Dodgeville chronicle. [volume] (Dodgeville, Wis.) 1862-current, 1875-10-22

l
stay in the village Tonight; the Majo
might want to speak to you tomorrow
Good night
"Good night'
The gates were opened again, my lat
companions issued forth, and in anothe
minute heard the sound of their wheel
afterward was ordered to move on to tn
inner gate.
There was second gate under thu
archway, a dozen feet from the outel
doors. This was of open iron-work ant
between the bars | could see the tall out
lines of the prison buildings just as W,
| got to the inner gate a man approached
| from the inside.
Did you ring, Mr.. Tootle?" he asked
| He was a tall man in uniform, wearing
| long-waisted, well-fitting great-coat; a
| his side was a sword, on his belt bulls
| eye lantern, and in the left hand bunch
of keys. Ibid you ring" herepeated.
81 did, sir. It's that Raschkoff; the
police have brought him back
"That's the best piece of news I've
heard since noon. Hand him over. Have
you sent word to the Governor
give rung his bell. He or the deputy
will be here directly. It's close on lock
ing-up time.''
With these second gates, as they closed
there seemed to fall another barrier be-
tween me and freedom, nor did my new
escort encourage me to hopefor much con
sideration.
Through more gates and doors, all of
which were first unlocked, then locked,
then relocked, then locked again, till it
seemed as if | was now as safe as the
crown jewels, or toad entombed alive in
granite rock. AT length we reached a
block of buildings a little apart, with
double doors, through which we passed,
as we had the others, and found myself
on the ground floor of an unmistakable
prison. There were three rows of cells,
tier above tier, the upper with narrow
landing and bright steel railing. AS
we entered, another warder met us; he
was in slippers, and walked noiselessly,
like ghost. In sepulchral voice he said :
" Forty-six, sir, all correct"
"This will make forty seven, Mr. Noun
sey," said my conductor; cts that
Raschkoff."
"Shall [ put him in the dark cell, sir?"
was the eager query.
ono; in an ordinary cell but keep an
eye on the trap, and watch him carefully,
or he'll break prison again; he's clever
enough"
| was introduced forthwith into an or
binary cell''-four bare walls, with loop
hole window we'll Barred and wired over.
There was nothing in the place but gut
ta-percha pint pot, and bed of smooth,
bare plank, little raised from the floor.
Keep silence, will you?" said, for the
thousandth time, the superior warder as
for the thousandth time [ tried to protest
that was not Raschkof.
Mind, Mr.. Mounsey, you don't let
him talk to you in the night; he'll be
trying it on again, you may depend. Give
him his bed and fill his cup-there;" and
they left me-
Alone at last, and in solitary cell in
Portland Prison! The dreadful truth was
difficult to realize; but bars and bolts and
iron doors are solid facts not easily ex-
planned away. felt as miserable now as
if was doomed to be hanged the next
morning. AS [ have said, from the first
moment Of my capture / had treated the
mishap as an unpleasant joke-no more;
and all along / had buoyed myself up
with the knowledge that at the prison it.:
self the mistake would be discovered. Of
course, had said to myself, the officials
there will know [ am not the real Rasch-
koff, the runaway. But it seemed as if
no one knew anything of the sort. had
already passed through the hands of three
and, though all had scanned my features
closely, no syllable Of doubt of my iden-
tity had followed their inspection. What
if / should be kept to serve out the real
convict's time, seeking vainly from day
to day and year to year to make my pro-
test plain? This would be too severe
dose indeed. Yes, was most miserable.
Cold, wretched and nearly starved, for no
food had crossed my lips since noon, [
gathered myself together, and, sinking
utterly detected upon the hard pallet, tried
to groan myself to Sleep
1 must have slept; but the slumber at
first was fitful and often disturbed by the
click of latch at my cell door and flash
of bright light through narrow slit
turned on to where / lay. 1t was the
warder on the alert to prevent another es-
cape. Even the strangeness OF this wore
off and I became thoroughly unconscious,
to be reused at last by deafening peal of
bells rung just above my head. The
dawn was struggling, in pale, sickly tones,
through the wire-work of the tiny win
dow, and l guessed that this was the
the signal to begin the labors
of the day. I was hardly at all refreshed
by my sleep, and terribly faint from want
of food.
"Can I see doctor? 81 I asked, as two
new wardens came into my cell and told
me peremptorily to stand up and strip.
"Of course you can. But first of all we
must search you; it ought to have been
done last night, only you took us all by
surprise-as you did, too, when you
hooked it. How did you get away, Rasch-
koff?"
CT tell you I'm not Raschkoff!"
Both the officers laughed heartily.
g You'll be the death of us, Raschkoffi But
there wash yourself; it's close on break
fast time, and after that you may see the
young DOCTOR"
They brought me pan of scalding- hot
cocoa, and small loaf, which ] devoured
eagerly. They were capital; there was
milk in the cocoa and the bread was fresh
and white. / got new courage from the
food. Surely, said l to myself, theremust
be some one here who will confess that l
am right; some one who can swear to the
real Raschkoff. And then it occurred to
me that would let matters take their
course, and desist from speaking another
word in my own defense. | wondered
only how long the farce would continue
| had plenty of visitors in the next hour
or two. First, the young doctor, as he
had been styled, though hewas old enough
to have gray hair and a corporation. He
was an airy, off-hand gentleman, wearing
a stethoscope, like flower, in his button
hole.
"There's nothing wrong with you,' he
said. angrily. "Why did you send for meg"
g | feel faint
"Faintr' The utter contempt of these
words made my blood boil. . Were you
faint yesterday morning when you ran
en-. ~. ;lao an6 ;,p,nad tho dyke in the