The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1897-10-06
UNDER GROUND 70 YEARS.

eighteen OF which were spent under
ground. he has come forth into sunlight
niddle.aged man. with everything to
learn over again.
His is strange, wierd story Of youth
full crime and painful penalty. In the
year 1873 he and three other boys were
caught In the act Of setting IRE to a store
building and arrested by the police.
Hilliard was boy of years then. ind
his companions were all under is. The
plot had been formed for the older bows to
fire the building while Hilllard vas to as
sist In watching an alley.
They paid him "A few cents 20 keen guard.
but he was not sharp enough 10 elude the
| vigilance Of the police. They stole a march
en- him. captured him before he could give
the alarm. and the other three we're caught
red-handed in the act Of incendiarisn.
| TWO YEARS IN JAIL.
| The boys were all bound over to supe-
rior court, and sent to jail. Tue tr.eIs
were put of from time to time so that
it was two years before they were carried
before court
On trial they were all convicted, aud on
account Of their extreme youth were sent
| up for life. Hilliard was then a boy Of II
years OF age. small for his age and as black
| as the ace Of spades
He had been all his life a street waif
and there was nobody to take aay par
ticular interest in his welfare. He was
sent TO the Dade coal mines, along with
other prisoners, and on account OF his
diminutive size, he was not put to work
| In the mines, but was given Jobs about
the superintendents house for two Years.
lie did all sorts Of chores, looked after
! his masters horse, and made himself cutie
useful. But all that didn't save him from
'he lnexorable enforcement OF the law
SENT INTO THE MINES.
When IL years Of age he was sent down
into the mines with his pick AMI s,ovel
and set to work with the other life con-
vlcts.
according to his statement. he never
saw the sunlight for eighteen long. weary
years. He was as much lost to sight as
II ne had been encased in .offn and
buried instead Of clad In the g,ripes and
conhned In the bowels of the earth.
az hrst the boy had a hard tine of IT,
BENG SO small the big rough miners, all
under life sentences for various horrible
crimes, treated him very badly But he
kept up cheerful heart, and bore all their
tyranny In such an accomplishing man
ner that they became attached to "the |
Kid as he became known
Under ground in those mines the con-
victs have language all their own. II
's strange ana uncouth glbbersh and ia |
unintelligible TO an outsider, who is TN |
accustomed to it.
IL was this outlandish tongue that was |
Taught the little negro. while his more |
fortunate companions back In the citv were
attending the public schools.
HEAVY TASKS.
Ryder says that twelve tons Is The repu-
lar task OF miner, and II he is physi-
oally able to dig that much he must do
SO or whipping awaits him at the end
or the long gloomy day. II he gets any
more than the task he is promised nav
nt the rate OF dollar ton ezra for
Ryder says he strove hard TO maxi, hi,
task. and after he reached the point where
ne could get out the regular task he tried
10 make something extra, as Re had not
lost the desire for earning money.
Al last ono day ne managed to take
out thirteen tons and was paid dollar
extra. But that was the last time he re-
ceived any extra compensation. He found
mat 1t was the rule that when A convict
LOOK out more than the reputation task
his task was raised to that limit without
extra compensation, and II he had taken
out thirteen tons he was required 10 take
out thirteen utons every day after that as
long as he remained in the mines.
WAS A GRUESOME THING.
Ryder says, in his broken lingo. that the
miners We're forced to get up and get their
breakfast at O'clock and then, since the
mines have been extended so Far. they
We're made to march twelve or thirteen
miles along the tunnels and raniAcat. ons
of the mines. and by $3.50 or O O'Clock
lney were hard at work and kept at 1t
until o'clock in the morning.
Morning and evening were only relative
terms to them, for it was always dark
save where the fitful glare of The l.nterns
glimmered dmly along those vast su,ter-
ranean passages.
They only knew that night had come by
the order to knock off, and they were cn,v
advised that another sun WAS about to |
rise upon the bright world outside BY the
rough command to rise from their bard
conches and get their breakfast.
ne says that sometimes. in his droams.
at hrst, no would fancy that he was again
playing about the streets and alleys Of
Atlanta, but when he would awake and
teel the shackles and open Ills e, es in the I
dark cavern, he would lie there anl crV
until II seemed sometimes as IL his heart
would break.
LOST ALL COUNT.
But gradually his impressions OF life in
the open air became blurred and indis-
unct, and he lost all count of time. There
was no winter nor summer there. and 1t
was about as hot one time Of the wear,
ana about as cold at one season as 1t was
AZ another.
FINALLY he grew to be a stout. hesyy
punt young fellow, and could ,ake ont
MS snare OF coal with as much ease as
any OF the others. One by one his three
companions died and passed out OF the
eireumsoribed sphere of their existence.
ahu at last he felt himself all alone in
that dark dungeon
Sometimes, he says, there would be a
eave-in. II the obstruction was not too
PAD the bosses would set the other con-
vets at work resurrecting the bodies OF
their dead comrades. II the eave-in was n {
pad one, no says that they would some-
times leave the bodies where they Law
en'omoed In those murky recesses. ,
FREEDOM AT LAST.
billiard was such faithful worker ana
nnI, 1