The Washington herald., 1907-05-21

New York, May 2o.-Abe Hummel, con-
victed for conspiracy in the Dodge horse
case. and sentenced to a year in prison,
got into Blackwelrs Island Pententiary
through the back door to-day. With the
adroit maneuverlng for which he and his
partners had been famous in the past
the transition Of the little lawyer from his
home in East Seventeen street to the
penitentiary across the river was accom-
plished in a way to spare him that which
he most dreaded, the humiliation of a
public spectacle, such as would have been
his had he taken the usual route Of the
prisoners bound for THE Island" With
his nephew. Abe Kaffenbergh. the same
who directed some Of the maneuvers in
the Dodge-Morse case, HUmmel left his
house shortly before II o'clock in the
morning In a motor car The automobile.
big, swift touring car, with a closed
body, was swift enough TO dodge all pUr-
sUers, and after that HUmmel was lost
for a while.
over on the island crowd Of reporters
was waiting for him. So was a crowd Of
convicts shoveling coal at the landing
where the boats arrive from New York.
All Of the convicts watched the boats and
were eager to get a glimpse Of the once
famous lawyer who was coming to don
his suit of stripes, but they We're all dis
appointed. At about $40 O'Clock a big
man and a little man came walking along
a side path behind the pententiary
They had come over in the boat from
Seventeen street that takes people to the
workhouse, but is seldom. if ever, used for
prisoners.
Goes i'm Back Door.
They took the path on the eastern side
Of the island and got in the back door
The big man was Deputy Sheriff Bell. and
the little man was Hummel Once inside
the gray walls Of the prison. there were
only the prison officials TO witness the
humiliation which Hummel had 10 un-
dergo then. To them he did not speak,
save when they asked him for his pedi-
gree, which he gave i'm a low voice As
he stood waiting for the order to strip. no
one, not even his closest friends. would
have recognized in the little man. save
for his diminutive stature. the dapper
frst-nighter' OF the theaters on Broad |
way.
Even the prison officials were surprised |
at what they saw The little mustache. /
such a well-knOwn feature of Hummel. (
was gone. So was most Of the hair that
formerly fringed his bald spot. He had
cheated the prison barber, sure enough. /.
and had it cropped. prison fashion, in ad- /
vance His cheeks were chalky white /
Now and then he moistened his lips with /
his tongue, but he spoke never a word.
The smiling. laughable anable little |
lawyer that sat behind the desk in the
law Office on Elm street and strolled
through the theater crowds on first
nights. with his crush hat tucked .
under his arm. was gone. and in his place .
was man trying TO take his medicine. |
It was not alone the missing uustache /
and the cropped hair, accentulting his .
badness. that had wrought the thange.
Gay Clothes Gone.
The frock coat. top hat. and high
hecled shoes which he had affected.
were also gone. He wore a grey sack
suit. sadly in need of pressing: 4 black
derby hat black hour-in-hand tie. and
pair OF old shoes. In giving his ped-
gree, Hummel gave his age as fifty-six.
birthplace Boston, and his religion
as Hebrew. As his nearest friend. he
gave his sister, Miss Bertha HummeI
His pedigree was taken and ne was
searched. He had a watch and a pair
Of cuff buttons. that was all
After this had taken place before the
desk in the prison corridor two keep
ers led him 20 a room, and at their
direction Hummel stripped. Then he
was led under a shower bath and the
water turned on him. After that he
was ready for his prison clothes.
The prison officials. knowing that he
was expected, had hunted through the
prison wardrobe high and low for clothes
small enough to fit him, but had found
none. He had TO make a complete change
Of clothes, and had to put on a suit of
coarse fannels. a cheap pair of socks, and
a pair Of slippers.
Trousers All Too Large,
The smallest pair Of trousers of the
striped kind that could be found had to
be turned up about five inches after Hum
mel got them on. Deputy Warden Martha.
as soon as Hummel had changed his
clothes, assigned him TO a cell in the
north wing of the prison. {
The number Of the cell was g. Mr.
Murtha said that this was purely an acci-
dent.
The cell IS ( by s. and contains nothing
but cot !,
After Hummel had been locked I'D a :
keeper asked him if he wanted any sup {
per He shook his head When the re- 7
porters sent in word 70 him and asked {
II he would not see them and told them s
how he did it, he asked the warden to s
kindly excuse him {
Hummel arrived at the prison too late I
to-day TO go 10 work. He will be put 10 I
work tomorrow morning in the store y
house. moving vegetables and picking t
over potatoes for the kitchen. There are Y
heavy cases to move, and the work is not c
light 7
May Do ScuIIion's Work, a
There are generally about twelve men
IN the storage house gang. and If an
requires il, they have 10 work
as scullions and handymen in the kitchen.
Hummel was reported as being
almost in state Of collapse to-day. there
was no evidence Of it, and after looking
him over, the prison officials concluded
that he was perfectly able to tackle the !,
Job in the storehouse tomorrow after
breakfast. which. according to the printed !,
menu for the week. VIII consist Of twelve n
ounces of hash. twelve ounces Of bread.
and one quart of coffee G
That Hummel never will get out Of the "
until he has served his term v
lr been pardoned is the prevailing opin- r
on in the district attorneys office. The :
Appellate division was unanimous in af- :
irming the conviction, and the prosecu-
-or does not look for a reversal. even If