furnish a better
article, and prefer that to this method."

At almost every turn I was met with this money-making system. Well, this
could be endured in warm, balmy weather, though truly annoying to the
poor fellows; but in the full rigors of the winter of '70 and '71, it
was cruel, to say the least.

Let us take a few specimens of this practice. In nearly the severest
weather of that winter, a man came to me from the prison to be sent
home, some two hundred miles beyond Bangor, Me. As I looked at him I was
perfectly astonished that we had a man among us who would think, for a
moment, of sending away a dependent, human being, and sickly, too, in
such a plight; a rather thin coat, vest and pants that might last him
two or three days; no collar, cravat, mittens, overcoat, or boots, but
brogans, and those not mates, one of which so pinched his foot that he
was forced to remove it shortly after coming in. His person and clothes
were filthy indeed, not having seen water for weeks. I could but
exclaim, "What a condition! The law says, 'a suit of cheap clothing
suited to the season,' and this is such a suit!"

In addition to all this, as the man asserted, the warden asked him, on
passing out, "How long do you think it will be before you will contrive
to get back here again?" Was not that cool? He himself robbing the
fallen one of his just due, a suit of comfortable clothing fitted to
the season, and turning him away under those circumstances which would
almost of necessity force him to steal to avoid perishing, and then
taunt him with such a question?

As yet, our Association had not practiced clothing the men, and of
course the warden had no reason to suppose we should.

Keeping my feelings under calm subjection, I went to the prison and
asked him if he did not purpose to furnish the man with boots, overcoat,
&c., to which he responded in his short, pompous way, "No; when I was
deputy here, the men were sent out in just what they happened to have on
at the time." After talking till evidently of no further avail, I
remarked, "I am a native of New Hampshire, and have some regard for the
honor of my State, and I will never disgrace it by sending a man to
Maine in such a plight as you propose. I shall fix him up." To which he
answered, "I would not carry the matter too far." Well, I did not carry
the matter too far, but took the man to the store, shivering by the way,
and purchased for him the needed articles, cheap but goo