call her attention that way, but of her own
accord, she said, "They bought a lot of bad fish at the prison, and the
warden would have some prepared for the family table. He ate of it
himself, pronounced it good, and wished the deputy, guards and overseers
to eat of it also; but they would not, though he offered one a dollar,
if he would." Now, as this woman's story was true as to the purchasing
of the article and its quality, we have every reason to suppose it true
in other respects. One said of the cracked wheat, that he could not
force it down; it would made him sick; that others about him were
similarly effected in their attempts to eat of the article.

20. _Prison suffering from cold during the winter of '70 & '71._ From
the character of the food and clothing, the one not fitted to generate
the needed supply of warmth within, nor the other to give the requisite
protection without, the men, to pass the rigors of winter, especially
such as that of '70 and '71, without suffering, would need an unusually
generous supply of artificial heat in the hall and shop. But instead of
that, they were forced to experience the biting reality of a cutting off
here, too, the place being too important for money-saving not to be
used. True, it would cost something, but the custom had been to keep
the hall comfortable through cold weather. Early in the morning they
would let the steam into the shop and have that warm when the men were
ready to commence their work, and keep it so during the day. But a
different policy had now been adopted.

The present fall had nearly passed and no steam had been admitted into
these apartments at all, the cook-room and reception-room drawing from
the waste steam and engine boilers. People outside had long been using
fires constantly and freely. At length, a remark of the warden to
company, revealed the theory he was pretending then to act upon. The
temperature, at the time, was low in the hall, and some excuse evidently
appeared to be needful. The remark was this: "I have not let the heat
into this hall yet, for I think it best to do with that as people ought
to do with regard to under-clothing, keep it off as late as possible in
the fall, and it will do them more good in winter. And, besides, these
stones were so heated up last summer, that they have not become fully
cooled yet." "What a happy thing for the men, when shivering here, as
they do with the cold, could they find some of that stored up