940 EDMONTON DAILY OCT 22, 1907 PENITENTIARY IMLAH, Officer STONE, Geo. (George) WALKER, T. LUSBY, William CUMMINGS, Harry SYMINGTON, William CAPE, A.J. SHEFFIELD, Robert MILLER, Jack HUBLE, A.J. Vancouver, Oct 21, 1907 Geo. Stone and T. Walker, two desperate convicts made a bold attempt to escape from New Westminister penitentiary, Saturday afternoon shortly after 4 o'clock. Stone approached Mr. Imlah, chief inspector, from behind and dealt him a fearful blow on the head with a hammer. Imlah fell to the floor and Walker, who had been standing near, attacked the prostate man and delt him several blows with a scantling. Imlah turned over and tried to crawl away, but was practically helpless. The two convicts followed by others make a break for the fence. Assistant Wardern Stewart appeared, and held them up with a drawn revolver. The desperate men were cowed, when another convict named Cambell came to the assistance of the officer. Stone and Walker were overpowered, and placed in solitary confinement. Imlah was severely injured, but his life is now in no danger. Three members of survey party drowned. A private dispatch dated at Quesvelle, B.C. October 10th, has been received by the Bulletin from Hugh E. Kitchie, a member of the Cromwell party that left Edmonton for Prince Rupert about two and a half months ago, in which he states that three men of the G.T.P. survey party were drowned from a canoe on October 4th in an attempting to shoot the Griscome rapids in the Fraser River. The canoe contained six men, whose names were LUSBY, William (Drowned) CUMMINGS, Harry (Drowned) SYMINGTON, William (Drowned) CAPE, A.J. (Drowned) SHEFFIELD, Robert (Survived) MILLER, Jack (Survived) Cummings was an Edmonton boy and formerly was employed with the C.N.R. The dispatch further states. "Left Oct the 1st these men left the survey camp about 25 miles above the Grand Canyon bound for Fort George in a large freight canoe. Cromwell's party was then bound down the river in a dug-out canoe and was advised by Mr. Leask, chief of the party, not to go down the Grand Canyon or the rapids with the dugout, but to go with the crowd who would leave that morning. "After thinking it over, Cromwell came to the condlusion it would be better that way, but he would go on to the Grand Canyon, and if his dug out went to pieces, then he would go on down with the crowd. Cromwell left Leask's camp in the morning and that night camped at the head of the Grand Canyon. Next morning with Fielder, they shot the Grand Canyon and came out alright. "We then shot the lower part and came through the whirlpool successfully. At about four o'clock we were caught in a rain storm and pitched camp. In a few minutes along came the six men from the Grand Trunk and stopped to take up on, but Cromwell then had confidence in his own boat, and thinking there was too large a crowd decided to go on down the river in his own dug-out. "William Lusby, who had been on the river for a long time, and who was in charge of the boat, advised Cromwell not to shoot the Griscome rapids in his dug-out, for in view of the fact that there was low water there were many rocks, which were hard to dodge, and if we did shoot the rapids to be sure and keep to the right hand side until nearly halfwa7 down and then cross to the left hand side. Cromwell then sent word to A.J. Huble, who lives at the head of the rapids, to be ready to pilot him through the rapids. Lusby and his crew then took their departure, as they wanted to make Fort George on Friday. "After getting down to their boat Lusby sent Miler back to tell Cromwell if he did shoot the rapids to be sure to keep to the right hand shore. "Next morning we broke camp and started back down the river and on Saturday afternoon after two days and a half of continual rain, we reached the Griscome rapids, where at Hubb's cabin we found a note address to Cromwell saying he (Hubb) would be back next day, as he had gone down the rapids to give aid as there had been an accident. That night Hubb returned with two survivors of Lusy's party and gave the details of the tragedy. "The six men left the head of the rapids at 2 o'clock on Friday and made the first turn and when the worst part came, for some reason now unknown, Lusby, who was steering took the left side the very side he told Cromwell to stay away from and when in the middle they hit a rock and smashed the canoe in a dozen pieces. "Mr. Cape, one of the survivors says the Harry Cummings never came up and after swimming a few strokes he caught a piece of the wreckage and looked for the rest. He was near William Lusby and called to him to swim towards the wreckage and then looked for the rest of the crowd. He saw Miller and Syminton going down the river with a piece of wreckage and saw Sheffield swimming. "He then looked back for Lusby and saw him making his last struggle and then go down. He then cut off his boots and not too soon for the wreckage hit a rock and threw him off and he was unable to get back to it. He then tried to swim ashore, but the current kept him out. At last he was exhausted and with only a few yards between him and the shore he sank beneath the water only to find that he could touch bottom. He crawled to the shore and lay there until he was able to walk. He then started back for Huble's cabin and en route came across Sheffield who had made shore all right. "Together with Huble they returned and spent that night and the next day trying to find the rest but none could be found. The body of J. Miller came ashore and was taken to For George by Indians. "On Saturday the river raised a foot and on Sunday Cromwell decided not to travel. Monday morning the water was about three feet higher and Cromwell gave orders to break camp, but informed the men that in view of the danger he would rather they would walk around, and he with Huble would shoot the rapids. This they refused to do. Just then one of the river Indians came along in a canoe, who was familiar with the rapids, and Cromwell got him to pilot him through. We left at 9 o'clock and shot the rapids, which are about nine miles long, and came through safely and reached Fort George that evening. "We left fort George next morning for Quesneile, a distance of 95 miles and came through For George Canyon, White's Rapids and Cottonwood Canyon in good shape and arrived here today, Our party are all well with the exception of Cromwell, whose hand was poisoned with some weed, but which is improving rapidly now. I was crippled for a couple of weeks but am now ell and hearty again. We leaved here tomorrow for a trip inland for a couple of weeks and then return here. Although we have had a hard trip we have all enjoyed it and all glad the water trip is over.