e cars, or trucks, held four tons, there
were three men to a truck, and the task was nineteen trucks a day, and
between the urging of officers, frightened themselves for fear the task
might not be done, and the mud and starvation, it was despairing work.

The punishments were not only severe, but were dealt out with a liberal
hand. The men, as a rule, were willing to work, but between weakness,
brought on by perpetual hunger, and the misery of the incessant bullying
of the officers, some few suicided every year, but many more did worse
to themselves; that is, the poor fellows, seeing nothing but misery
before them, would when the trucks were being shifted on the rail
deliberately thrust an arm or leg under the wheels and have it taken
off. No less than twenty-two did this in 1874. Of course, the object was
to get out of the mud. When once a man's leg or arm was off he would no
longer be able to handle a shovel, and would necessarily be placed in
an inside or cripples party and set to work picking oakum or breaking
stones, with the result that, being free from severe toil and sheltered
from the storms, they would not be so hungry. Then, again, they could
more easily escape being reported, and that meant much.

[Illustration: CONDEMNED TO BE HANGED.]

[Illustration: WEIGHING OFFICE, BANK OF ENGLAND.]

There was never anything but black bread for breakfast and supper, save
only one pint of gruel with the bread for breakfast. For dinner every
day we got a pound of boiled potatoes and five ounces of black bread;
three days a week five ounces of meat--that is, fifteen ounces a week
for a man toiling hard in the keen sea air. We were always on the verge
of starvation; our sufferings were terrible. In our hunger there was no
vile refuse we would not devour greedily if opportunity occurred.

O'Brien was a slight, delicate fellow, quite unfitted for the hardships
and toil he was subjected to, but he was a high-spirited, brave
youngster, and his spirit carried him through, while many a man better
fitted physically to endure the toil gave in and died, or became utterly
broken down, and would be sent away to an invalid station a physical
wreck. McCarty and I used to do extra work so as to shield O'Brien, and
so long as our trucks were filled on time the officer made no complaint.
The prisoners were certainly very good to each other, and usually did
all in their power to help and cheer up the weaker men.

In 1877 my two friends