Year: 1877

"lt is good many years back. The prison was new and the management was not what 1t Is now, of course. Somebody was escaping every week or so, and it was easy enough to smuggle in money and tools and cook up conspiracies. There were hundred and seventy-nine of us, and the wickedest man in prison was horse thief and highway robber, named Ben Mason. He was in for ff- teen years, believe, and feeling desper- ate like he was as ugly as satan. They had him in the kitchen as cook, and in those days the prisoners had little or no work and were locked up most of the time. Ben hadn't been in the prison hundred days before he worked up one of the wickedest plans you ever heard of. He was to head a rebellion, and we were to murder every prison official, arm as best we could, and then march down and plunder and burn the town"

 The old man paused moment as the door opened, and then continued

 "All the details of the plan were soon communicated to every convict, and every single man was agreed. Ben made key, or two or three of them, by which we could unlock all the cells. Only two guards were on duty in the corridor at night, and they were at one end. They were changed at one o'clock at night, and it often happened at this hour that the new guards were ten or fifteen min utes in getting in, thus leaving an inter- val to be taken advantage of. We'll, the programme was for Ben Mason to unlock his cell door just before one o'clock. He could easily do that from the inside with the locks then ill use. As the old guard passed out he was to fly from door to door, let out as many convicts as he had time, and then over power the new guards as they came in. This done. all the convicts would be lib- erated, and we would sweep the prison with a rush.. A certain Thursday night was the date fixed upon, and tell you there was murder in the air i''

 He held his hands over his face, as If thinking, and there was long pause be- fore he said:

 "That same Thursday afternoon, when every man was trembling with expecta- tion, two ladies and little girl were ad- mitted as visitors. Ben Mason was that day doing some extra work-something that took him into the yard. The ladies passed him, and there was something about his face, fierce as it was, to attract the little girl She ran to him, looked up into his face, and innocently asked :: Haven't you got little girl, too ?' Now Ben did have and her words cut him like a knife. The wee thing grasped his hand to detain him, and holding up little doll which she had carried on her arm, she said: You may take this home to your little girl ? Ben took the plaything from her hand and you could have knocked him down with @ straw. Though bold and bad, he was big heart ed and loved his wife and children. Well, sir, he was fioored. He turned booby right away, and I'll be hanged if didn't see big tears running down his cheeks! At one o'clock that night, when he was to let us out and head the rebel lion, he was on his bed hugging that doll and crying like child, and so our plans went for nothing. l think he was q regular old woman, gir-a regular idiot"

 And yet when I looked into the old mans eyes he was wiping the tears away. -M Quad.