The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, July 31, 1903, Page 4

THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, FRIDAY, JULY 31, 1903, SERENITY IS AGAIN RESTORED IN THE PENITENTIARY AT FOLSOM; DISTRICT ATTORNEY OBTAINS MORE FACTS CONCERNING CONSPIRACY OFFIGIALS ARE EAGER FOR NEWS Folsom Authorities Await Baitle Tidings. Many CM Rumors Are Received at the Penitentiary. Prisoners Are Allowed to Enter the Dining Room in a Body Un- der Guard. Special OLSOM, July 3.—This hasbeen an- expectation and won- ? Folsom Prison. Vot e has been received s or militia search- Commu- from Auburn, Butch- rgetown are mere con- authorities here are as as to the whereabouts as ever. lined to think d back on k that they Georgetown and are Lake e. One thing are not securing aid not hold out where they e others thir es they ¢ B. Hagerty of nstable Henry ed from the e § located nothing has been seen of at Pilot stated rth opened REPORT FROM SEAVEY. his af telephoned ¢ authorities were near the would P y capture vey stated that about ht three men appeared ahe and in- to various ne with her e noticed that one and another a re- ck and started to- message has been received son from the Y7arden's nephew the posses had four of the nded in Webber Creek and nad gone to Auburn for reinforce- t time since the brgak oc- ners were allowed to meet n of the prison at once e Monday morning been led out into the ety in their cells, owing to the fact that they had been very restiess all morning. They kept up a shouting and yelling and it was deemed best to keep them in their cells. The prisoners were given the mid-day meal in close confinement—a treatment which they @id not relish. After dinner they quieted down and made no disturb- ance the rest of the day. They were let out in small squads for supper, and this morning the entire 800 were seated at the table at once. They made no demonstra- tion whatever and adjourned quietly to their cells. It will be several days, how- ever, before they are let out to their work. - ACT OF THE WARDEN. It has just been learned that Warden Wilkinson, immediately after his return 1o the prison, upon being released by his captors last Monday morning, went inside the prison and ordered the 800 convicts back into their cells. Wilkinson was un- armed and entered the prison alone. The 800 convicts were shouting and jeering in demoniac glee over the successful out- come of the break and when Wilkinson came among them they surrounded him. He ordered them to return to their cells, Some of them obeyed on the instant, while others hung back and sulkily sought their auarters. Several openly expressed their satisfaction at %is safs return. In speaking of the incident Miss An- tolnette Wilkinson, daughter of the War- den, said to a Bee reporter this morning: “The newspapers have been keen to criticize my father, but not one of them have said a word about his bravery. Af- ter the convicts had been driven back into the prison they commenced to yell and shout at the top of thelr voices and soon began beating on the walls separat- ing the prison from our gquarters. We were warned to go out the front way and drive out of the grounds in case by any chance the demons should succeed in finding & weak spot and through it force thelr way out. My lady friend and 1 drove over the hill and down into the valley with the cries of those men ring- ing in our ears. We were soon Informed that father had gone into the prison. I could still hear the cries of the men and knew that father would not hesitate to go among them.” ‘WOODS WAS A SOLDIER. J. W. Woods, the leader of the convict band, is said by the prisoners here to have been a soldier with the United States reg- ulars in the Philippines. According to their story he deserted from the Federal troops and joined the Filipinos.® He was quite a hero among the convicts, who say he was once surrounded by a detachment of troops and managed to break through their lines at night and, gathering a force of Filipinos, captured those who had a short time before had him in jeopardy. He took the United States soldiers pris- oners and had them shot to death. tried by a mixed court-martial on a charge of desertion and aiding the enemy. He was convicted and the findings of the sourt-martial sent to Washington. The Secretary of War disapproved of the find- ngs for the reason that Woods was tried sy & mixed court-martial and that he sould not be held, being a regular, by the way to different ed toward Placer- but a short distance | at a time, for their | ¥ they were géwen dinner | JAIL BREA AN AFFAIR OF IMPULSE Attack Was Made on Decision of a Moment, : Captain Murphy Believes the Plot Was a Few Months 0ld. Ringleaders Suddenly Saw a Chance and Desperately Carried Out the Plan. OLSOM, July 30.