Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-09-22
LIFE BEHIND BARS
Story of q Man Who Served q Term
in Prison.
HIS SENSATIONS TEE FIRST DAY
The Types Of Humanity Found
Among the Inmates.
THE INITIATION CEREMONY


viously been. with an earnest desire to
make an honest mans way in the world. He
has Vivid recollection Of the events at
tending his conviction and Of his transpor-
tation to and Incarceration In the institution
where he did his daily stunt for a series Of
years. and Is not likely again to incur a
like penalty or any other penalty imposed
by the law.
But recently that man impaired to a re-
porter Of The Star some of his reflections
upon prison life. and related some of his
experiences while he was a dweller behind
barred windows and within stone walls.
When a man first enters the portals Of
a state prison or penitentiary," he said.
land when he hears the click Of the lock
of the massive door behind him. 1t means
he is located in a place-a world within
itself-different and distinct from the world
he has just left. 1t matters not how willful
a man he was, or how wild and reckless as
to the rights Of others in the outside world.
the first Impressions tame him. The somber
walls. the heavy-grated cell doors and the
men within in striped clothing who peer
upon him. looking to him like so many
Gagged animals, eager to reach him. The
bine to weaken his nerves, and, no matter
how hardened a character he had been, at
that time he Is as helpless as a baby.
ITO the receiving room he Is conducted
This Is large room. well lighted. with q
long table in the center. He Is told to
empty his pockets. Everything must be
laid on this table, and money and other
vaiuables are taken possession Of by the
keeper and turned into the office, there to
remain until he has done his time. Every
thing else which. in the opinion Of the keep
er. he ought not to have, Is thrown into a
receptacle to be destroyed. The only thing
he can retain personal possession of is a
handkerchief, provided 1t Is clean.
Barber Comes Next.
HE Is next turned over to the prison bar
ber who stands ready with sharp-edged
tools to remove hirsute from face and
head; then he Is conducted to the bath
room and there stand two brawny fellows
ready to receive him. They are stripped to
the waist and armed with brush, sponge
and soap. The late conner Is told to strip.
and he loses no time obeying that ORDER
for he Is q little anxious now. The at
PENDANTS grab him and souse him into the
tub Of water, then the soap, sponge and
brush are vigorously applied, and the last
marks of the world outside are removed
from his skin. He is then clothed in prison
garments from head to foot. Thus he Is
initiated.
His clothing-top, underwear, shoes and
all-is thrown into this receptacle and or
ders given for 1t to be destroyed. Theo-
retically it is destroyed, but little that Is Of
the original owner never sees them again.
There are skilled artists in this prison
world who can detect and deftly extract all
that Is worth the taking while the sup
posed refuse Is in transit from receiving
room. to crematory. They do this right
under the keepers eye. too, but oftimes the
keepers eye is closed These things are
slowed away In some hidden place by the
man who has captured them until he has
done his bit. He gets permission to wear
his own clothes away. and he leaves prison
logged out In much better suit than would
be furnished him by the prison authorities.
Again, this stuff forms large part or
the stock in prison trade. 1t is sold or ex-
changed among the men. postage stamps
being the currency employed in the barter,
and in this way a large business Is done by
many.
The Lately Admitted Convict.
"When clothed in prison dress the lately
admitted convict is conducted to his cell
his residence, perhaps, for years-and
locked in. Then he begins to think. He
didn't have time before; he was too fright
ened That is the hard part of it-thnking.
He often wishes he had lost the faculty OF
thinking-that his memory had been blotted
out. 1t takes some time for man doing
penance for his first offense to realize that
he is closed from the world outside, per-
haps forever Everything about him seems
strange, but he realizes his position when
he sees those grated doors and grasps them
They do not even rattle, so firmly are they
fastened upon hinge and In socket: Then
the awful truth flashes upon htm-he is
convict!
'The prison world has a large population.
cosmopolitan in its make up. Men OF all
ages, types and degrees are found within
the walls. In outward semblance there Is
no difference between them. They wear
alike the regulation uniform, literally
to lead the same life Of penance and to
obey the Same prison regulations. Each
man may be theoretically known by num-
ber but when that number Is coupled with
what variety is revealed-what gap be-
tween their social antecedents.
Cases in Point.
Let me illustrate. Take convict IA for
instance. He was bred a malefactor. do
not believe in the theory that some men
are born criminals. They become so by &C
quirement, the result Of association. No.
1Ys childhood was spent amid scenes Of
vice. The only school he knew was that Of
crime. In youth he developed into a spe-
cies OF humanity known as the rough, and
manhood found him well acquainted with
the interior of a prison. Here he is at home.
He knows well what Is expected of him;
is thoroughly familiar with prison rules and
regulations, and understands how to take
advantage Of the smallest privilege the
penal system affords Imprisonment is no
punishment to him. Prison labor cultivates
no appetite Tor honest work, and when he
has done his bit he will 60 out into the
world to put in execution the schemes he
has formed in his mind here.
Convict IA Is another type. He Is new
hand in crime. He was reared by good peo-
pie; lived in a comfortable home. with
pleasant surroundings; enjoyed the afrec-
lions of kind relatives and friends, and
had every chance in his favor He selected
evil companions, perhaps; they induced him
to see the sunny side Of life, as 1t is called.
This led to the wine cup. gaming table.
speculating on the races and the like Temp
tation presented itself and he yield
ed Here he Is doing duty for
years for the folly of an hour. Here he Is
in his lonely cell, thinking, as he must al
ways do, of his disgrace-of the blow struck
by and through him at his innocent father,
mother, wife or child; of his ruined pros
poets and present sufferings. Imprisonment
to this man Is torture.
But q Fraction.
but the trained criminal and the foolish
youth form but a fraction of the prison
population. Here Is another character, con-
Wet AZ. He Is disposed to think his trouble
on the whole has been a blessing to him.
True 1t ia that his prison task is hard, but
he had a harder taskmaster outside. Here
he gets his plate of hash. can OF coffee
and good wholesome bread for breakfast;
for dinner q mess pan full of corn beef,
cabbage and potatoes: for supper his can
of coffee and some bread. The cot he sleeps