Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1907-06-13

keep him alive. The prisoner con
stantly lost flesh and became very
much emaciated On the sixteenth
day, while he was so tied up, he faint
ed twice from weakness. The assist
ant superintendent, Mr.. Sample said
to me on the sixteenth day: II do not
know how that fellow lives. Some
one must be feeding him" said
mo one is feeding him but me- |
carry the key He did not seem to be-
lieve me. On the morning of the sew
enteenth day, Sample came in while
the prisoners were at breakfast, and
knowing that the convict Meyers was
liable TO die at any moment, from the
punishment inflicted on him by order
of Sample, | told Sample that Meyers
was about all in that he tainted
twice yesterday After told Sample
this he got up and walked away and
paid no attention to me. He left the
peni.entiary in the afternoon, going,
as ] understood to Las Vegas. Dur
ing this afternoon Trelford, the super
intendent, came to me and said he
wanted to see the convict Meyers.
We went down to where Meyers was
and Trelford went in and said to
Meyers: "How do you feel?" Meyers
showed evidence of great weakness
and distress, and said to Trelford: /
do not believe it is right to have me
strung up here for seventeen days
when have not been guilty of any
wrong" Trelford told him to shut up
and Meyers said he would not, as he
was being mistreated. Then Trelford
slapned him on the side of the face.
At the time that Trelford slapped
him, Meyers could scarcely stand, and
probably would have fallen down but
for the fact that his hands were tied
above his head. ! felt so badly to see
the man abused in this manner that
| turned around and walked away. |
could not stand to see this cruelty.
After my back was turned and while
was looking out at the window, /
heard two more slaps. Trelford came
out after this and said to me: Let
him down and put him in a dark cell
up stairs and allow him three-quarters
rations." took the convict and put
u in, hn 7 or1n IN,
solitary confinement, and he was in
solitary confinement when ] left the
penitentiary. / had occasion to OBJ
serve the convict during the time
was there and before he was tied
up and ordered to be fed on bread
and water. There was nothing mali.
cious in the convict. His department
compared most favorably with the de-
pertinent of the best prisoners. There
was no occasion for this cruelty to-
wards the convict He went to the
place above named simply for the pur-
pose of warming himself as the wealth
err was extremely cold. Other con
victs did the same thing at the same
time, and yet this convict was picked
out for this punishment, while nothing
was done as to the others. | do not
think that the convict Meyers was
Sinking his work and this was the
only charge made against him by Sam
pie, the assistant superintendent, or
Trelford, the superintendent of the in.
stitution.
Aged Convict BrutalIy Kicked.
Other acts of cruelty came to my
knowledge while | was connected with
the penitentiary. One evening, at
supper, Armijo Gomez, convict No.
1705, an old man about sixty-fye
years of age, and more or less de-
crepit and unable to perform manual
labor, was severely kicked by an en-
ploye by the name of Knight, who
was the steward, in the presence of
Sample who offered no objections but
only laughed at the treatment the old
man received. This same man Knight
on another occasion and in the pres
ence of Sample, without any objec-
tions from Sample, assaulted, beat and
kicked an old man by the name
- Convict No. -, from the
first floor to the fourth floor and
when they got to the fourth floor
Knight pulled the door open and
kicked the old man into his cell. This
convict was simple minded, If not in
sane, and this fact was we'll known
to knight and to others. saw
nothing on the part of the old man
that required any rough treatment. On
another occasion / was entering the
cell house from the tailor shop and
met said Sample coming out of the
cell house with blood all over his
hand and coat sleeve. l passed into
the cell house and asked what had
I there learned that Sam
pie had committed an assault and bat
terry on a convict by the name of
Bailey Brown and badly bruised his
face then went down to Browns