Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-01-26


ment was, therefore, crust of bread
One of my cell-mates had a spoon,
though, and when he saw my predicament he
produced that valuable piece of silverware,
and, after giving it a preliminary polish on his
striped jacket he used it with such effect that
the desired combination was speedily effected.
| can eat cold 'mush, ~ but dom thanker after
it.
CLEANING HOUSE.
After breakfast came order to clean up
the entire establishment, and most of the men
set to with a will to accomplish much-needed
reform. Two of our mess. with the aid of
bucket Of water and istful each of malodor-
while two more (of which couple was one)
secured rags that were equally dirty, and with
them we proceeded to wipe the ironwork on
the hunks in our cell. 1t took some time to do
the job completely, and I was priding my
self over the fact that my share had
been satisfactorily and quickly done,
| when one of the keepers called me
into the corridor and requested me to aid the
three or four men who were busily engaged in
swabbing up that place. 1t took some time to
complete that job, for my partners gradually
forsook me and left me to work out my own
salvation; but the end came at last and 1 re-
turned to my cell, confident that was not in
debt to the institution for the provisions which
he i thus far been vouchsafed me. The keep
ers were very anxious to have everything APP
pear clean, externally at least, for it was not
improbable that Mr. Stoutenburgh himself
might glance at the upper floor that afternoon.
Such condescension on his part was by no
means a regular thing according to several of
the prisoners, who stated that he had not been
up there for more than three weeks, and they
also said that he never came until the officers
had been notified to have the place cleaned up
for the occasion.
WEEKLY INSPECTION.
At 10 o'clock there was the regular weekly
inspection by Assistant Intendent Graf. The
men were drawn up in two lines, and between
these Mr.. Graft marched-pencil and notebook
in manufacturing requests and scrutinizing the
the personnel of his charges Some needed
shoes, and Mr.. Graft looked at their footgear
and decided whether or not the requests should
be granted; others, myself among the number
were more moderate in our petitions, and
asked for nothing more than pair Of shoe
strings and a postal card. My request for
postal card was gruffiy refused
Just as Mr.. Graft was about to leave our Sec
ton to attend to business elsewhere, one of the
men stepped up to him and said without any
apologize preface, Il want pair OF shoes"
That aroused Mr.. Graft ire-always near the
surface-and the stout little Pennsylvania
drew himself up and looked angrily at the
shoeless symphony in black and white, who had
made the request.
''You don't ,oant any Shoes" he snarled.
"When you are out on the streets, at liberty,
with money in your pockets, then you may
rant a pair of shoes, and you may 60 into a
store and ask for them in that fashion, but /
want you to understand that you can only get
shoes here by asking for them in a becoming
manner" And Mr.. Graf drew himself to his
utmost altitude, pulled himself out and looked
very much as Alexander Selkirk might have
done when he INDUCED in certain rythmical
reflections. The man got the shoes, however.
down on the Office floor, and about fifty prison.
ers, few of them colored, attended. To the
majority Of them the service meant nothing,
but they were all anxious to secure the news
papers which were distributed to the church |
and always unsatisfied thirst for the news Of
the day, and when a man had read the paper
given him he was ready and anxious to ex-
change it for one he had not seen. Shortly
after IL o'clock dinner arrived and, locked in
our cells, we discussed it. 1t consisted of q
couple Of small slices of chilly fresh pork, an
allowance of very cold mashed turnips and the
customary wheat ''chuck." 1t was soon dis
posed of and '.yet there was room" The in
mate Of the workhouse who has no appetite
left when his icy apportionment Of victuals
has disappeared needs the immediate atten-
ton OF a doctor.
FORMS OF PUNISHMENT.
When the dinner was all gone and the inva-
riably empty boxes had been gathered
up, the cell doors were unlocked, and we were
allowed to parade up and down the corridors,
and 1t was while enjoying this innocent and in
expensive recreation that saw the first man
in irons I had seen since my advent in the
building. He was q colored man, and he had
been captured while attempting to escape.
Every movement made by him was attended
by the clank of his fetters and although their
weight must have been considerable still he
shambled along without any apparent extraor-
binary exertion. His appearance started q con-
versation on the various forms of punishmentin
vogue in the institution. The first and ever
ready terrorizer of the rule-breaker is the glad-
room;" 80 called, one of the guards informed
me, mot because you're glad to get in there,
but because you're so d-n glad to get ont"
It is cold and cherries. It has no furniture In
it. If you want to sit
down you must do SO -
on the floor, and il your
!: !
desires lead you to
-siumber you m ust E4A
stretch yourself out on a. VIZ
the boards and there nm N
WOO the drowsy god. MMA~zS
While you are in the
''glad-room" there is no
pOesibility Of your haino