n Indiana. He was arrested, and twenty
different charges were preferred against him. By pleading guilty to the
count of stealing a wagon, the court dismissed the other cases and gave
him a sentence of three years at hard labor. He was taken to the State's
prison. Shortly after his arrival he was put to work running an engine
during the night-time. After five months had passed away, Thomas,
reaching the conclusion that he did not enjoy watching over an engine
during the lonely hours of the night, determined to escape. Stealing an
old suit of clothes belonging to an officer, which he drew on over his
suit of stripes, he scaled the walls and was once more a free man. It
was a cold winter's night. After traveling some distance through the
woods his feet were almost frozen. Daylight was now approaching. He must
find a place of hiding during the coming day. In a few hours he would
be missed at the penitentiary. The alarm being given, the usual reward
being offered, scores would be on the lookout for him. Approaching a
farmyard, he sat down and cut up his striped pantaloons and wrapped up
his almost frozen feet. He then crawled under a hay-stack. In this place
he came near being discovered, for in a couple of hours the farmer came
out to feed his cattle, and as chance would have it took the hay from
the stack under which the convict was secreted. As he was removing the
hay, several times prongs of the fork sank deep enough to penetrate the
flesh of the runaway. He endured this pitchfork probing heroically while
it lasted, and was thankful when the cattle had received sufficient
provender. Here he remained until nightfall. He did not renew his
journey until the farmer and his family had retired and were in the land
of dreams. Almost starved, uninvited he enters the kitchen and helps
himself to what he can find. His hunger being appeased, his old habit of
taking things that he should leave alone, forced him into the bed-room
of the sleeping farmer, and forced his hand into the pocket of the
aforesaid granger's pantaloons, from which he took his pocketbook
containing twenty dollars in money. He was now prepared for traveling.
Continuing his journey for several miles, becoming very tired, he
decided not to walk any longer as there was so much good horse-flesh in
the vicinity. Near the hour of midnight, this weary tramp entered the
farmyard of a wealthy old Indiana farmer, and going into the barn led
out one of his fleetest steeds. O