sent to Fremantle Prison, and kept in the yard with his neck chained to the iron bar of a window, while a special "escape-proof" cell was made for him. The stone-walled cell was lined with jarrah sleepers and over one thousand nails, and was almost air-proof and light-proof. Johns was kept in the cell on a bread and water diet, with only one to two hours of exercise a day. In early 1867, due to his diminishing health, Johns was set to work breaking stone in the open air but, rather than permit him to leave the prison, the acting comptroller-general ordered that the stone be brought in and dumped in a corner of the prison yard, where Johns worked under the constant supervision of a warder. Governor John Hampton was so confident of the arrangements, he was heard to say to Johns: "If you get out again, I'll forgive you". However, the rock broken by Johns was not removed regularly, and eventually a pile grew up until it obscured the guard's view of him below the waist. Partially hidden behind the pile of rocks, he occasionally swung his sledgehammer at the limestone wall of the prison. On 7 March 1867, Johns escaped through a hole he had made in the prison wall. Despite an extensive manhunt, no sign of him was found, and he would not be recaptured for nearly two years. He did not return to any of his old haunts, and he committed no crimes, so the authorities received very little information about him. Also, many convicts were encouraged by Johns' audacious escape, and a number of escapes were attempted in the following months, so that he was quickly forgotten. On 25 February 1869, Johns tried to steal some wine from the cellars at Houghton Winery. By chance, the owner had been helping with a police search, and afterwards invited a group of police back to the vineyard for refreshments. When the owner entered the cellar, Johns assumed that he was discovered, and made a dash for the door into the arms of the police. He was returned to prison, sentenced to an additional 12 months, half to be in separate confinement, for absconding. On 22 March 1869, he was sentenced to an additional four years in irons for breaking and entering. Johns made at least one more attempt to escape, attempting in February 1871 to create