The Republican journal., 1897-08-12

loI me army anu lie OLuCerS OI the penl-
Tertiary and some for sale to the public.
Its tailor shop makes uniforms for the sol
ders, as we'll as for the convicts Its
armory makes pixies and bayonets for the
army, and repairs the arms of the soldiers
and police. The harness shop makes
harness for the artillery branch of the
army and horse -trappings of various
kinds for the cavalry, besides elaborate
gear for the officers horses The car
penters and woodworking shops manu-
facture and repair all the Office furniture
for the government buildings, but moth
ing for sale. One of the most interesting
| places in the prison is the tile factory.
An expert maker of fancy tiles, such as
are used in the United States for orna-
menting hallway walls, and church tow
ers in Spanish America was brought over
from Europe to superintend this depart
ment; and under him was placed dozen
convicts who were experienced in making
Guatemalan pottery Clay of excellent
! quality is found in the vicinity and ma
terals for glazing are imported. The con
vcts soon become greatly interested in the
work and proud of what they turn out, and
now every one Of the dozen is as expert as
the European instructor. There is also a
blacksmith's shop, and hand looms for
weaving plain blue cotton cloth, not I'M
! like our denim; and | saw several men
weaving stout cotton thread into sashes,
such as take the place of "suspenders
in all these countries. The true Spanish
American winds a long, narrow and gen
orally gaudily colored sash around his
waist, to hold few knives and pistols
and cigar cases, and incidentally to sup
port his trousers. Everybody seemed as
| cheerful and unem barraSsed as if to be in
/ ''durance vile was the most natural
thing in life; the men i'll the shops par
ticularly appearing much more happy and
care free than their fellow workmen in
shops outside the walls whose daily bread,
may be, is not SO assured. Probably this
comes from the happy go-lucky Latin
! temperament and the lack of aspiration
which makes these people fit easily into
any nut where fate may let them fall.
! The garden is in beautiful order, and the
sunny little park in front of the prison,
| across the street, is as clean as a gentle
man 5 lawn. The number of men en-
| ployed in the shops, did not exceed POO,
all told; and as a chalk notice, on black
board at the entrance announced that 80 /
We're incarcerated, l enquired where the
window and pointed down the road,
where a gang was busy cutting down a
hill, on one side of the highway to fill in
/ some sunken lots on the other side
J Farther on another gang was seen at work
in like fashion and we were told that more
were grading, paving and extending other
streets. Every morning before daybreak
all the streets of the city were regularly
swept by the prisoners, which accounts
for their always being SO beautifully
clean. When not at work, the majority
of the convicts are kept in dormitories,
each holding from 30 to 100 men. There
are no cots, but every man has straw
mat and a certain place on the door which
lie can call his own. BY day his mat is
/ rolled up, with whatever spare clothes he
may possess, and suspended by cord
from the ceiling above his particular
oil = o NJ
Of these dormitories are sentry boxes,
with loop holes commanding every inch
occupied by the convicts. In addition to
these general sleeping rooms, there are
perhaps 100 cells, each seven feet by four
and one half closed with iron latticed
doors, within which favored convicts are
kept. Some of the tiny apartments are
tastefully ornamented with pictures,
! hangings, etc., telling of education and
refinement ''gone wrong somehow, for
all these are real criminals, in for murder
on some other grave offence. The po-
litical prisoners, many of whom are in
generated within these walls. we were
not allowed to see, and could gain 10 in
formation as to how they are punished or
where they are kept. Certainly they are
not among the cheerful workers in the
shops, or the chain gang in the streets.
The big, airy kitchen of the prison had
a wonderful novelty, for Central Amer-
ca, viz, a range, and a very big one.
Upon it huge caldrons of beans were
stewing, and tortillas (cakes made of
crushed corn,) baking for the convicts'
breakfast. Beans, rice and tortillas form
their regular diet. They get coffee at
day break; breakfast at 10 a. m. dinner
at 3 p. m. and at in the evening tin
cup of coffee with a wheat flour roll, a
great deal better fare than the majority
of them ever had at home.
We waited to see the men come to
breakfast from their work in the streets.
They were formed in squads of from 30 to
so, each company in charge of an officer
and two or three armed guards. They
were counted, and then marched to