St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-03-25
He Claims That the Saltwater
Prison Is a Veritable
Hades Upon Earth.
Hung Up by the Wrists in a
Dungeon for the Period
of Five Days.
Charges of Favoritism Pre-
ferred Against Warden
Stordock and Others.

.
story of his treatment behind the bars.
He was sentenced for five years for
theft, and deserving from Company F.
Twelfth infantry, at Fort Lincoln, Feb.
10, 1887. He was sentenced Nov. %,
and arrived at saltwater Dec. 5, 1887.
After the preliminary details of regis
tration, prison clothes, bath, shave and
haircut, he was placed in cell. In the
afternoon of the day Of his incarcara-
ton he was placed at work making
baskets and passing them to the con-
vets in the gallary. One of the
convicts asked him how long
he was in for, to which he
replied, Five years." A guard over
heard Him speak, and said: &C d.
you, it | catch you talking again L will
give you something that will make your
head whirl'' This frightened Brigham,
and he kept very quiet for about three
weeks, at the end of which Norwegian
warden called Johnson caught him talk
ing again. By Deputy Covers orders
cell seven by five feet and seven feet
high, without light or ventilation save
for two holes in the door. He remained
in there for two days, being fed OH
bread and water night and morning.
Deputy Westby arrived the second
morning, and on being asked to let him
out, replied: "You are not on the
prairie now, and have got to behave
yourself" He was led out, and went to
work Swabbing the floors.
For short time he kept on his good
behavior. While washing the floors of
the galleries, COlligan, the guard on one
gallery, allowed them to talk, so long as
they avoided being caught by any of his
superior officers. Zone Tuesday morn
ing" continued Brigham" l was along
who told me a story at which laughed.
C. d you, / will give you something
that will make you laugh After wash
ing the water down the galleries into
the sewer we came to the dungeon, which
we proceeded to wash. Colligan opened
the door, telling me to go in. He took
my broom from me and made me go in.
In few minutes he returned
with Deputy Cover aud Deputy
Warden Westby, who brought
the handouts and told me to put them
on. / asked what L was to be punished
for, and MIR. Westby replied that Coli
b gan told him | was going to fight with
George Moore. / turned to Colligan and
which he replied that it amounted to
about the same thing. | told Mr.
Westby just what had occurred, and
that COlligan
ALLOWED US TO TALK.
WeStby replied: at don't make no
difference: put on the handouts" They
were put on my wrists, and ! was hung
up on the wall by them, with my toes
just touching the ground. That was 10
o'clock in the morning, and L hung
there until some time in the night,
when one of the night guards came
in. l stood in with him pretty
well. He was a white man, and
[ used to clean his brass buttons
for him. He asked what | had been
doing to get punished like that. | told
him just what had happened and that |
was nearly dead from exhaustion. He
took me down and bought me some
thing to eat. but strung me up again
before the next watch came on. During
the previous afternoon Colligan came in
and gave me bucket of ice-cold water,
which he held to my lips, and tipped up
so as to spill it all over my clothes.
1.-The morning of the second day Col
ligan came in and asked if | wanted
some bread and water. l merely
answered by groaning. He left me
stli anu dt lily
friend, the night guard, let me down
again. OF course he took big chances
in doing SO, but he was
good-hearted man. The next night
Colllgan brought me bread and water.
When the night guard came around that
night he brought me blanket, as the
floor had about half an inch of dirty
water all over it. when Colligan came
around he asked me if | would behave
myself. [ was
NEARLY DEAD WITH PAIN, $50. = -
and told him | would cut him if l ever
got my knife. That was the third day.
On the morning of the fourth Westby
came around and asked if | would be-
have myself. | told him | had been
abused, had done as we'll as | knew
how and could not do any better. He
left me and 1 got no bread and water
that night. On the morning of
the fifth day l was taken down
and was locked up in my cell. When
the night guard took me down the first
night fell to the ground, striking my
head on ring i'll the floor and cutting
it OPEN" Mr.. Brigham here showed a
long white scar on his temple. 81 could
not stand, and if ithad hot been for the
kindness of that night guard. don't
see how | could hayeIived.
i
asked to be allowed to go back to work.
They would not let me. and i remained
idle two or three days, because | told
Deputy Westby that | could not behave
myself any better than / had been
doing. They then placed me in solitary
confinement, and WeStby asked me if [
thought l could do any better. | re-
piled, No, sir. | have been misused.
/ have always tried to get along with
out any trouble, and when / laughed at
what Moore told me you did not punish
him. After remaining in solitary con-
finement for short time they put meto
work in the engine shop. There re-
manned three weeks without any trou-
bic. when | went back to the gallery
again. l had some trouble with an
other man who threatened to lick me
because l objected to his whiting
sticks all over the gallery was clean
ing. / was threatened with the dun
geOn again, and SO kept on my best be-
hayior. / saw that l could not get along
with COlligan. so asked Deputy Westby
to put me on some other work. He put
me to work. shoveling dirt and in the
shops, and while there | never had any
trouble with any guard until l got my
pardon on the 22d of this MONTH"
In answer to a question about the
loou, he Sdiu tIldt IL IuiSHb oe enough
for some men, but others did not get
sufficient. The quality was wretched,
and
THE MEAT OFTEN STANK.
''As nearly as | can remember. this is
what we lived on: Tuesday, Thursday
and Saturday we had hash for break
fast, and such hash! Monday we had
cold fried ham for breakfast: Wednes-
day. friZZled dried beef; Friday, two
small weinerwursts and two small pota-
toes; Sunday, bread and butter, with
bread and something they called coffee
every morning. the coffee tasted like