Daily globe., 1879-02-11
THE STATE PRISON.

| Il LytaaO Reporter COryected--1Ne Effort of
the Ring to Break Do,c,s the IayesttGa-
ti0n.
To the Editor of the Globe.
MINNEAPOLIS, Feb. S.-Seeing that you are
the only editor who takes any interest
IN the State prison investigation (except those
fellows who are trying to whitewash HalD
thought would drop you a few lines and ask
you few questions. Can you tell me or the
public generally why the Pioneer Press is so
malicious and bitter against those who come
before the committee to testify against the
State prison managers. The reporter who rep
resented the p. p. yesterday is u deliberate
llar and mlsrepresented my statement in his
paper. In the first place, did not wish to come
and testify before the committee. and absented
myself week from Minneapolis to avoid it.
My reason for not wishing to go before the
committee was that l thought the investi
cation would not amount to any thing
L know that it will take an exceedingly
smart lot of men to find out the deviltry and
rottenness of that institution. And there
don't seem to be more than two or three of the
committee who have any interest in the inves-
tigatlon or who are competent to thoroughly
sift it.
Now for the p. p. reporter. In the first place
he says that said Reed never done ANYTHING
wrong. did not say 80, for know better. 1
known everything that goes on inside these
walls, and am satisfied that he approves of
Halls acts. Hall is merely tool in his band.
Hall is just ignorant enough and mean
enough to make good tool for Reed. Reed is
like the old man in Dickens novel, who got his
the credit OF being a fatherly old man, while
Hall has to stand the blunt Of the investigation
and do the dirty work for Reed.
MIR. Reed made speech in chapel one Sunday
and said he did not want men running to him
with ompaints against the guards and dep
uty. He said he knew what the guards did,
and held himself responsible for it. He made
this assertion several times while was there.
and 1t can be proved by q hundred convicts, if
that will satisfy one. This heaping the bla1ue
all on to Hall is-in my mind-all bosh The
reason Williams got the bounce was that he was
too smart for Reed. He knew too much for
Reed, and could not be made tool of like
Hall. The 2. p. reporter said that did not
care about the dungeon, did not say so. On
the contrary, think the dungeon is a terrible
place OF punishment, and should not be re-
sorted to for trivial otfenses like talking. The
L. T.. says that I swore heard Hall scufle with
conylcts in the night. said no such thing.
said heard Hall pulling them out of their
beds in daytime to make them work when
they were sick. The p. p. says 1 said one
cold morning in September when I said one
cold morning in February.
w" AAAA' you " III see GQaG Gne liz Il.
has got some interest in some of the prison
ring, for ring there is undoubtedly, or they
would not deliberately misrepresent my sworn
statement. suppose the p. p is paid by
Seymour, Sabin d Co. Hall is such a blood
hound and niger driver, and gets so much
work out of convicts that the company can't
afford to lo:e him. The p. p. says Williams
sWore that the convicts went to work at 8
O'Clock in summer and quit at 5. Williams
said no such thing, he said they went to work
at 6 and quit at in summer, with one half
hour for dinner.
Now one word about the food. 1t is not the
quantity of food that any one in the prison
complains of, but the quality and the wav it
Is cooked. You might give u man a bushel of
turnips or potatoes, and still he wouldn't he
we'll fed.
In regard to the charge of horse-stealinp
which was sent up for, have q word or two
to say. l was not convicted Of stealing a horse.
neither did steal one in the true sense. of the
word. l got strapped at game of poker in
Blue Earth City, and the party who strapped
me poked good deal of fun at me, and in a
Joking way said would have to walk out of
town. thought would turn the Joke on one
of them by going out and jumping into o., one e Of,
their rigs and driving off. I had no more in
tentlon OF stealing the horse than did of
stealing an engine off the Southern Minnesota
railroad. l stated my case to the Judge. and |
expected he would fine me about $50 or Give
me few months in Jail |
make this statement because see the r. T. |
Is trying to make my character look bad in |
order to break my testimony. will defy any |
man IN this State to say anything against nv
excepting that Blue Earth trick.
VIM. SHERIDAN