STARTLING ATTEMPT TO RELEASE CONVICTS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 13390, 19 January 1907, Page 2 (Supplement)

STARTLING ATTEMPT TO RELEASE CONVICTS.

I CONSPIRACY FRUSTRATED BY ACCIDENT. j An amazingly daring attempt to regain ; their liberty has just been made by a number of convicts incarcerated at Portland. Some features of the plot are. almost too sensational to be believed. It was not merely an attempt on the part of a few convicts i to effect their escape, but, it is believed, i an elaborately-laid scheme to free the whole ■ of the convicts and to hold the island, and | not the least extraordinary feature of the ! coup is the fact that the prisoners, in some : mysterious manner, had secured the active ! co-operation of accomplices outside the penal establishment. The plot began to develop immediately after the removal from Portland of the Warwickshire Regiment. The ! presence of this body of soldiers was rei garded by the inhabitants of the island as i a guarantee of security, and the decision to i withdraw them was received with the greatI est apprehension, especially as it was well I known that amongst the convicts recently drafted to Portland were a number of notoriously violent and desperate men. The disappe'aarnce of the military soon became known to the prisoners, and, needless to say, was regarded by them in a totally different light. A few of the more daring among them, who have been sentenced for sensational crimes, lost no time in discussing the situation, and it was generally agreed that a unique opportunity was presented them of regaining liberty. One of their first moves in the plot was to engage the assistance of their friends outside, who themselves are ex-couvicts. How this was done will probably never be ascertained, but that outside accomplices actually participated in the plot cannot be doubted. As a matter of fact, on the evening of the attempted escape purloined boats from Weymouth were actually waiting near the breakwater to get clear away with the principal organisers of the conspiracy. The plan was this: It se a ms that about 400 convicts are. confined in one portion of the establishment, which is somewhat isolated from the main buildings. And in cells in this wing were the men who were bent upon escaping. For a considerable part of the night the prisoners, after being locked up in their cells, are left practically in charge of a solitary assistant-warder. Although this officer has several alarm bells within his reach, he could

FAIRLY EASILY 111; OVERPOWERED. before he could get to them, and that section of the prison under his control would thus be at the mercy of an escaped convict who could possess himself of the officer's keys. This was the preliminary act which the conspirators- sought to accomplish. It had been arranged that one of their number should break out of his cell at midnight, and, having overcome the assistant-warder, should set free his accomplices. This individual happened to be a clever mechanic. Tie found that the bolt of the lock of his cell where it entered the jamb of the door was covered by an iron plate. This plate he managed to remove with an ingenious implement he had fashioned from an article stolen from the prison workshops. He replaced the plate in such a manner that he could put it on or take it' off at, will, and next cut away the woodwork underneath. As had been anticipated by the conspirators, the assistant-warder came on duty late on the night in question, the principal warder having just previously gone the rounds and satisfied himself that all was well. Some time- afterwards the assistantwent his round, and found all the doors secure, including that of the cell the lock of which had been tampered with. After the round had been completed the me-chanic-convict thought it was time to prepare, for his sudden rush upon the warder, and accordingly adjusted the plate of his door in such a manner that it could lie opened noiselessly at any moment. But, by the merest chance in the world, and quite contrary to his ordinary practice, the warder on this fateful night made a second and unexpected tour of inspection, and tried the doors of several of the cells a second time. Coming to the cell of the falsely-riveted plate, he placed his hand upon the door, which he at once found was not fastened. He opened the door to investigate. With a howl of ratre the inmate was on him like a. (lash, and a fierce eonllict seemed imminent, when the warder dodged his assailant' and ran for his life. Before the convict could overtake the officer the latter had succeeded in ringing til" alarm bells which communicated with the guardroom. Help was quickly forthcoming. The convict was secured, after a violent struggle, and promptly placed in another cell. After the alarm had been heard the boats, to which reference had been made, were seen stealthily moving in the direction of Weymouth. These, in brief, are the facts of what is undoubtedly one of the most cunningly-contrived attempts at escape in the whole history of this convict establishment. Now that they realise the imminent peril from which they happilv escaped, the inhabitants of the island are demanding to know who was responsible for the removal of the Royal Warwickshire.*.