The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1871-06-16
THE IMPRISONED MMUNLSTS.

The following are extracts from letter in
the Times, describing visit to the Commu-
mist prisoners at Satory:-
''The various stables being inadequate to
accommodate more than portion of the
prisoners, the others were penned like sheep
in the corners of the enclosure. There they
stood behind rope, watched by numerous
gendarme sentries with loaded Chassepots,
for the most part motionless, many of them
probably sick and suffering, some in rags,
some barefooted, many with dirty handker-
chiefs as the sole covering for their heads.
AS some protection-a very slight one
against the rain that poured steadily down,
some had covered their shoulders with wisps
of the straw they had slept upon. Most of
them looked stolid and sullen. Our gen.
darmes said they were generally very
meek, and volunteered readily for fatigue
duty. If those in the open were
exposed to the elements, they at any rate
breathed purer atmosphere than was
to be found in the stables. We entered
one of these, crowded with men of all ages,
some ey-headed, some boys of fourteen.
Most of them we're standing, but in the back
ground, where the light was dim, many re-
cumbent forms could be distinguished as soon
as the eye got accustomed to the gloom. The
appearance of four strangers, escorted by a
gendarme, evidently caused sensation, and
probably awakened hopes and fears. The
Communists crowded round US, opening only
narrow avenue for our passage. The at
mosphere was unspeakably noisome. 1t was
wonderful to see such number OF lgnoble
faces, and with such vile expression,
brought together. Among those in the first
stable we entered it was almost in vain to
seek countenance that would not have con-
demned its owner in the eyes of the most
lenient pbysiognomist. Our guide told us
that numbers of them had arrived drunk, half
mad, or completely stupefed with the alcohol,
with tobacco stepped in it, which had been
served out to them by their leaders.
ssro prevent outbreaks and secure many
thousand desperate characters who are nei-
ther handcuffed or under bolts aud bars, great
precautions and severity are necessary. In the
walls of the enclosure holes have been made,
through some of which the mouths of cam
non grin, charged with grape and canister,
while at others sentries are stationed. The
night before last a prisoner approached one
of these eInbrasures and persisted in looking
through. The sentry warned him to retire,
once, twice, and thrice, and then he blew his
brains out. The top of his skull, we are
told, few over the wall The victim had evil
IDENTIFY sought his death.
'sBefore leaving we visited the women s
prison, which is a two story house In corner
of the enclosure near the entrance gate.
There were about two hundred of them, for
the most part such as are commonly found
in the neighborhood of soldiers barracks OF
in the lowest outskirts of Paris, squalid and
dangerous localities, of which sketches are to
be read in the pages of Sue and of other
romance writer's whose taste it is to dive into
the lowest depths of human deprayity and
degradation There were some grey haired
old women and some rather pretty young
ones, but the majority were hard-featureC
and middle aged, and of indescribably repul.
sive aspect. One gaunt Amazon had sor
of uniform coat with white band and rec
cross upon the arm, and when she arrived
we were told, she wore epaulets. MADAME
Milliere had been there, who did th
honors of the Hotel de Vile, aud who cam
caily attired, but she had left befor
our visit One girl struck me particularly
She did not look above eighteen, but ma,
have been two or three years older. She wa
slender and we'll formed, with profusion O
fair hair, terribly dirty and tangled, wherea
many of the other women, squalid aud dirt
as their clothes might be, had evidently takei
pains to comb and arrange their hair in tn
most becoming manner their scauty resource
permitted. Her blue eyes we're large an
shifting, and with the expression of viii
animal. of which she reminded me as sh
royed resllessly up and down one end of
ROOM keeping close to the wall, brushin
against it, as hyena does against the bars
It's monotonous weary pacipg in it's narro
prison From time to time she shot sic
glance at our gendarme, who was giving pa
ticulars about the prisoners in pretty log
voice and in terms which showed slight CO.
alteration for their feelings They were sue
olanoes as MIGHT fitlY have accompanied