page 3

ESCAPE OF CONVICTS.

A DESPERATE FIGHT

Eleven convicts imprisoned in •Gloucester Gaol broke out of their cells on Thursday night last, says the London Daily Mail of November 3rd, an/1 after a desperate fight with ■the warders five of thejp succeeded in making good their escape. They were not all recaptured until Saturday afternoon. The escape was planned by a convict known as "London Mike," a notorious gaolbird, whose real name is Michael Harnett He occupied No. 1 cell, and on Thursday evening handed out his day's work to the warder in the usual way. When his door had been locked again he blew out the gas, and as soon as he heard the warder open the door of the next cell he shouted: "'My gas has gone out, and is escaping." The warder rushed back to the cell, and was savagely attacked by "London Mike." The noise of the strugglo brought another warder to the scene, but at the same moment the convict in No. 2 cell appeared, and a desperate fight between the four men followed. The second warder was stunned almost immediately, and the first, "Warder Hall, was then overpowered ,by the two convicts, and locked with his unconscious comrade in the cell, after his keys had been taken from him. With these the two convicts at once liberated their fellowcriminals. The noise of the fight brought the governor, Mr J. Finn, and other warders on the scene. Governor Finn outstripped his subordinates, bat the convicts turned to meet him, and although he fought - bravely he was overpowered and locked in the empty No. 2 cell. The . escaping convicts made for the banks - of the.River Severn. There they found a fisherman named Bubb seated in his boat, The convicts jumped into the boat, and under threats of''murder forced Bubb to push into mid-stream. Gaining the shore, "London Mike" and his four confederates —Frederick Lane, William Irwin, Edwin ' Baker, and , James Flynn—followed the course of the winding . river towards 'thick plumps of elm trees. In some sal-mon-fishing huts by the Severn the convicts discovered some old cloth ing. Thus equipped, four of the convicts succeeded in gaining the depths of the Forest of Dean, while the fifth, who was unable to secure civilian, clothes, hid near by. It was this convict, James Flynn by name, who was the first to be recaptured. The story of his arrest reads like a chapter from a novel, and it was well told by signalman Dunsby, who is stationed at the "Oversiding Box" on the Great Western Railway. "It was about one o'clock in the morning," he said, "that I heard someone walking along the line, scrunching . the ballast beneath his feet. I cried out to him, 'Where are you going?' The man answered, 'I don't know.' 'Well, you'd better come up,' I said, 'and let me have a look at you.' He came into the light, and I saw by his capless, close-shaven head he was one of the convicts. I asked him if that--were so, and he said, 'l'm one of 'em, and I • think I am pretty well done.' Seeing .that he was half-dead with cold and hunger, I told him to fall to at my supper. All tnis time I had to go on with my work, but I was ready at any moment for an attack. • It would have been easy for him to have seized the poker and brained me. When I had got my information I told him I was going to send for some one quite handy. He said nothing, but looked. I then telephoned for the police. By the time they arrived he was quite jovial." On Thursday and Friday night the Forest of Dean presented a curious sight. Occasionally one saw groups of police armed with sticks, and revolvers, while lanterns gleaming amid the trees told of the searchers at work and of the cordon in position. Events moved swiftly on Saturday. Near Severn Bridge tracks of stockinged feet and bare feet were seen in the mud. Others were found leading to a thicket near Warren's Farm —nearer still to Lydney. The end was fc in sight at last. The tracks •were leading to the Severn, and Crump Farm was reached. Twenty yards away was a large "Dutch barn." A ladder rested against the hay, which reached nearly to the roof. On the rungs .were fresh clay marks. Delicately the two constables went up the ladder into the hay. One the right hand side the sweet-scented fodder reached quite to the caves, foraging a dark tunnel. Over a girder supporting the roof suddenly appeared the pale, drawn face of Lane, wearing his convict's cap. "Surrender, or I will blow out .your brains/' shouted Hazel, a power, ful young officer. He had, however, no more formidable weapon than an oak walking-stick. "All right, sir," was the reply. "We'are • done; we surrender." The burly form of "London Mike" heaved itself out of the hay, and the wornout, hungry convict said, almost with a groan, 'Tm| done to the world; we are all done. We surrender, we surrender." Baker, Irwin, and Lane then crawled out, and the four descended the ladder and were speedily manacled. The convicts were then placed in a farm • cart, and,, surrounded by a strong • escort, were driven to Lydney, and there entrained for Gloucester. In their forty hours of freedom they have covered in all about forty miles.