Haralson banner. (Buchanan, Ga.) 1884-1891, March 15, 1884, Image 3

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    “, '}‘r;{‘i‘%@\‘,f i """7;'-‘, ST T e s b
W *?fifmscwm;;,«t A
| ASBURY GENTRY, CONVIOTI ) OF MUR
© DER. WITH FIVE OTHERSY
y (me don, K
'The biggest, boldest, nerviest nm}'\nost
daving jail escape planned or cxeouw\il in
this city was made from the Fulton céun
ty jail last night at 8:45 o'clock, !
i While two burly negroes held the jail
© o, Asbury Gentry, convicted of murdés;
Tlenry Miller, convicted of cou merfoiting‘
: zmd four negroes; Dan McOullough Guy
.~ Body, John Whitfield and Charley Prince
+ walked out of the door, locked it after
Shemeand ran off into the miwky dark
trmess. %
One negro wrested the keys from As
& sistant Jailer White and while two others
held him and Jailer Mattox, unlocked the
doors and all rushed out,
It was but the work of a moment, ,
Hardly a word was spoken.
Before the surprised jailers had time to
. vecover from their astonishment, the
Dold prisoners were out and away,
Five minutes later a dozen policemen
were on the spot. N
They could but stand and hold their
hands in helplessness, utter and com
plete and admire the reckless daring of
the en who had just walked' from pris
« - on to liberty.
The jailers had not yet recovered- from
their shock of surprise and told of the
delivery in but broken sentences.
The grave nature ofithe charges against
© the escapes made their going away one of
. the most serious jail deliveries ever
+ known iw the history of the state.
Asbury Gentry, convicted and sen
' tenced to be hung for murder in one of
{he most sensational cases ever on the
crimiunal vecords of the state, and noted
for his daring, bravery and courage, bad
. .gone, :
The pablic who had kept up with this
: «'a.\!ls:ltinlml.c:ts(e would be, indeed, taken
W.\) last :and
most brillrer P aw MMG,
famous-for deeds of daring. ‘
That he was a bold, nervy man, afraid
« of nothing living, and little else bcsides‘
. his wholeeareer was proof. This last |
- qwet, a masterpiece, was but in keeping |
with his lifeiof great deeds of risk and
. shaer coumgé.;:, I
‘Then there wis Miller, reputed to Dbe
bold and daring, afraid of nothing. Hei
i gone. 3
Natural enough, peop:e who came rush
ing cxcitedly to the jail to ask about the
- lelivery, first ixlq\xixe'd if Gentry and .
Miller were gone. Those who'knew them
knew that no men in the prison would be |
. quicker to execute a daring pl:"o’ju of 08-1
G CRPE: ‘
The very boldness of the affair chal
lengzed the admiration of all. > i
. Withouta single weapon, but bru‘d}é.‘
strenuth, and against feprful odds, tlxd§§
men had'gathered the j:}}fi’érs-, who 'w«.-rel
armed with pistols, o:'crpnw;:xed themn, 1
unh_,gcked the dgm‘-s and run m*o the
str_é}ets bencath-thc ;fi.‘l_m‘é‘of the electric
l'ig'lits; : = A
. Away into the‘:'i{zu-kness_ they had isled
* like frightencd hares—fled from the jus
tice ey Teaved. ‘. !
‘While flle'jai-i'__l,ers told the sauad of po
© licemen of it, wot yet fivo hundred yards
'LW'I;SFG f\igitivi% were running into se
i curi‘w’ffifx}é;hberty;%‘;Bunuing past crowds
o Qfi{peoéfififiuwi)lg’ figme from church,
8 sk ndlioumen ougghelr besth, o
i&fi;};fig@w&oi the range of pursuers, ran-
R b
: ',.Whiéh way the men had gone could not
: batold,mgmtrsum was bafiled ab the
. They wer¢ gome. They had done it
~ boldly, They were making for Tiberty.
© That was the extent of the jailers kuowl
. way should they go? 'There was no par
tioulhx diveotion that the prisoners would.
hva beon likely to take than anotber. Ta|
gto the westor enst might bo 10 go di
' Bundiye sxs aleere qhict ot Liejat
aud yestorday was excoptionallyso. The
prisoners spent the'day lounging in the
MM ternoon tho usual Sabbath sorvice
S R R A TR T
Wlflhwfis held aimest opposite
%flr%\gfifl I{o. 11, in which Gentvy
N *fllfiwm sounfined, . :
\ fl'ig. 11 is on the first floorof ihe.
§ *’lm the lutt side of the hallway. 1t
:'J,"—("hil‘t,‘y feel from the main entranco to
Mo inner jail. - Three cells separaic it
:k!,m the cell occupied by Porter Stocks.
