Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1892-02-11
SERIOUS CHARGES.
Bob Campbell States Some
Very Hard Things
ABOUT THE PENITENTIARY.
Governor HoEE and the Board Do Their
Duty, but the Prisoners Are Said
to be Afraid of Their LtVes to
Speak of Their Wrongs.
Can it be True.

Special 10 the Gazette.
DECATUR, WISE COUNTY, TEX, Feb. g.
Bob Campbell, who has been serving
thirty-fve years. term in the penitentiary,
has just been returned to this county to
stand his trial for the murder of ]. n. Cog
lin. Learning that Campbell had been
cruelty and inhumanly beaten by his guard
while in the penitentiary, your correspond
ent sought an interview with him and OBJ
tanned the following statement:
am not feeling well now;
am very sore from punishment
received the day left the penitentiary.
received uhirty-nine lashcs the morning
left Rusk to come herein fact they were
whipping brother Dan and myself while
Sheriff Ruczer was waiting for NE to be
turned over to him."
Bob then stripped and we saw that from
his shoulder to his knees the cruel strap
had left its mark-black, blue, yellow and
red, each mark about four inches wide and
the whole length of his body, the edges of
the strap cutting into the flesh and bearing
ample evidence of severe and cruel pun
ishment.
Bob, continuing, said: They whip US for
talking, smoking, swearing or any trivial
infringemeuts Of the rules. Dan
and were whipped this time under some
what peculiar circumstances. One of the
guards came to Us and proposed that for
moneyed consideration he would assist us in
getting away He promised every assist
ance, and at his suggestion wrote two let
tiers, one to friend requesting him to hand
the bearer a sum Of money, the other sent
home to let my friends know that there
was possibility of our getting out. am
well satisfied it was a put up job to kill
Dan and L The guard took the letters to
the captain and our punishment followed.
1t is common practice for the sergeants 10
hang man up by the wrists with his toes
just touching the ground for three days,
only letting him down for his meals and to
sleep at night, then again they will
put man in dark cell for sixty days on
bread and water; there is no day or night,
but all is darkness. The governor visited
US short time ago, as did the board of
prison inspectors, but the prison rules pro-
hibits US from looking up from our tasks,
let alone speaking to any one. One of the
sergeants reprimanded me for speaking to
his wife. had simply answered ques-
ton put to me by the lady regarding my
work. He then threatened to close my eyes
forever if I dared look at his wife again
These men have become utterly heartless
and cruel, and seem utterly devoid Of the
milk Of human kindness. Jobs are
put up on unsuspecting convicts
every day to get them to make
dlteuplS 10 escape WHICH, thCJ oAO SHOb
down like dogs, they are buried where they
fall in rough, square box made on the
spot, in their bloody clothes just as they
fall; their friends even cannot get their
bodies for Christian burial The governor
knows nothing of the treatment received
by the prisoners, and there are men in the
penitentiary who would give their lives for
a talk of five minutes with him. But they
know only too well that had they raised
their voices a cruel death awaited them.
They would have been whipped and
starved to death These men who guard
the convicts have logged and killed their
fellow men till their hearts are as callous as
adamant. Many convicts run in order to
be killed, counting death by the guards
buckshot rather than suffer the ignominy
of death under the strap at the hands Of
the sergeant and now would much prefer
death, even the rope is preferable to
slower but Just as certain ending with all
It's attending miseries by means Of the strap
and the brutal treatment at the hands Of
the oeHcialz"