The Washington times., 1904-08-14
Mrs. Maybrick Tells
Of Long Incarceration
She Thanks Friends for Their Untiring SYM
pathy-Neither Mental Nor Bodily Wreck
Talks of Life in Prison.

sides / want to forget It. I am out of
prison and have served my time, but l
am not free.
Must Prove Innocence.
please tell everyone that I am as
firm today in protesting my innocence
as On the day when l was sentenced,
and I am praying for the time when
that innocence VIII be proved to the
world. How long that may be 1 know
not. but that 1t will be l have never
ceased TO believe"
r The baroness would have given vent
TO her feelings regarding the arrest and
procedure at the Gssize, but her daugh-
ter gently restrained her
1t Is no good, dear; you can only do
harm that way" said the daughter
Il was In two prisons" Mrs. May
brick continued. The first seven years
at Working and the last eight at Ayles-
bury. Although / had no concessions.
with the exception of a very slight eX-
tension or time once or tWIce on my
mothers visits, every one wo.s good to
me, and l formed many attachments
You can't 1--we among people half your
life without doing so, you know / was
more comfortable, perhaps at Ayles-
bury. Maybe l was getting numbed to
pain.
Like Other Prisoners.
MY duties were those laid down by
the prison commissioners for female con-
Victs, and my food, except when 1 was
in the hospital, was the ordinary dietary.
l was in the hospital several times. and
l suffered terribly from insomnia for the
first nine months.
During my probation I did sewing
ana knitting for the male convicts. That
was under the old prison rules. Now
probation IL only four months. Then l
worked in the kitchen-rough, hard
work; then in the mess. and later, until
eighteen months ago. in the officers
quarters.
FOrgetfulness in Books.
BY medical order 1 was ordered
lighter employment, and I went into the
library. Here l was assistant librarian
and did cataloguing and entry work
have always been fond of reading, and
during the hours ! was permitted TO do
50, got through an enormous number
OF books. This was between noon and
half-past one and seven and eight In the
evening. Ny light had to be out at
eight.
There are no distinctions, you know.
In prison. OF course, there is a classical
tion-that IS. habitual criminals or pris-
oners known TO be Of corrupt habits are
kept apart from first offenders or the
y
prisoners within year Of release or
whose good conduct In prison justilies
the hope that they may ultimately prove
useful citizens. But there is no class
distinction. The law there, anyhow, IS
the same for rich as for poor. for lady
as for the ignorant. brutalized criminal
She Was ~P. 49,"
IT was p. 90 and had Il imprinted
on my dress. The length Of your SEN
tence IS always indicated on your
clothes. L stands for penal servitude
for life 'P' was s!,e letter of the scar
of my conviction. Each year IS lettered,
and p was he sixteenth year since
the previous lettering This is done
every twenty fyN years.
The ''29'' muLlr that I was the tWon-
ty-ninth convict of my year, 1883 The
number Of visits allowed and the let
tiers permitted 20 be sent and received
vary according 10 the stage you are
in. In the fourth stage a visit Is allow
ed every TWO months and q letter IN be-
tween II your conduct is satisfactory.
"A properly accredited lawyer can see
q prisoner IL any time by application
TO the directors. / saw Mr. Hayden, Of
Hayden & Yarrell. our Washington Jaw
came on visiting days. How I looked
to those breaks in the daily
round!
The baroness interposed that she had
IN all made seventy-five crossings of the
channel 10 see her daughter.
Never Alone,
''Of course the wardress was always
present at our interviews and we were
never allowed to get into contact with
one another" Mrs. Maybrick went on.
1T is one Of the terrible punishments