—Captain of the Guard R. J. Murphy is of the opin- fon that while the plot to break jail, so successfully carried out last Monday, had probably been hatch- ing for several months, it was not def- initely decided to make the dash for lib- erty until a few minutes before it oc- curred. The same coup had been planned | fot the Fourth of July, but Captain Mur- | Phy was advised of it and thwarted it in | its Inciplency. Practically the same pris- oners planned it then. In speaking of thg break Murphy safd to-day that he did not believe more than two or three men at the most, in addi- tion to those who succeeded in making their escape, had a hand in the plot. He said that usually a few men would evolve a scheme of this kind and quietly pass | the word along to a few more. One | two of the number would be sure to let | the prison authorities know what was going on. When the ringleaders would see the officers were on the alert they | would know their secret had been divulged and they would then temporarily abandon the plot. METHODS OF PLOTTERS. Later on the ringleaders would take the { plot up again, having in the meantime | “weeded out” the other convicts of whom they were suspicious of having revealed their plans. Probably the second scheme would be thwarted, but eventually they | would secure a dozen men who would | “stick” and the break would occur. The fact that the notorious train robber and outlaw, “Jack” Brady, who is serv- {ing a life sentence from Sacramento | County, was not in the conspiracy has oc- casioned much comment and speculation. | Captain Murphy said the eonvicts told | him while they were marching him across |xm. prison farm that they did not want any “‘notoriety” men with them and for | that reason had not approached Brady or any of the convicts who as free men be- came notorious by reason of their mis- | deeds. Brady works in the lower yard | gang and had gone to his work when the | mutiny began. | Murphy said that the ringleaders never | contemplated taking the negro, Seavis, or | 3. 3. Allison, who was killed in the fight | with the posse last Monday night, with | them. They were near the chapel when | the break occurred and as the escapes swept across the prison yard with the officers they grasped the situation and ran to join their fellow convicts in the flight for freedom. The escaping convicts told Seavis they did not want him, but he insisted upon going along. ENIVES WERE CACHED. The knives which the ringleaders held over the officers and free men never came into their possession until Sunday, Cap- tain Murphy believes. All the cells were searched Saturday and the convicts had no weapons about their clothing then. They were let out for a short time Sun- day and then secured the knives and razons, which must have been planted about the prison yard. Murphy said this could be easily done. Opium had been secreted in the prison yard and where opium can be *“‘cached” a knife or razor can be hidden, he argued. Some of the convicts were in the quarry Sunday, and it is possible some of them could have brought the knives into the prison, but Murphy does not believe they did. ‘There were only a few convicts in the quarry— the gang known at the prison as the “rig- gers.” CHASE MAY BE LONG AND ARDUOUS THE BRUSH-COVERED HILLS IOLSOM, July 30.—Chief Clerk Brain- ard F. Sm!t‘x of the State prison to- day in discussing the chances of capturing the escaped convicts remarked that it looks as if it would be a long hunt, with the refugees having all the advan- tage on their side at the outset at least. An officer just from the front explains that in the vicinity of Lotus and in the country round about there are a great many small mountain ranches and nearly all of them have fruit orehards and little garden patches. The convicts by raiding these at night might be able to get enough raw fruit and vegetables to sus- tain life for some time, even if they had not other food supply. In this way they could_take it easy and wait for the trail- ers to grow weary of the search and leave the neighborhood, after which the cofivicts could make their way out of the country at their leisure. The man hunters are very much worn already because of the strenuous life they have been leading. It will soon be a ne- cessity for those in command to reduce the work to a system, as human endur- ance will not stand the strain that some of the men have been putting on them- selves ——— Desert -Grave Hides Mystery. IMPERIAL, July 30.—A mystery has developed at the abandoned Carissa Creek ofl well, twenty-five miles west of Impe- rial, one of the least frequented spots of the Colorado desert. Persons returning from there say they saw a grave three hundred feet from the well, on which a headboard had been placed bearing the words “Horse Thief Killed, May Second.” An old man, whose name is not known and who has been staying at the well some months, was not to be found. e grave was not opened and no iInvestiga- tion has been made. L e e e e e Y ) decision of a mixed court. By some means or other Woods was never tried again and returned to America. It is said he participated in many encounters, leading the Filipinos, and is thoroughly familiar with the tactics of guerrilla warfare, or | Runaway Band May Have Taken “Robbers’ Trail"” Continued From Page 1, Column 6. then at some other point. By thesé means the conviet band is enabled to make prog- ress every night and get nearer the Rubi- con country. The old “robbers’ trail” was used in the early 50's by such notorious bandits as Tom Bell, Joaquin