Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1884-02-22
THE PRISONERS TASK.
lSwinton's Story-Tel,er. I

[Swinton's Story Teller.
He passed the first ten years of his
imprisonment without doing anything
just time to turn himself round, settle
down and get into the ways of the
place.
Then, rs he still had twenty years to
serve ont, he said to himself one fine
morning that it was shameful to lead
so lazy life, and that he must find
some occupation worthy-not of free
man, for he was prisoner-but simply
of man.
He devoted year to rejecting, to
weighing the different ideas which
passed through his head. and examin-
ing what should be the definitive oh.
ject of his life.
To train a spider? That was very
old, well known! Copy Pellison, peugh
fiat plagiary!
TO count on his fingers the wrinkles
on the wall? What that was ridicu.
lOus and useless amusement; nothing
worth while.
He said to himself: 81 must find
something which would be at once
curious, profitable and gratifying to nv
desire for vengeance. l must invent q
task which will make the time pass,
which will produce some benefit and
which will have the value of a protest" I"
A fresh year was spent on this dis
covery, and finally success rewarded so
much perseverance.
The prisoner lived in O veritable
dungeon, where the sun entered only
for half all hour day, and then only by
q thin line like single hair of light.
The wretched pallet on which the un-
fortunate man rested his cramped limbs
was literally nothing but heap of
damp straw.
"Now, then," he cried with energy, Il
shall bother my iailers and bluff the
law. will dry my straw"
He first of all counted the stalks
which formed his bundle. There were
1907. A poor bundle.
He next made an experiment to find
out how much time it needed to dry one
of the straws. 1t needed three-quar-
tiers of an hour.
This made then, altogether, for the
1907 straws, a sum of $50 hours and
fifteen minutes or--taking it at half an
hour sunlight day ,961 days.
Assuming that the sun sh0ne on an
average, one day in three, he ar
rived at a total of sixteen years, one
month, one week and six days.
At the end of six months this was
what remained for him to do.
He set to work then.
Every time that the sun shone the
prisoner held one of the straws in the
ray and thus utilized all his sunlight.
The rest of the time he kept warm
beneath his clothes what he had been
able to dry.
Ten years pas 'ed away. The prisoner
had now only third of his dam p bundle
to sleep on, and had his chest stuffed
with the two other thirds which had
gradually been dried.
Fifteelf years passed. Oh! JOY, only
136 stalks of damp straw left! Four
hundred and eight days more and the
prisoner would be finally able to stand
erect, proud of his work, victor over
society, and cry with the vengeful voice
and satanic laughter of insurgents:
"Ha! ha! You condemned me to
damp straw in your dungeon! Then
weep with rage! lie on dry straw! I"
Alas cruel fate was waiting in am
bush for its prey!
One night when the prisoner was
dreaming of his future happ ness. in his
ecstasy he made furious gestures,
knocked over his pitcher, and the water
fell on his chest.
All the straw was wetted.
What was to be done now? Begin
again the Sisyphus task? Pass another
fifteen years in getting bits of sun into
bits of straw.
And his encouragement! You, the
lucky ones of the world, who give up Q
pleasure if you have to take twenty five
steps to get it, dare you throw the first
stone at him?
But, you will say, he had only year
and half to wait!
And do you reckon for nothing his
wounded pride, his abortive hopes I?
What, this man shall have worked fif-
teen years in order to sleep on q bundle
of dry straw, and then consent to leave
his prison with bits of damp straw on
his hair! Never! There is nothing be-
tween self.respect and lying down in
the gutter.
Eight days and eight nights he de-
bated in anguish, struggling with de-
spair, trying to find footing again in
the humiliation which overwhelmed
him.
He ended by surrendering and con-
Tossing himself vanquished. He had lost
the baitl,.
One evening he fell on his knees,
crushed, despairing.
my God!" he said with tears, II ask
Thy forgiveness for being without
courage to-cay. l have suffered for
thirty years, have felt my limbs decay,
my skin W.T. er, my eyes wear away, my
blood become pale. my hair and teeth
fall oat. 1 have fought against hunger,
cold, solitude. / had one desire which
sustained my efforts, had one OBJ
ject in my life. Now my desire cannot
possibly be satisfied Now my object
has fed forever. Now am dishon-
ored. Pardon me for deserting nv
post, for leaving the battle, for running
away like coward. lean no more"
Then in q fit Of indignation he re-
sumes:
NO" he cried, mo, a thousand times
no! It shall not be said that I have
lost my life for nothing. No; am not
conquered! No; 1 shall not desert
No; am not coward! No; 1 will not
lie minute longer on the damp straw
of the dungeons! No; society shall
not get the better of me-"
And the prisoner died during the
night, vanquished like Brutus, grand as
Cato.
He had died of an heroic indigestion.
He had eaten all his straw.