News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1890-04-10
DOVER'S QUEER JAIL.
The Revolving Cage I'm Which the Az
legged Murderer Sawtello is Con-

The Revolving Cage I'm Which the Az
legged Murderer Sawtelle is Con-
fined.
Isaac 3. Sawtellc has tho distinction
of being confined at present in Jail
which is believed to be absolutely i'm
pregnable. This Jail is the one owned
and used by the county of STAFFORD in
New Hampshire, and there is only one
like it in New England; that is at
Montpelier, Vt.
Dover Jail, as this place of conffnc-
ment is termed, is situated on the sum-
init of commanding hill about one
and quarter miles from The depot.
There arc practically two brick build
ings connected by o '.neck." The
front building is three stories in height,
and is used as 8 residence for the Sher-
if and his family. The rear building
is two and half stories in height, and
contains the rotating cells, while the
s.ncck" between comprises the guard
room on the first floor and four cells
for female prisoners on the second.
The rotating cells in tho rear building
form the patented portion of the Jail.
There arc twenty of them, and there
is only one entrance or exit for tho
entire number. and that passage is
separated from the guard room By four
iron-barred gates and one solid iron
door. When an officer desires to see
prisoner he doesn't so to him, he
simply turns a crank and brings tho
man in confinement around to the
guard room.
The principle of the Jail is simply
this: TO have ono entrance TO the
cells, and to keep the prisoners away
from that entrance at all times, cx-
cept when they are wanted. Tho in
terror of the rear building, or Jail
proper, resembles n gigantic cage.
There is an immense circular grating
extending around the interior of the
structure. and in this circle revolvc the
two tiers of cells, there being oil each
tier ten compartments. The front of
each cell is almost open, except for an
iron plate running from the top of the
upper tier to the bottom of the lower.
This offers O lite more solidity 10 q
prisoners residence tan would be af-
forded by the grating simply, which
shows when the jailer wants q man, an
astonishing prediction for slipping
away. The iron plating is also used
to hold the ends of two hammocks,
which are used by the prisoners to
sleep in.
The ten cells on each tier arc ar
ranged in a circle, and it IS obvious
that the outer end is quite wide, while
the inner is very narrow. They don't
quite go down to point, however, for
in the centre of this squirrel cage"
as some oe the prisoners delight to call
it, is big hollow pipe, which, besides
being the pivot on which the cells turn,
answers for big ventilator, and also
contains the water pipes necessary to
supply the prisoners.
The two circular floors of the Jail are
hung from the roof of the rear
building SO that the Jail swings very
easily inside tho circular grating.
Everything is ball bearing except the
crank gearing, and the tiers turn SO
easily that twelve-year-old boy can
move tho twenty cells and their occu-
pants without much trouble. The in
terror of this square brick building
looks more like q chcesebox monitor
turret than anything else, except that
instead of the whole turret turning
only the inside of 1.-THE cclIs-moves
around. When the jailer desires to
sec man he first unlocks the door of |
the compartment cont lining the crank
and gearing by which the cells are
moved. This door is fastened by
which is known only to
the Sheriff himself. Then with key he
unbolts the iron door which separates
the passage way to the revolving tiers
from the guard room. This, done, he
unlocks n paddock which holds the
brake of the moving tiers in place, and
then grinds away at the gearing which
turns the tiers. This is SO perfectly
that 1t can DO moved by the
little finger, and it can be turned
when prisoners are asleep wi hout
waking one of them. When the cell
the prisoner desired is OPP
posite the passagcway, the jailer I'M
locks thr c more iron-barrcd gateways |
each lock taking q d ffercnt key, and
then has his man at hand.
1t would be pretty difficult for
Isaac Saw;clle to make his ccapc from
No. II on the upper tier, would it not?
The same work is necessary up stairs |
to get at prisoners i'll tho upper cells,
the mechanism thtrc being an exact
duplicate of that below.