Murietta, Black Jack, Red Antone, Big Kossuth and the Jim Crum gang. These desperadoes of early days used the trall after many stage robberies and they evaded arrest. There is no record in the history of crime in California to show that posses ever fol- lowed the robbers over this trail. Once on the trail, the desperadoes of the early days were safe from capture and the murderers who escaped from Folsom last Monday are now belleved to be on that trail and are likely to be safely in the Rubicon country by to-morrow. That ald and information are being given to the escaped convicts is quite certain from information given to The Call correspondent here to-day. Lou Kitt- ler, a2 man about 35 years of age, who has served many county jail terms, was in Placerville last Tuesday evening. He was seen by a man who is very friendly to him. He asked this man where he could get some opium in Placerville. The man from whom he sought the information told him that it could be purchased in the local Chinese quarters. Kittler went to that quarter and purchased a quantity of opium from Chinese living there. Kitt- ler told his friend not to tell any one that he had been near Chinatown. % o Woman Reports That Convicts Came at Night Continued From Page 1, Column 5. alone and she said that all her family was in the house. The men were dressed in very rough clothes. One had on a pair of overalls and jumper; the other had no coat, only a dark vest and dark trousers. They were both very nervous and Mrs. Stropach is positive that the men belonged to the convict band from Folsom. Cowboy Chats WDith Convicts on the Road EVADA CITY, July 30.— William Green, a cowboy, arrived here this morning and reports having seen two heavily armed men between what is known as Yankee Jim’s and the North Fork ‘of -the American River in Placer County, seven miles from Colfax. Green talked to the fellows for ten minutes, and in the Sheriff’s office at noon he positively identified the pho- tographs of Ed Davis and Jo- seph Murphy as the men he met. Each had two revolvers, one rifle and a belt filled with cart- ridges. They were dressed in overalls and plain shirts, carrying their" coats under their arms. Green came upon them in an out-of-the-way path, and the smaller man greeted him: | L) i, coUnNTY e E3 MRS, HOLMES® Jlolz/dET? ’ ;‘w" B S Lo RESIDENT OF SACRAM%NTO COUNTY AT WHOSE HOUSE “RED- SHIRT” GORDON, ONE OF THE FOLSOM CONVICTS, CALLED, AND OFFICERS WHO ARE IDENTIFITD WITH THE OUTBREAK STORY. | o e _—_ “Hello, pard; how far is Col- fax?” Green replied seven miles. “Guess we won't go there,” remarked the men. The fellows, according to Green, weighed between 150 and 160 pounds. Each was smooth shaven, with hair cut.short. One was about 43 and the other 24 years of age. Learning that Green was not an officer, the convicts allowed him to go. Constable McLeary of Colfax notified the people of that sec- tion. Ranch Uisitors Disappear at . Sound of Guns p LACERVILLE, July 30.— A report was received late to-night from Annable’s ranch, which is at Granite Hill, and a few miles south of Lotus and Coloma, that three men called at the ranch for water—one went into the house, the other two stay- ing out on the road. They then asked the road to Coloma, when hearing several shots fired in the neighborhood thsy quickly disap- peared. While the trio may have beén 'a shooting party from Placerville which went out in that- direction yet the fact may be otherwise, for many reports indicate that there may be some of the convicts south of Lotus and Coloma and north af Webber Creek. ° R ‘WASHINGTON, July 30.—The State De- partment to-day issued papers for the ex- tradition of Edwin F. Masterson, now under arrest in Luneu, Schleswig-Hol- stein, on a charge of forgery alleged to have been committed in Los Angeles, Cal MOUNTAINS AFFORD PLACES OF REFUGE FOR THE CONVICTS UBURN, July 30.—If Sheriff Con- roy's theory that the convicts would make for Lake Tahoe is correct, they have had a free field to operate in, as there are no officers ahead of them. Once in the dense Sierra Ne- vadas they will be free from molestation from the officers, with plenty of fish and game at hand. There are alsé many camping parties and many inhabited cabing near the lake at this time of the year where the convicts could get plenty of flour and bacon, passing themselves off as campers also. Thid could be carried on for weeks before the outside world would know of it. CAMP OF CONVICTS IS FOUND IN WOODS NEAR TOWN OF LOTUS UBURN, July 30.—A late report to- night is that a citizen of Lotus went ‘out this afternoon and found a camp where the convicts had been cooking in the woods {wo miles above Lotus. The same report states that three men called at a farmer’'s house in that locality for drinking water this morning. Officers here have started for that point. e TO MAKE ANALYSES OF IMPORTED FOOD PRODUCTS Agricultural Department Takes First Action Under the. Act of July 2, 1902. WASHINGTON, July 30.