Daily American telegraph., 1852-05-18
AMERICAN TELEGRAPH,
A visit TO tAe state Prison at w,
BY MARY IRVING.

care you ready to go to prison this morn.
ingW asked friend or me, one sunshiny day
of last winter
"|Why," said l. laughing, II don't know
whether | am ready to give up my liberty, OF
not, just now Have you been appointed con
stable 2"
\" No, but have appointed myself leader o
an exploring party for the day So, if you have
fancy for fine sleigh-ride, and peep at the
inside Of prison you have onlyto put on youl
bonnet and cloak"
80, in the course OF an hour, we well wrapped
in cloaks, wells, and muffs, and tucked in snug.
ly with buffalo skins, were sliding along over
the smoothly-worn track. The bells jingled
the ponies pranced, the sleigh-riders laughed
and talked--and merry party it was
After riding several miles, we came within
sight of the high bleak walls of huge stone
building, so constructed as to surround large
open square. Two towers were raised at cor
ners of this square court, and in each of these
q sentinel, with loaded gun over his shoulder
paced to and fro, overlooking the open space
all the long day, to see that no one made any
attempt at escape Sadly and drearily enough
the grated windows frowned on US, seeming to
defy the strongest arm.
"That is the prison 7" said one and sudden
/ y
stones We could not help thinking what feel
ings must shake the heart of one who was con-
demned to be shut within those walls of granite
and iron, when his eye, like ours, first lighted
on them. 1t seems as though the sweet angel
Hope would certainly fold her wings, and
shrink down into the deepest corner of his
heart, leaving him to remorse and despair!
| 1t was but short time before the dinner
hour when we entered the wardens Office A
man with a huge bunch of formidable keys
stood ready to take us over the building
Opening the first door, he led us into an i'm
mense room, ceiled and paved with stone. In
the centre of this room double row of cells
had been built up, three stories in height
Narrow stairways led up to each story Every
cell had an iron door, half solid, half grating,
to permit the light and warm air to pass in.
There were no windows in the cells the doors
of most were open, as the men were then at
work in other parts of the building and we
looked into them as we passed along. There
was hammock swinging from the roof of
each, and a stool beside it, that was all. The
cell itself was scarcely large enough for two
men to pass each other in. Oh, sad enough it
was to feel that two hundred human creatures
were at home there! Why could they not have
obeyed the laws of God and man, and have kept
their right to Heavens free air and sunshinet
In one OF these sat man, with his hat
slouched over his eyes, trying to read some
book by the dim light that fell through the
barred window He was unable to go into the
work k-room SO our guide said and all who are
not in the shops must be in their cells Every
evening the warden takes his great KEY
marches them all into this great room, sends
them to their several cells and locks them in
like Gagged beasts. 1t is quite as necessary as
it would be to lock in tigers or wolves, for
many OF these prisoners are men who have
committed very great crimes and who would
not shrink from killing or wounding any of
the officers if they hoped by that means to be
able to escape. But poor fellows perhaps
some will have more to answer for than they
after all Those who lead others into evil are
surely less pardonable than those who are led
into evil almost unconsciously. They will be
punished, when justice is done, before the uni
verse. All that men can do, is to cage up the
offenders against their laws-those who steal
and murder on q small scale.
Surely, nobody can ever escape from this
place !" exclaimed one of our party "Do the
prisoners ever try to get QUIT"
"Sometimes-not very often, though" said
our leader "There are men so cunning that
bolts and stones, all that you see here, won't
keep them in. Twenty years ago, two of them
got out of their cells in the night The sentinel
! happened to be little deaf and did not hear
them until they rushed out upon him and mur
dered him. They had made number of falls,
keys with which they succeeded in opening
every door, until they came to that strong one
yonder, which leads to the women's prison
The key wouldn't fit and while they were
pounding upon it. and working it about they
awoke the matron She, suspecting that some
thing was wrong got up softly and went
through that long gallery to one of the towers.
where she awoke the guard. They came down
with arms, and seized the murdercrs. Since
that time, no one has escaped,
You spoke of the women's prison-have
you many women heref
Not many, fortunately for the credit of the
sex Come this way"
| He led us into the womens apartment
There sat seven or eight sad-looking creatures,
with their faces turned to the wall and their
backs toward us mostly engaged in coarse
sewing They did not look up, nor lift their
heads. 1t is rule of the prison that the con-
victs shall take no notice Of strangers who
come to visit them, but appear as If they had
neither eyes nor ears BY the side of the long
table stood n young woman, with folded arms,
and an open, frank face, looking pleasantly at
us. as much as to say, am no guilty one ,
She was the superintendent of the needlework.
little child, almost as small as a large doll,
sat on a stool in the middle of the room lifting
up its smiling eyes, but scarcely moving at all.
1t looked as though it never had stepped out
side of those bleak walls, nor ever known
what frolic on the green grass was, poor thing
From this part the guide led us, along the
inner court, to the first of the workshops 1t
would never do to keep SO many men shut up,
idle, all the while; they would soon become
sick, or very unhappy SO the State has pro.
vided workshops for them, furnished with all
kinds of useful tools, and persons to teach then,