Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1886-01-23
THE SILENT BANoUETERs.
Sketch from Niche In the Walls OF the
State Prison.
Nashville American.

A waiting room of ancient aspect,
thick, heavy door, vestibue with
stone floor, another thick door, and
then a court yard half the area Of the
Public Square. This is the State prison.
The American reporter who looked
about him stood with guard detailed
to show him through and to take care"
of him. In the court teams came and
went. Guards, conyicts, TRUSTEES, and
officers OF the prison moved about The
large pool at the center stood motion
less, its yellow surface frozen over,
while icicles chung gittering from the
fountain that plays so merrily IN the
summer time.
Standing there, If you turn to the
right you so into Wing No 3; if you
turn to the left and hug the main build
ing you enter Wing No. . through n
narrow hole called door. Wing No.
8 IS reached through this last. They
were built respectively in 1923 and 1857,
and it needs no architectural acumcn to
note that all three were built when ven
tilation was an undiscovered factor in
the construction OF p 'isons and that the
State Government had not yet calcula-
ted on the present criminal statistics
within her borders. Each wing is one
hundred and twenty feet long and sixty
feet broad. There is light enough
through high-up grated windows to show
what the place is. The center resem-
bles nothing SO much as the cabin OF {
huge steamboat. Four tiers OF cells,
7x3 feet in No. . and 7x5 in No. 3, di-
vided by 1S-inch walls from each other,
run the length of each wing. Each
tier is reached by wooden walk. A
broad stone corridor encircles the cabin
like structure. A few prisoner "tend-
ers, who keep the place in order, sit
around the stove at either end, or move
about goSsipng or traiiicing with each
other. The cells are dingy and black,
without furniture, save two cots fastened
to the wall, or they are tidy and crudely
decorated according to the disposition
and taste of the occupant The cells
are open and empty, for it is forenoon,
and the prisoners are at work. Each
cell is the sleeping abode OF two men,
and this accords to each man about one
third the amount of air man should
breathe in night There are 100 cells
in each wing, nearly all occupied. No.
is for whites; No. 2 for whites and
blacks, No. is for blacks exclusively
Here dwell the prisoners of the State
Passing out at the narrow portal, few
steps along the court yard brings one to
the kitchen. A white convict stood
just inside the open door.
CARVING SMOKING CORN BREAD
with large knife. 1t was tempting,
and on trial proved to be good Stand
ing on the top of brick oven a negro
convict stirred IL cauldron of cooking
beans with a huge wooden paddle, which
he used with both hands. The cauldrOn
holds ITO gallons. A second, filled with
boiling water, holds five barrels. A
, door leads into an adjoining apartment,
| which is the kitchen proper, and which
has large range, on which beef was
cooking for the dinner about to be sery-
ed; and there was coffee boiler holding
fifty-fve gallons. The steward remarked
that the prisoners are fed on potatoes,
, beans, cabbage, turnips, hominy and
corn bread. Beef is given at breakfast,
pork at dinner. One meal will con
sumo $50 pounds of bacon or 475 pounds
OF beef. The convalescents are fed on
| white instead of corn bread.
BELL SOUNDS.
and procession OF SIS men files into
the dining hall. This is room 200 feet
, long and forty wide, broken at the cen
ter, on one side, by a double door
, through which it is reached from the
court. 1t filled with row after row Of
narrow wooden tables, at which are low
O benches without backs. A broad isle
separates the tables down the length Of