Sunday morning globe., 1901-10-27

. lIIlI
Elliott desired TO see him" As the war.
den approached noticed a change IN his
demcanor before he had opened his mouth.
began, Ben, I called thinking that you
had forgotten or was too busy Here
he cut me OF, and Numbered out.
No, ii you think that ! don't run this
prison, you will find out before am through
with you. will now see whether these
friends of yours or myself runs this prison
Go back TO your work and stay there !
won't hear a word
Utterly astoundcd and unable to guess
the cause of this sudden change returned
to the shop and informed the guard By
this time the guard had taken quite an in.
terest in my affairs and from being an
enemy had converted him into a sincere
friend He secured a sub-guard. and being
on intimate terms with the warden. went
out to see that dividua and ascertain the
cause Of his change Of sentiment towards
me.
When the guard, Mr. Wetheril by name.
returned he opened my eyes to something
that | could not previously understand,
which was to this effect There were two
factions in the penitentiary, one under the
Warden Dyer, and the other led by a sub.
official named O'Dowd from Hamilton. the
Governors own town. It appears ODowd
tried to have the warden removed and secure
the position himself Some of the members
Of the board of managers were in favor of
O'Dowdi and, the fact that Ben Dyer the
warden, had allowed a note of the Gov
ernors for a thousand dollars which he
Dyer had indorsed, to go to protest, the
wing led by O'Dowd was sure of victory
Now, 1t appears, that while Dyer was abb
sent he had spies ia the prison to watch
the gang as he called the-element led by
O'Dowd, and unfortunately for me 1t hap
peued that all of the members of This 20
called gang were personally friendly and
wanted 20 have me removed from the con-
tract but Deputy Porter resisted until the
return of Dyer Meantime O'Dowd. OF one
of his followers, would take occasion TO
come 20 my cell, or TO the shop, and talk TO
and rcassurc me of their interest and de-
sire TO help me on Dyer's return he was
informed of all this and In his ignorant
and buli.doziug way Immediately Jumped
to the conclusion that was trying to throw
the interest of my friends on the side of
O'Dowd to secure him the wardenship, No
amount Of explanation Of my friends and
others who interested themselves in my be-
half could convince Dyer to the contrary or
secure from him the least privilege, such as
was granted to the vilest prisoner In the
prison, for myself When therefore Cen
eral Powell returned from Atlantic City and
in my behalf aud against my protest saw
Dyer, he repeated his grievance against me.
He swore, with the profanity for which he
was noted, that as long as he was warden I
should work on a contract and be given no
sort of privilege.
Meantime the day arrived to file the pc
titon in the Supreme Court, and General
Powell acquainted ME with the fact that he
was promised a decision within a week
after the papers were filed as to whether he
would be allowed leave to file petition in
error. This braced me UP, and having
lost all my surplus flesh being reduced
from 2Io pounds, my weight when I entered
the prison, to I6S pounds at this time, was
becoming habituated to the routine and
daily task TO which I was assigned
The scene with Warden Dyer, when the
Supreme Court granted permission to file
the petition In error was compensation to
me for what he had made me suffer My
counsel informed me that the granting of
the leave suspended my sentence, and I
secured the section of the statute govern
ing the same, and writing the following
note I iuclosed IT in an envelope and adj
dressed it TO BENZ amin +. Dyer, Warden
o. p" II ran thus.
DEAR SIR. I respectfully inclose the
section ofthe revised statutes which governs
the granting of applications for filing
petitions of error In the Supreme Court. and
which you will see. upon perusal suspends
my sentence !, therefore. notify you that
If you compel me TO work at hard labor
under the sentence inflicted by the trial
Judge aud which Is now suspended, I will
sue your bondsmcu for damages through
my attorneys and I am instructed by them
to so inform you Respectfully"
In response to this letter he came in a
towering rage to my cell. He stood out
side and shook his fist at me through the
bars. He informed me that he was the
warden Of the penitenuary, and that he
didn't care a d. for the Supreme Court
my attorneys, myself or anybody else That
I was turned over TO him as a convict under
sentence for life, and by c., so long as
he was warden he would see that the sem
tence was carried out TO the letter re-
torted "l win stand by the substance of
that letter. Mr. Warden and If I am put to
work In the morning on the contract /
guarantee that by the noon hour you will be
served with papers in a suit for damages,
and that the Supreme Court viii also man
damus you to suspend my labor as a con.
viCt I ann no longer a convict My sem
teuce is now suspended. and I am waiting
the action of the Supreme Court as to
whether they will reverse the Judgment
passed upon me- Your authority, though
and unlimited in here, cannot
reach my friends who are at liberty, and
they viii hold you responsible, legally and
for your inhuman and brutal
treatment of the man who took you from a
dirty old livery stable where you were
barely existing and made you warden of
this prison
I purposely raised my voice SO that the
couvicts in the adjoining cells should hear
me, in fact, ] out-shouted the bulldozing
and screaming warden so that 1 fairly beat
him at his own game, and he retired dis
comfted, vowing all kinds of threats,
amidst the whistling, catcalls, and other
vocal exhibitions Of dersion INDUCED in
by the prisoners, whose sympathies natu-
rally possessed as against the official, and
especially the head official Of the prison
Evidently Warden Dyer consulted his
friend Jimmy Campbell the governor and /