—The Agricul- tural Department to-day took its first action under the pure food act of July 2, 1902, by requesting permission of the Sec- retary of the department to take samples and make chemical analyses of certain food products shipped to this country from ebroad. The permission asked for has been granted and an official examina- tion of these products will be made to de- termine whether their use is deleterious to health. An inquiry will also be made to determine as to whether their use is prohibited in the country of their origin. In either of these contingencies thelr en- try into this.country will be prohibited. —_————— Shaken by an Earthquake. SAN BERNARDINO, July 30.—The heaviest earthquake that has jarred this valley since 1898 was experienced at 9 o'clock this evening. A sixteen-foot dial in the Courthouse clock, measuring more than an inch in thickness, was broken. A plece of cornice work was shaken off fell to the sidewalk. Several brick w: were cracked. PSRN PR TIENTSIN July 30—The Vieeroy of the provinee of Chili has held a series of milltary it is to decide upon to* a event i mmfin ::t'fim:adn " cniietment of Chiness "z n en =t Manchuria is in progress. e PURSUERS KEPT BUSY BY RUMORS Sherifts and Troops Make Fruitless - (hases. Imaginative Residents of El Dorado Furnish Many Alarms. Shots Are Heard in the Thick Woods, but the Posses Fail to Locate Quarry. Special Dispatch to The Call OOL, via Auburn, July 30.—The “fourth day of the hunt in this dis- trict was productive of a dolen‘ promising rumors, but barren of di- | rect results. It is known that a | portion of the gang of desperadoes was in | the triangle formed by the roads from | Cool to Lotus and to Greenwood. Four of the convicts are declared to have been | seen within a few miles of Pilot Hill, where | the fight took place, since sundown yes- | terday. Several posses took various leads, ‘ but returned after a fruitless chase. The heat has been intense all day and the pur- | sucrs are almost completely exhausted. | One hundred men spent the night in Cool. | guarding the erossroads in the vicinity. | The moon did not set until after midnight | and the convicts had every chance to travel early this morning. The man-hunters arranged a c;mpdgnl for to-day. J. C. Collins, WalteF, Jack- son and Al Valler and Captain Swisler, with seventeen militiamen, started for Greenwood. Sheriff Keena and posse of | Placer County struck out for Auburn; Charles Jolly, with some Folsom prison guards, heade@ for Black Rock Canyon, | above Greenwood Creek, and Sheriff Bos- | quit of El Derado County, with a dozen followers, made for the South Fork of the American River, over the hills to the | southeast of Cool. Independent bodies of rifiemen moved in various other direc- tions. Four detachments of militia Ie.fl Hawks Camp, three miles from Diehl's grocery. STORIES OF RANCHERS. A rancher named Jackson met the Swis- ler outfit on the road to Greenwood at 8| a. m. and reported that an armed man had ridden with him for several miles and had gone into the brush at Penobscot, a village half way between Cool and Greenwood. The pursuers found the trail and followed it for several hours, when it disappeared in a beaten’ path. Jerry Porter, who lives on a lonely ranch three miles from Cool, reported at noon that three armed men were in his barn at sundown last night. He thought they were convicts and did not speak for fear, ‘and they said nothing to him, al- though he was only a few feet from them. Porter left the barn hurriedly, and the men went through the rear of the barn and took to the timber. A Sheriff's | posse went in the direction supposed to have béen taken by the convicts. Shots were heard in Greenwood in the early morning. More shooting was re- ported from Webber Creek. Tennessee farm, a chaparral-covered ranch near Cool, was thought to shelter a band of eonvicts, but a thorough patrol resulted in establishing the fact that the convicts have been in this neighborhood, and noth- ing more. VOLLEY FOR THE HOG. A party of militia heard some one crashing through the brush in Black Rock | Canyon, and pursued an unknown man for several miles on the run, but never caught sight of him after climbing the rocks to Greenwood Cregk. Militiamen In camp ldst night spled an object moving in the darkness. The call to halt was not heeded and the outpost blazed away. The suspicious character proved to be a hog and was shot full of holes. With so many men engaged in the pursuft and working independently it is generally feared that there may be a tragedy resulting from an unexpected meeting of posses. Nine men out of ten could not tell the convicts from the pur- suers. Harry Gray of Lincoln came into Au- burn to-night from Greenwood Creek. He asserts positively that he and others ran across the escaping convicts about two miles north of Lotus Wednesday night. Gray says that over twenty shots were exchanged. —_——— INSANE MAN WOULD EAT BRICK BUILDINGS John Short, a Crazy !dlor, ‘Would Destroy Houses to Appease His Hunger. John Short, a sailor, imagined that bricks were as rluch articles of diet as loaves ol bread, and.as a resuit he was placed in the insane ward of the Recefv- ing Hospital last night. Policemen Hen- neberry and Dowd took him, after a struggle, from the Mariners’ Home, 504 Davis street. Short became violently insane early in