The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-02-06
LIFE IN BEL EN-.
Curious Customs That Prevail in the Biz Mex
lean Prison.

IL. r. C.

Among the various uses to which Mexico has
put some Of her old monasteries and converts
is that of serving for the incarceration of vio-
lators Of the law. The Conrento de Belen at
Mexico city has become. in CONNER parlance.
Belem, the city Jail and prison, accused and
convicted persons, male, female and minors
alike being confined there in different compart-
ments. The building was put up by the Span
ish Governor in 1886. as an inscription at the
head of the main stairway tells. A casual visit
paid it by n reporter of the Mericdn Herald re-
veals a condition Of prison management in
Mexico worthy of passing attention in the days
Of prison reform associations and international
prison congresses.
The Herald said that Belem had.been COM
monty spoken of as q second Black Hole of Cal
cutta. But the reporter found that the prison
was kept in a state OF comparative cleanliness.
Not SO, however, the prisoners. Their condi-
ton he described as one of di. gusting flthiness.
Although there was a hydrant in every cell and
general bathing facilities In each compartment.
the reporter found only one inmate either at
bath or with any indication of having bathed
within a year. 1t was explained to him by the
prison authorities that formerly the regulations
required prisoners to battle daily, but that this
was regarded rs such a hardship that the suf.
fcrers managed to have it declared n form OF
u ahu huoua punishment anu So L u '
the rule abrogated. There are in tho prison
now 3.451 prisoners, Of whom 1888 arc men
and 80 are minors.
A curious feature found by the reporter was
the Spanish regard for the arts, even within
prison walls. He found in the south wing the
writers of libel, land the cells reserved for
musicians. artists and others of the fine arts
1t would seem to be a charitable, as well as an
inclusive, provision. that land others besides
artists Of the fine arts: The musicians are
to jail with them. much as mechanics take into
the prison workshop their own, tools of trade.
with different musical Instruments, and the re
porter was told that almoste every evening there
was Ma a concert in one Of the Patios" :. .,.
colder cline they content themselves with
wishing done, for the reporter came upon one
Adams. under sentence Of twenty years 'for
killing a waiter at the Club de la Opera, because
he did not bring his dinner quick enough"
A y IN oa mas a the freedom tSLoa OF MS galley; 10 There
with clubs and preserve order, using the club
only when moral suasion will not do aswell."
condemned to death. One of these, under cen
tence for assassinnting a man, expressed his
came to worst'-a shrug of the shoulders and
palms up. This man and some others under
ants offices. Notwithstanding there were ON
the walls, serving as decorations, contiscated
weapons OF prisoners. Oddly enough. as it
have been strange in the Italy OF Machiayelli,
there wasn't a gun among these. The nearest
tosit was a bayonet, and the rest were poinards,
scimitars. ~stilettos: butcher. knives, table
KNIVES arSe PenHni YES ~snoemahers khives.
spectacle; The street outside the prison was
filed with the wives, children. dogs and other
members OF the prisoners households" These
brought baskets Of edibles to the prisoners,
some OF whom were permitted to speak to their
relatives through a grating. To the ,~convicts
not permitted to come to the grating. their rela-
tives were allowed to send in notes accompany.
ing the dinner baskets. This privilege had
given rise to a peculiar way OF making n few
pennies among persons able to writc-"itinerant
scrihes who for a cent or two wrote messages
to the prisoners" One woman babe the scribe
to put her message In red ink. She would have
Tell him. said she. that / send him two
little tomnles and tell him that la perrita died
yesterday"
Says the reporter: And the scribe. leaning
under the shade of his umbrella, sitting on a
rock, with his bottle OF red ink on another rock
beside, him, worked away assidnously, with an
etymOlogy all his own, beginning paragraphs
with lower case letters and putting in caps In
the most unexpected places. so that it would
take an Ignatins Donnelly cryptogram to de-
cipher the meaning Of his hieroglyphics."