Back to: CBSE Class 12th English Summary
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The Inevitable Escape
In March, the governor of Oxford prison called the secretary of examination to arrange an exam for a prisoner named Evans. Evans wanted to acquire some academic qualifications.
The secretary agreed to the governor’s proposition of exam and assured him of necessary action. Evans the Break was Evans’ nickname. He had tried to escape the prison thrice but this time, according to the governor, there was a slight possibility that Evans really wanted to pass this O-level German exam.
On Monday 7 June, Evans’ German teacher shook hands with him, and told him that he had no chance of passing this exams. Mr Jackson and Officer Stephens reported in Evans’ cell in the morning. Both of them were prison officers. Evans told them that he wanted to shave.
The Impersonator
Jackson and Evans were not on good terms, and Jackson was in no mood to crack jokes. He harshly ordered Evans to get ready in half an hour. Evans told him that his hat (that he was wearing) was his only luck.
The Board scheduled the exam at 9:15 A.M, and Reverend Stuart McLeery was the invigilator. He was dressed in a long black overcoat and had his belongings such as the paper envelope (sealed), a Bible, and an authentication card.
While shaving, Evans asked Jackson why the Jail administration was so afraid of his escape. Jackson said that nobody would take a chance on him. He clearly warned Evans. Finally, McLeery had arrived, and the exam had started.
The Message
The governor was worried about a couple of events that might unfold that day. He thought about Evans escape by holding McLeery as a hostage or what if McLeery might have smuggled something inside the cage to help Evans.
Jackson came back, reopened the cage ad checked McLeery and his belongings to satisfy himself. Jackson asked McLeery about his rubber ring. The exam started, McLeery gave Evans some instructions. Stephens came out of the cage.
After some time, the governor got a call that something was missing (a correction form). They rectified the error, but the governor was worried as it might have been a secretly coded message. He tried to call the examination institution, but the line was engaged.
The magistrate court wanted a prison van and some guards, so they called the prison governor. He was worried. In the cell, Evans was staring at the paper, and McLeery was reading Bible. Stephens was checking Evans through the peep-hole every minute or so. There was a very tense atmosphere.
When Stephens checked Evans for the final times, he found out that Evans had a blanket. A plethora of thoughts ran through his mind, was Evans trying to suffocate McLeery? Or was he planning to escape? At noon, the exam ended. Stephen was happy because the governor had assigned him to escort McLeery out of the cage.
When McLeery was out of the cage, Stephen escorted him outside and asked him how Evans had performed. It seemed to him that McLeery was a little taller and slimmer. By any chance, he had this feeling of checking Evans once more, and he was stunned.
McLeery was inside the cage, and by the time he could alert Jackson, it was too late. McLeery knew Evans location, but he was gasping for air. He told them that Evans was heading to Elsfield way. The governor rang Stephens and called him an idiot. He told Jackson that he had no brain.
The Chase Begins
Soon after, the governor vowed to catch Evans. The authorities had chased Evans for a while but lost him at the Headington roundabout. The governor did not think so. He asked Carter if McLeery was in the hospital, and he told the governor that indeed McLeery was in Radcliffe hospital.
The governor called the Radcliffe hospital to confirm the fact, but he froze as he listened to the person answering his phone call. McLeery was not there. They found the real McLeery gagged in Broad Street. It was not Evans who walked with Stephens; Evans was impersonating McLeery inside the prison.
Evans (after his great escapade) was in the Golden Lion hotel. While walking upstairs, he reminisced each and everything that he did to make his great escape.
As he closed his room’s door, he was frozen. It was the governor who was already sitting on the bed. Evans froze, and there was a long silence. It was a very awkward moment for Evans. He knew that it was that correction slip that led to his failure. Evans and the governor exchanged some words about how the governor got his trails.
Things Explained!
Evans also explained to the governor how he smuggled blood into the prison. The governor also asked Evans how he planned this escapade as he had no friends and visitors in prison, but Evans told him that he had many friends.
The receptionist girl told the governor that the van had arrived. The governor bade a good farewell to Evans. While sitting in the van, the officer took off Evans handcuffs, and they escaped to Newbury once again. Evans was free again.
