The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1898-12-18
Convict Mar
riages in India.
THE COURTSHIP.
Scenes at Receptions Where
the Brides Are Chosen.


the pairing off of the jailbirds at An
daman was the strangest thing of them
all. For a couple of years I commanded
the steamer that runs down monthly
from Calcutta to the penal colony for
British India on the Andaman and
Nicobar islands. I was youngster then
and interested in all sorts of things, and
it didn't take me long to strike up an
acquaintance with the chief commits
sioner or president of the colony, who
used to let me go all over the place The
female prison was an object of special
interest to me, and I must have been
an object of special interest to the pris-
oners. for, except the gray-haired sup
erintendent, they didn't see a man from
one years end to another. 1 had a
smattering of the language, and en-
joyed several harmless flirtations with
dusky beauties whose eccentricities
even India had been unable to put up
with.
1.-THE prison is as inaccessible as any
sultan's harem. 1t Is built on prom
ontory and protected on the side toward
the sea ny d SHSS' IN ~ a. -,
surrounded by a fffteen-fo1t wall. There
are several guards stationed at the
entrance. and in order 30 get by the
first of these a man has TO give Ger
tain password. In return this guard
gives him another password, Whlcn
takes MN by the SecUilu' I'll on 80 So ~
past nan a uozel may We, ii go ,,i
as they are caled' are tiie 4l ,i' ~ a. w
most hldeous women IN w jan, ! 80 ~
ellglple a woman mus nav si"S ii o.
ana lace that WoulI aIop " - a n,
SIDES record Ior soorlety anu o'e'i
ence. ..- ,. a,,,.,, e,.o,,,
All the cohNlclS "eHS NV II - ~. ot,l
them altefWaru III tIe Pils9n ny a., ,e
ways rehleHipereu ne, anu so ,l17,- -
tneh Woulu HdN l%!leil olt ny " SO.
they Ilduil | peell al e'I1' u ~ I
lntehdehl' VINO WaS s eilsi any e'lo'i9
slde OF me. All the ptlSoi'eIS nay W
WORK ana IN the Leill s P th .mTS
weave an tne Nio.n ~. -.
cloInes anu tieI UM H. anu anu.
up: 100 l peheve; u any ot tne 49, III,
refuse ~ w 'heli sum- VI 'O'
are PuliIslleu. ee
Inc Itst punishment II 10 cul Oh
IHelr haII. ms Cley uoIl =, mt NeiS
iluGh, anu Che unreal Vi II WIN gene a.
~ pflhs thehl 10 terms Lor theS are
JusC 40 VAIN as OtIie! NoliielI, anu Uoi
want their long halr cut on. II TINS
ooesh convince thein thaI " pslter
10 WORK IN the silop' they are Hiaue 70
wear men ciothes ana WORK IN Ihe
sIouH4s' Wnich are peautilully hgPl'
elltlrely py Tue women prisoners Inc
trousers and Jackets given to those
VINO are punished IN TINS way are OF
the coarSest material, and are very I'M
becoming ana the women nave TO
Iruhdle WheelparfoWs ana dlg IN the
dlrt just IKE men. II even this falls,
lhey are 1urther punlshed oy being put
70 Steep IN ceil win the hoor covered
ny branches lalu IN rows, ana then IN
cross rows, grlll fashlon. The branches
are run OF sharp thorns, which make
1t impossible to stand, sit or lie down
IN comfort GENERALLY one night of this
is enough to make the worst case
ready for the workroom, but there was
one girl VINO stood the extreme pen
atty of three nights in this room. and
still refused to do lick of work. She
was mighty pretty woman, and had
been sent to the island for numbering
lief lover she made nothing but
trouble from the day she came into the
jail. She wouldn't work, and nothing
could make her work, so finally they
gave her up as a bad Job. and made
her sit all day long in the Workroom-
in mems clothes on a sort of elevated
Ounce block. One day I got the SUI
perintendent to give me her history,
It's too long to tell now, but IFS
enough to make yolr hair cnrl SIo,lI
never get a chance to make one of tbe
marriages I'm going to tel Won obo,,+
because those are rewards for good
behavior and she is the worst woman
on the island.
when they have mavba q ao.,o,,
ticket of leave men and W,o,,,e, ~
have a sort of matrimonial recentioo IL
any matches are made. the counIas o,.a
allowed to go up to the Nicobar proun
some distance aWay and settIo &c ~,
government land There ma, dro+ oii tlie
tain number of acres a NM s,d q ,o',I,-
commissary stores and orc 80 soi, te
themselves. The +iclSate of 1aa,.l ~
take them anywhere axcert ~ ~.
Nicobars. for thew nearly, on 1,. W ~, ~
sentences. These noa+riroo,,ini -, iiIe
tons are the funniest things ever co ",
The men are brought ~ ~ - - "a 20. w
sort of reoentinn ro Ulie Wy one INTO
women are stanLira, where the
There are generally se,,a,,ai Us LIS NV
the line. IN senarefa t1,er. o, ~ e@hs IN
castles and re1ioiors fn - VI inherent
particular sho1t +bo+ 'HeS are very
of these men he7,a,,,t 80 ~ lilula. some
ten years, maybe and ia, | I'm Ior
curiously at them. When IN 80 very
brought into his ,ooro "en d man is
noade ne bic .'la iVULh d statement is
ligIon his age r. 'la ; history MS re-
for. and So on T Si' - a ,i.Ie ne IS there
a dozen wonae,, aF hi. are; maybe half
eligible list and he i is'I to IeIls!oh on the
one in the row, IF af iaeet taI 10 1ne 1irst
her a few minutes ne da tathlng with
would ill., w., 20 ne uoesn think ne
one he is ni,,,a lie secs on to the next
eve aiono nv NV 9 1; coFertly casting his
any further ID down r,i1e 10 10 see II there are