The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1898-08-12

lions and international prison con-
crosses.
The Herald said that Belem had been
commonly spoken of as a second Black
Hole of Calcutta. But the reporter
found that the prison was kept in q
state of comparative cleanliness. Not
SO, however, the prisoners. Their con-
dition he described as one of disgust
ing filthiness. Although there was a
hydrant in every cell and general bath
ing facilities in each compartment, the
reporter found only one inmate either
at bath or with any indication of hav-
ing bathed within year. 1t was eX-
planned to him by the prison authori.
ties that formerly the regulations re-
CURED prisoners to battle daily, but
that this was regarded as hardship
that the sufferers managed to have II
declared n form of cruel and unusual
punishment and so to have the rule
abrogated. There are in the prison now
3,45l prisoners, of whom 2,033 are men,
and so are minors.
A curious feature found by the re-
porter 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 musi-
clans, artists and others of the fine arts"
II would seem TO be a charitable, as
well as an inclusive, provision, that
'and others" (besides artists of the
fine arts. The musicians are permitted
apparently to take their instruments to
Jail with them, much as mechanics take
into the prison workshop their own
tools of trade. The walls of the mu-
cicians' cells are decorated with diff
fereHt musical instruments, and the re-
porter was told that Almost every even
ing there was a concert in one of the
patios."
Men sometimes do in Mexico what
ia his colder climate they content
themselves with wishing done, for the
reporter came upon one Adams, under
sentence of 20 years for killing n
waiter at the Club de Opera because he
did not bring his dinner quick enough"
Adams has the freedom of his gallery.
There are in each gallery three TRUSTEES,
who go about with clubs and preserve
order, using the club "only when moral
suasion will not do as WELL"
There are stoics among the 81 men
condemned to death. One of these I'M
Ger sentence for assassinating a man,
expressed his serene confidence as TO
his future, hut "if worst came TO worst
oh Cf ha 1
up. This man and some others under
death sentence had the run of the COM
mandant's office, Notwithstanding there
were on the walls, serving as decora-
tons, conficated weapons of prisoners.
Oddly enough, as ii would seem in this
country, though it wouldn't have been
strange in the Italy of Machiavelli,
there wasn't a gun among them. The
nearest TO it was bayonet. and the
rest were ponards, butcher knives.
table knives, penknives and shoemak-
ers' knives.
The dinner hour was marked BIZ n
curious spectacle. The street outside
the prison was filled with the "wives,
children, dogs and other members of
tht pllSout1S HOUSEHOLDS. THESE
brought baskets of edibles to the pris-
oners, some of them were permitted TO
spealS TO their relatives through a graf
ing. To the convicts not permitted TO
come to the grating their relatives were
allowed 10 send in notes accompanying
the dinner baskets. This privilege had
given rise TO a peculiar way OF making
few pennies among persons able TO
Observation-Disclosures who for a cent
or two wrote messages TO the prison
ers." One woman babe the scribe 10
put her message in red ink. She would
have none of the "purple stuff"
Tell him." said she, "that send him
two little tUmales, and tell him that 10
perrita died yesterday"
Says the reporter: "And the scribe,
leaning under the shade of his UNI
orells, sitting on rock with his bottle
of red ink on another rock beside him,
worked away asiduously, with an
etymology all his own, beginning para
| graphs with lower case letters and put.
ting in caps in the most unexpected
places, so that il would take an Igna-
thus Donnelly cryptogram TO decipheI
the meaning of his hieroglyphics."- -,
| Mexican Herald