The Bloomfield times. [volume] (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1867-187?, 1872-05-07
care there any political prisonersP"

"This is the fourth time have been here.
Did you ever hear Of GasparoP"
"Gasparo the forger?"
lie nodded.
"Who escaped three or four months since,
and"
"And flung the sentinel over the ram
parts, just as he was going to give the
alarm. am the man."
had heard of him, as man, who, early
in his career, had been sentenced to pro-
longcd term of solitary Imprisonment, and
who had come forth from his cell hardened
and desperate. / shuddered, and, as /
sbuddered, found his evil eye taking vim
dictive note of me. From that moment he
hated me. From that moment | loathed
him.
A bell rang, and detachment of con-
victs came in from labor. They were i'm
mediately searched by the guard, and chain
ed up, two and two, to stopping wooden
platform that reached all down the center
of the hall. Our afternoon meal was then
served out, consisting of mess of beans,
and allowance of bread and ship-biscuit,
and measure of thin wine. l drank the
wine, but could eat nothing. Gasparo
took what lie pleased from my untouched
allowance, and those who were nearest
scrambled for the rest. The supper over,
Il shrll whistle echoed down the hall, each
man took his narrow mattress from under,
the platform which made our common bed
stead, rolled himself in n piece of scanned
mating, and lay down for the night. In
less than five minutes all was profoundly
silent. Now and then l heard the black
smith going round with his hammer testing
the gratings and trying the locks in all the
corridors. Now and then the sentinel past
with his musket on his shoulder. Some
times a convict moaned or shook his fetters
in his sleep. Thus the weary hours went
by. My companion slept heavily, and even
l lost consciousness at last
was sentenced to hard labor. At Toulon,
the hard labor is of various kinds; such as
quarTying, mining, pumping in the docks,
lading and unlading vessels, transporting
were employed, with about two hundred
other convicts, in quarry a little beyond
the port Day after day, week after week.
from seven in the morning until seven at
night, the rocks echoed with our blows.
At every blow our chains rang and rebound
ed on the stony soil. In that fierce climate,
terrible tempests and tropical droughts sue
ceed each other throughout the summer
about autumn Often and often, after toll
ing for hours under a burning sky, have l
gone back to prison and to my pallet drench-
ed to the skin. Thus the last days of the
dreary spring echoed slowly past; and then
the autumn-time came round.
My fellow-convict was Piedmontese.
He had been burglar, forger, and an in
cendary. In his last escape he had COM
mitted manslaughter. Heaven alone knows
how my sufferings were multiplied by that
abhorred companionship--how / shrank
from the touch of his hand-how sickened
if his breath came over me as we laid side
by side at night l strove to disguise my
loathing; but in vain He knew IL as well
as knew it, and he revenged himself upon
me by every means that vindictive ma
ture could devise. That he should tyran-
nize over me was not wonderful; for his
physical strength was gigantic, and he was
looked on as an authorized despot through
out the port; but simple tyranny was the
least part of what had to endure; ! had
been fastidiously nurtured; he purpOsely
and continually offended my sense of deli.
cacy. / was unaccustomed to bodily labor
he imposed on me the largest share of oul
daily work. When needed rest he would
insist on walking. When my limbs were
cramped, he would lie down obstinately,
and refuse to stir. He delighted TO sing
blasphemous songs, and relate hideoui
stories of what he had thought and resolv
ed On in his solitude. lie would even twis
the chain in such wise that 1t should gal
me at every step. was at that time JUS
twenty-five years of age, and had beer
sickly from boyhood. To rctaliate, on de
fend myself, would have been alike impOs
sible. To complain to the superintendent
would only have been to provoke my tyran
to greater cruelty.
There came day, at length, when hi
hatred seemed to abate. lie allowed me l.
TO rest when our hour of repose cam
round. He abstained from singing tn
songs ] abhorred, and fell into long fits q
abstraction. The next morning, shortly al
ter we had begun work, he drew nea
enough to speak to me in whisper