A premeditated attempt on the part of O. Bishop and J. C. Goald to escape from the United States Consular gaol st an early hour on Monday morning would have been successful but for the watchfulness of a Chinese policeman. Prisoners confined in this gaol evidently try to maintain the reputation of the former occupants of these rooms, and the successful escapes to Japan last year certainly gave them encouragement. It was not surprising, therefore, that these two-year prisoners should make a bid for liberty. They set about the task in a careful but determined manner. By some means unknown to the authorities they secured " broken steel knife and on the handle, which is also steel, they began to file out a key to fit the Yale lock of the door of their prison. The result of their efforts is a neat piece of workmanship—a filed out key somewhat like a double-length latch ko How the men ascertained the Fick is of course mystery, bet ditions of the catches in the
as they had little that could be used to colour the metal with, it is supposed that they covered the steel with coal dust, inserted it in the lock, gave it half tarn and then withdrew it and filed niches where marks had been made on the steel by the lock. Having' made their key, Gould and Bishop decided to decline further hospitality at the hands of the United States, and early yesterday morning was fixed as the time for flight.
At three o'clock Mr. J. M. Darrah, Postmaster, was awakened by shouting in Old China street, and on looking through his bedroom window he saw some men being chased along the street by a Chinese policeman. By the time he got into the street the two prisoners had been stopped. On opening the door of their room with the key they had made, Bishop and Gould descended and got into the courtyard. From this to the street was an easy matter, but they found 8 Chinese policeman waiting for them outside. The men decided to make run for liberty and the policeman followed them, blowing his whistle. The screech of the police whistle called another Chinese constable, who was in the vicinity, to assist and he headed off the prisoners. The four men struggled, but the law breakers found s Sikh policeman added to their two would-be captors too much, and then Mr. Darrah coming along Messrs. Gould snd Bishop were marched back to their gaol. At first nothing could be found to show how the men had opened the door and they stated that coolie had left it open. This statement, however, was proved to be false for later Mr. Darrah found the knife-handle referred to in the courtyard where the prisoners mast have thrown it. The file has not been discovered and as Drossner escaped by filing through a bar to his window the Consular authorities are making a search to see if there is a file hidden away anywhere.
Bishop and J. ©. Gould were convicted of the crime of cheating, by passing Confederate notes as United States currency in September 1907. They were tried in October by the United States Court for China, and Judge Wilfley sentenced them to two years! imprisonment with hard labour.
notice of appeal was given, but nothing further has been heard of she appeal being prosecuted.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.