CONVICTS' TRAIN MUTINY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 18089, 13 May 1922, Page 2 (Supplement)

CONVICTS' TRAIN MUTINY.

.» SAVAGE MIDNIGHT ATTACK. THREE SHOT BY WARDERS. A sensational fight between a gang of convicts and their warders took place during tho night on a, train between Goeriita and Berlin a few weeks ago. Thirty-three convicts entrained at Goerlitz to bo taken to tho capital for trial. As a, number of the men were dangerous characters, and there were, suspicion?, that attempts would bo mado to escape, a specially strong contingent, of warders and ■ police was placed on tho train. About midnight, when the train was near Frankfort-on-Oder, one of the convicts found an iron bar under a seat in. his comportment, and with this weapon ho tried to fell a warder. The warder attempted lo draw his revolver in selfdefence, but the other convicts jumped on him and prevented him doing so. Other warders rushed along the corridor to their colleague's assistance, and convicts from other compartments broke loose. Somo of tho lamps in tho train were smashed, and in the darkened, narrowcorridors a fierce free fight took place, during which the communication cord was pulled. A? the train slowed down ten of tho convict,?, jumped from the train and disappeared into tho woods alongside, the railway line. Those in the train were soon in hand again, and, while warders with loaded revolvers stood over them, a, detachment of warders and police went off in pursuit of those who had escaped. Three men

who refused -to surrender when called upon, but continued running, had to be fired at and wounded betoro they could bo captured. N One of them was the ringleader, a notorious criminal named Schmidt. He and one companion were very seriously wounded, but the third was less severely hurt. Seven oth«r men, who had been hiding in the neighbourhood of a thicket, became scared at the sound of firing, and came out and surrendered. The train then proceeded to Berlin, where the three wounded men were taken to hospital. Two of them later died.