the evening. He announced that he would tear down all the brick buildings in town and eat them up. Accordingly he battered buildings with a club and, picking up fragments of bricks, tried to consume them. Then he gathered up an armful of bullding material and started for his room. Meantime the police at the Harbor sta- tion had been notified and the two arrest- ing officers were sent in the patrol wagon o Davis street. When they arrived Short had barricaded his room, and defled the policemen to enter. The door was bat- tered down In short order, and after a short struggle the demented man was started in the direction of the hespital. In the room Henneberry and Dowd found about a dozen bricks, all of which had been nibbbled at. Short has been in town but a fqw days. He has only chance acquaintances and these know but little concerning him. He will be taken before the Insanity Commission 3 4 PRISONERS IN THE PLOT MAY HANG Sacramento Attorney Accuses Men in Folsom. e s Investication Sets Forth Facts Regarding the Conspiracy. Myers and Laverone Will Bs Charged With Having Taken Part in Jail Break. —_—— Epecial Dispatch to The Call. Attore con~ 30.—District to-day info tha jall de- number OLSOM, ney A tinued July M. Seymour the investigation plot of the disastrous livery Monday. A great of convicts were examined and when the investigation closed this afternoon the District Attorney said that he nad abund- ance of evidence to conviet Andy Myers and William Laverone of murder in the first degree with the penalty of death. Convict Andy Myers was called to the stand in his own behalf and sald that it false about his being in the fight in front of the gate, as he was across the yard near the chapel when the fight started. He sald that he could prove an alibf and when asked what witnesses he had he mentioned the names of “Spike” Sullivan, “Red Shirt” Murphy and sev- eral others. When these prisoners were called and examined they all said that they did not see Myers near the chapel nor had they been near him at all Seymour then took up the investigation of 1. G. Smalley, one of the convicts on the ranch, who was suspected of being the man who had the dynamite Inside the yard, but after mvestigating closely and notipg his past record as a prisoner and as Ke only had a short time to serve, they decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. However, the inquiry in this di- rection is not ended. The District Attorney said that he would begin proceedings against Myers and Laverone at once and thought that any fair-minded jury would render a verdict of murder. @ i @ FIRE ENDANGERS LIVES OF MANY Policemen Hurry Fright- ened Persons From Burning House. Fire broke out shortly after 1 o’clock this morning in the tenement house at 2713 Stevenson street, and be- fore the department arrived on the scene more than a dozen families had been left temporarily homeless. Many men, women and children had narrow capes, and several were rescued by the police. The fire started in the rear of 273-Ste- venson street, and was caused by the up- setting of a lamp. Before the alarm was turned in the flames had spread to the adjoining house at 275 Stevenson sireet, and for a time it looked as if the enmtire block would be destroyed. An alarm was turned in from box &2 and responses were prompt. The fighters did their work well and i fifteen minutes the flames were under control and the remainder of the block was saved. The twelve or more families that occu- pled apartments in the two temements had rather a lively experience. Many were bewildered and ran in a dazed way through the houses. The policemen and firemen went quickly to the rescue, and it was their prompt action that saved sev- eral lives. The tenements were both slight frame structures and In a decayed state. They were owned by the Hellman syndicate and were fully covered by insurance. The loss to the occupants of the places will be slight, as nothing of much value was in either of the houses. John Martin, an aged fencing teacher, whose place bt employment is at 102 ' Farrell street, was the only on¢ Injured the fire. He was awakened by the noise in the street and before he could be rescued his hands and face were badly scorched by'the flames. He was treated at the Emergency Hospital —_———————— Cow Starts a Fire. A cow belonging to W. C. Allen, a dairyman at Forty-eighth avenue and H street, started a fire early yesterday morning, which completely destroyed Al- len’s barn. Allen was milking per, when she suddenly upset a lamp. Allen was burned hbout the face and handg and was treated at the Park Hospital. ———— Strikes Employer With a Hammer. Frank Gold, a carpenter efployed on a new building in course of ‘onstruction on Twentietl avenue south struck his employer, Ernest Boden, wit} a hammer. Gold was arrested and chaged with as- sault with a deadly weapdh. The men quarreled over wages. ———————— Rebel Cork’s Annud Picnic. The annual picnic and ofting under the auspices of the Rebel C#k Society will take place next Sunday t Shell Mound Park, near Berkeley.- Tfere will be all kinds of games and atfetic events and fany valuable prizes be distributed. Norma Woods,