Stocks occupies the cell neavest the door
wliich opens npoh the jail entrance, :
B ;lle;«smd Gentry occupy cell No. 11
]togw her, At nights it seems that they
ha'(vl‘d een allowed the privilege of exer- |
cisingin the hallway. This privilege is
enjoydd by all of the prisoners dm‘ing‘
l the day. Miller and Gentry are included !
in the st of those who are allowed the
freedon of the hallway. At night it is!
their cl\stom to walk back and forth
througli the corridor after the other
prisoneiy have been locked in. -
With the exercise of due care and cau
tion, thery wonld be no risk “in allowing
these prisoners in the hallway. Two
doors, heatily barred and fastened, stand
between tliem and liberty. The outer
door, whichiopen from the streetinto the
jail office is &f the heaviest of iron, and is
always securply locked. A still heavier
and still mole securely fastened door
separates the jail office from the prison
" where the p\'iifioners are confined, frhe
'cntranee to thi% inner door is confined in
ian iron gn‘g_e._ mi‘d this cage is secured by
a door, The ¢ell occupied by Porter
[ Stocks opeéns into this cage and is separ
‘ated by it from the hallway of the prison.
: Entrance to]thé Lagovay from Stocks’s cell
is made easy thrdl:h the door of the
§ cage which is fnst&nl by means of slid
ing rod, which cau| be ()pal'atfietl either
ifx'om without or witljin. . €N
i It was i\lfide vhis ®ge, and in frbu@ of
Porter Stocks’s cell that the two jailers
i> were standing when Yhey were attacked
|by the prisoners. Tl inner door was
L open behind them. They had opengd the
'cage door to get into the hallway where
the prisoners stand P Aag to escape.
| On_"y"tiic tivo jailers afud the outer jail
}Gdr stood between thein and liberty.—
The keys to that outer dfor were in the
hands of the jailers. Thd jailers were off
their guard. They wer® lot even think
ing of an attempt'at eacflnpc.
Quick as thought a brirly negro caught
Mattox, the smaller of §the two jailers
and harld him through t h#‘ cage door in
to thie hallway six feet awipylos if he had
Leen a child. Auother ghated White
and held him fast. White § hel the keys
and the negro who had holc Q‘x}xim had
them from him in amomentas.
Gentry and Miller stood ju st ide the
hallway making no move. Atoon as
the negro secured the .keys thes ' rushed
up and out of the doorway iuf he jail
‘office, i
Some one of them carried t{e, s, the
jailers do not know who. While e two
negroes still held the jailers the outer
'cllo(;rway was unlocked, and thje mon
‘inalk‘ed into liberty. 'Lhe men whe! held
tfigfl.jailers turned them loose whelp the
doot was open, and followed the otjhers.
Thé%jocked the mner door of the jaiyand
left tl?&_jéilers prisoners within the walls
of the jail. b
' The jail office, through which the Pix
| men had passed in escaping was desert ed
and there was no one to liberate the 'ja 1-
ers. '
l They cried ont loudly for assisranci
and their cries weére heard by two reve
I-nue prisoners, Dodson and Swayne, who
were in the cookroom below. They came
rushing up and took in the situation at a '
glance. The door -was open and they‘
cogld have joined the escapes bhad they |
; wished, but they made no attempt to do E
50, although Dodson ad been sentenced E
to thirteen months in the Columbus, 0.,
penitentiary. 5 :
They unlocked the jail door and let the
jailers out. A telephone message Wwas
sent to police headquarters, and in five
minutes after tie prisoners lad gone |
igapt_ainfl‘hompééu ‘was at the jail with a
‘Hozen men. - Hastily the jnilers told them
‘ of!gwhat,haa hdp ;iba “and Captain
'l:homys&?&t?fim poce to Keeper
DOMW ity chamgang for
| Mg@‘fi Tlie@oßSWere not sent.
gfi%* “WBd Deputy Sherifl
W *'w jolifled B¢ the escape and
Wfi o 8 v‘lyca\pmre the fugi®
ri B o A AR A
frees p o
[ed 3 sent to
Favas phonsit Reyithayes
dea ol t o iing thede et
honiide Landoned as |
f pol u’:i&pn duty \yi‘l'sz,_
| escapcsand instructed to
| them, ;
% Thh escape seems to hav
|and executed with the gre
‘ and deliberation., It was d
| that not. a dozen prisoners i
| awakened by it. They w
| within a few feet of it, an
g nothjng of it until this morni
- Some one seems to be at fa
| ing the prisoners to be in the
! the hour of night at which the
made, and the carvelessness wh\
doors open that confined a hz
desperave prisoners, seems to ha
extreme. As it happened, the p
l had not the slightest trouble in eg
! but the risk was great, as both t
iwcro armed and the chances o
i shot were great. But mnot a sho
| fired, and the men ‘walked through the
barred doors as e:tsi]y and as freely as
they could walk along the streets.
