; he had been a convict before, and had lived all the
time like a fighting cock; commanding medical treatment, and working
only as it suited himself; he had nothing to fear in the commission of
crime except being sent to hospital, and his diseases would compel the
majority of doctors to give him good diet, and good general treatment.
If they had refused or neglected to do so, the prisoner's life would
have been sacrificed. Whatever may have been the truth in his case, he
felt and believed that his days were being shortened, and he was one of
those who would rather have died on the scaffold than submit to a
lingering death in prison. A short time ago he was found dead in his
cell. It was asserted that he had taken some medicine internally which
was intended for external application, and that he had thus poisoned
himself; it was alleged that his object was to make himself ill in
order to obtain better treatment. This is somewhat doubtful, but as his
death took place at another prison I am unable to give more
particulars. The newspapers having commented rather severely on this
stabbing case, it was deemed necessary by the prison authorities to
have a counter current set in motion. For this purpose an inquest was
held on the body of a deceased convict; all the chief authorities were
called to this special inquest, and three prisoner-nurses were also
examined, and the result appeared in the newspapers, to the great
astonishment of the prisoners. It was reported that the coroner had
held an inquest on the body of a deceased convict, and found that the
deceased had received excellent diet and medical treatment. He further
expressed his surprise to find the prisoners received such luxuries in
prison as fish, fowl, and jellies, in addition to wines, &c! If they
had not mentioned the fish, fowls, and jellies, the prisoners might not
have taken much notice of it, but the facts being as follows, it must
be confessed that they had some grounds for making uncomplimentary
remarks. For thirty-two or thirty-three months previous to the inquest
there had been no fowls in the hospital, and there never had been
either fish or jellies served out to patients during the whole period
the prison had been in existence. Some time after the inquest there
were two or three soles cooked for dying prisoners, one of them being a
Fenian.

After the arrival of the Fenians and a new priest, there was a
considerable alteration in the hospital treatment--f