Show 1 tiA 1 I IWHO'S WHO'S NEWS HEWS THIS WEEK F Parton By y Lemuel v yr r YORK Many YORK Many Many California NEW convicts have hale ha e toppled prison walls with words It would almost seem that the th best way to become a writer Is 1 to go Felons Felon Type to jail in Califor- Califor nia nl Ernest Their Way In prison off oft and andon I Out of Jail Jarl on for 23 years is the latest to typewrite his way to freedom Ills Ilis many attempts to es- es escape escape escapa cape swept away his credits but a manuscrIpt smuggled out of the nI Ills prison was more effective short story Ladies Ladles of the Mob was made into a film mm Folsom prison officials relented His Stealing Through Life Lite at- at attracted attracted at attracted wide attention He lIe became a model prisoner with the first suc suc- suc- suc success success success cess of his writing efforts effort Now he heIs heis h hIs Is free tree after serving 11 years of ot a 25 year sentence The total of aU all hIs sentences would have stretched beyond a life term He is now thirty nine years old His criminal career began in Oak Oak- Oakland Oakland Oakland land in 1914 with petty thievery which kept him pretty steadily in jail thereafter In 1914 he was as the notorious ammonia bandit of Oak Oak- Oakland Oakland Oakland land finally taken in a daring bank robbery His loss of credits barred him from writing for a long tune time but this was lifted after his numer numer- numerous numerous numerous ous fiction stories began to get at- at attention attention at attention Most of California s prison writers came to grief after they were re- re released released re released leased as I recall it it There was only one one who made a clean break He is a bit of a mystery man his real name carefully con con- concealed concealed by the prison authorities lie He HeIs lieis Heis Is now living happily In California his past forgotten earning his liv- liv living liv living ing and highly respected in the com coin community In his writing he used only the name Douglas which was not his real name It was Stray Poem a random poem by Prisoner wafted over the thel Opens l Gates Cates prison wall which found him friends and swung open the prison doors HavIng been standing by at the time somewhere somewhere around 20 years this ago this writer remembers a few lines of the poem called Garden of Death In old ld San Quentin garden s The morn is sweet lut i bloom bloomA bloomA bloomA A little square of God Gods GodoS oS pure air r Amida Amid a thousand tombs tomb lad ladin in an the fountains fountain mirrored depths As AI you are r passing by Dare mocking walls on either cither e ther hand Seem reaching to the siy And through that glimpse of ParadISe A youth wa was led to ro die Donald Lowrie LO a native of Texas literally pried himself out of prison with a fountain pen His was as toe tae most authentic gift gilt of the prison writers barring Jack Black whom New York knows s well for his book You Cant Can't Win i Outside Lowrie found friends jobs money and understanding Buthe Buthe But he was a hopeless Relates the recidivist Sad Sad Tale of Bally cally and mentally Jack Black ill He died alone and destitute in Texas Jack Black is a sad story He succeeded is lS a writer lived hon hon- honestly hon hon- honestly honestly estly and usefull usefully tor for years won friends everywhere and disappeared a few years unquestionably ago ago unquestionably a suicIde Abe Ruef Ruet fallen San Francisco Flancisco boss wrote admirably In pI prison is on helped win vIn freedom with his type type- typewriter typewriter writer and is now doing well t Bl Bt Buthe he is in a different ca category To go back to Douglas the poet he was saved by his sweetheart She waited 5 years ears for tor him and mar married ried tied him the day he came out They ha have ve one child There have been a thousand vari vari- variants variants variants ants of the Ballad of ot Reading written In California prisons prisons pris ons see EVERYBODY about China t a aint goin there i That seems to be the attitude of the State de- de department de department and the attorney general s Hearn s Army office General toward Russell to fo Stay Home Hearn s volunteer U 17 S Decides Decide army It is ls hinted that Mr Hearns Hearn's 12 eager recruits are more like like- ly likely to go to jail than China His headquartErs are in Los Angeles A Camden N J boy young Hearn boarded a c when he was fifteen and went to the World war ar in the French ambulance lance service lIe He took a hand in the Inthe ta MC Mexican ican revolution under ta and Escobar and campaigned in Nicaragua under Sandino He was an Intelligence officer for tor Mar Mar- Marshal Marshal Marshal Chang Tso-Lin Tso the old mar mar- marshal marshal of North China who was vas as as- as assassinated assassinated thirty five Hes He's a husky looking chap thirty thirty- five years old with brown hair and brown closely clipped cUpped mustache He doesn't look as it lf he h were Vere spoil spoil- ing spoiling for a fight but hates to miss any Grade A ruckus it is said sald he h put In two years in the Foreign Le- Le Legion Le Legion gion glon after the tile World war e 0 Consolidated W Service News lure Features Feature |