Everything points to the éscape as the
consumation of a long laid plot.. It is‘:
believed that they have been watching son
‘ a favorable opportunity of escape. The
lconldq}nt possibly have seleeted a bettes
one thau last night. No one was abou
[:\ml the usual “Sunday quiet reigned.—
| Usnally during week nights, Steve Ryan
r' site forsa few hoursin the jail office. Sun
i (1:\3" nights his friends call on him as was
| the case last night. No one was with the
ij'\ilm's when 'they started into the jail at
' a qnauter to rine o’clock to lock the pris
oners in. 'lhe six prisoners who escaped
! were waiting at the inside door for them
to come in. The instant they eame in
they were seized, and the manner and
¢ ui"SnggWt iU leaves no room 4o doubt
that it was premiditated.
| Gentryand Miller went into Porter
i Stocks’s cell about 8 o’clock, fuul Gentry
| entertained them with storiesfof his ad
-1 ventures in Texas. He {pent some
i months in Texas and he told jinteresting
stories of what had happened |to him in
lt‘lm Lone Star state, Finallydr grew |
tired of the stories and said :“‘1‘.‘";11, give }
lus a rest with your yarns; wdve heard
| enough.” l
| Miller then went out into thd kallway |
E and Geéntry followed him. Pov{rStocks 1
}tlmn went to bed. lie said h noticedf
{ nothing unusual in the manner |f ('ithm'ii
“r(‘:cnt,x'y or Miller. They did no! nppen.ri
iat all excited. The four negroegvere in |
the hall talking, Gentry was drgsed |in f
his usual jail attire. All the rpn Lhd |
on their hats. Miller surprised hi fell \\'l
prisoners by taking a bath immgiat }yi
after supper. No one about the jjl 1 ld]
i heaxd of the planned escape. ’
' WHO THE ESCAPES ARE. |
Asbury Gentry is thie best known\\( 1e
iesc:lped prisoners. = The heincusnesgof
[ thie crime with which he was chargd
| gave him a wide notoriety, independ It]
lof the name he had won on account f‘
| his wild.career, He was accused of kli- }
) ing an old peddler named Richard Byrig, I
|in Haralson county, and throwing tp
| body into the river. He was convictdl i
‘ on circumstantial evidence and sentenc
to be hung July 15th last. The day aft
! he was sentenced he was brought to A
| lanta for safe keeping. The jail at Buc
anan was not thought strong enough t
hold him, as it was known that he woul
attempt escape. On the day he was
rought here he tried to shoot the guard
with a pistél Le had secured. He created
aywild sensation at the train, and came
whithin an ave of killing a guard. He was
plhced under extra guard after being
Drbugh liere, but he soon won the good
feeling of the jailers, and acted in an un.
i usuplly pacific manner for him. He had
15&3 red a new trial and his case was to
havel been tried at the next superior court
| of fls ralson. -
Helry Miller was convieted of counter
feiting ajpd given fwvo years sentence, He
wgas', ;)\ hikve been taken to the peniten
tiary ith a few days. He had thicatened
to ki‘li‘;{l 1e man who carried him so the
peu. ~ | A 4 5 ;
The eghor four escapes Wus s UeCroes.
h)'fiii’ Mq{ku‘.!:mgh Was e F aiten ey
lB \
Lo «
U §
THE | | -
v . ' ! « 3 .
: B
LOWEST '
WVWIEDE g |
We keep on hand at all Tl *
MERCHANDISE, | |
+ AND =
HAVE RECENTLY ADDEDYTO QU
FURNITURE
¥ {;;Y:E %
DEPARTM!
And keep on Wand at all times a nice sy .
FURNITURE and COFFINS. N
Don’t fail to price our goods before Hu
W e bought them tosgell and we are going o
them by offering eur customers bargains in &
ery line.
N ol
I J.Loveless & Son.s
o 0 rh DY ST 3 '
bt R el 4 ‘
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| |
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=. E. FORBES
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‘L il iy
ANNISTODN A.I..wA. "
l ‘ . | ‘ v:& YQ
e - - My il
L R il . Ta civay mteh ke 1“2
‘ Compars Bis prices with othgrs. He gives mighis ¢
Herms, aad wiil ot be underseid ey
i v . oy e i ;
TRy Tm”:’ TRy ) BTN
f %Jé2 7R 1% Sy
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