The Bank Robbers' Wild Escape in Ellensburg

At 3 o'clock this afternoon, a bold break for freedom was made by George McCarthy and H. Lewis, alias Diamond Dick, the Roslyn bank robbers, who were confined in the Ellensburg jail awaiting trial. They made quick work during the hour they were given the freedom of the jail corridors, drilling a hole alongside the iron window grating on the west side of the building. As the wall is of soft brick, it readily yielded. They scaled the fence and secured arms concealed under the sidewalk. They were detected as they ran up the alley, and when Ed Brady and Mow Bowman, two citizens, shot at them, McCarthy returned fire, striking Billy Hayes, son of the depot policeman, in the right arm. Bowman's shot struck McCarthy's wrist, and Lewis was shot in the back. The robbers then forced their way into the residence of Mr. Clymer, an engineer on the Northern Pacific. They told Mrs. Clymer to keep quiet, promising not to hurt her, and coolly asked her to excuse them for the intrusion. When City Marshal McGrath arrived, Lewis called him in, stating he was willing to surrender if the crowd was cleared away. He noted he could have shot the heads off five or six pursuers but did not want to make a bad matter worse. The prisoners were returned to jail under guard, where they remain awaiting their trial.