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 heat," thought I. But they could not, and hence were called to experience a severe foretaste of what lay before them in still colder weather.
But at length the hall boiler was set to work, bringing warmth and gladness to the men. And how cheerful and thankful they appeared! It was really a comfort to witness their relief, as I went about my labors. This, however, was only for a few days, for a great drain was being made upon the wood-pile, incurring too large a draft upon the prison gains to be endured. The boiler was stopped, to be run no more for the winter, dependence for heat here, in the future, to be had upon the steam, waste or otherwise, from the shop boilers, and even that but sparingly.
The custom adopted was to let the steam into the hall pipes just before the men were to enter from work, could it be spared from the cook room, sometimes perhaps ten or fifteen minutes, and then turned off early in the evening. That, of course, could do but little good, and hence a really keen atmosphere would at times be felt in the hall, causing much suffering there. How great the contrast to that of the office, which was so warm that the occupants would be at work with coats off; or the reception room, where I would perspire in labor upon my books, and enter the hall to find it much like going directly out of doors. Twice I thus took severe colds, after which I usually wore an overcoat to this apartment during the severe weather.
When those keen nights came on, some of the men would beg of me most pitiably for more bed-clothing, asserting that they were suffering alive, it sometimes seeming as though they must perish. I could only direct them to the warden or deputy for this. One said, "I have asked the warden, who replied, 'You have more clothes on your bed now than you ever had at home,' and passed on." This man had one of those strainer-like spreads and another somewhat thicker, doing well enough for early fall, but not a suitable protection in such weather. Another said, "Suffering so with cold that sleep is out of the question, I arise, dress, wrap about me what bedding I have, and walk my cell for the night, in that way keeping as much as possible from suffering."
The first evening after hearing these earnest pleadings, I met the steward and asked if he could not furnish these men with more clothing, with the answer, "The fact is, these fellows are down on the warden and determined to keep asking for something." To which I replied, "They very much need more clothing, and must greatly suffer without it." He answered, "Oh, our soldiers in the army suffered a great deal more than these fellows do, and you thought nothing of that. The fact is, you have too much feeling for these men." I left, with the remark, "I think we ought to have some humanity about us."
Thus was the attempt made to plaster over this outrageous cruelty by alluding to events which could not, in the very nature of things, be avoided. I say outrageous, for there was bedding enough on those unused beds, such as it was, to have done something towards relieving this suffering, but they would not permit them to have that. Then New Hampshire possessed wood and water enough to keep that room comfortable. If the boiler needed repairs, workmen for doing that were at hand; or, if it needed renewing, that could have been easily accomplished. Or they might have set large coal stoves at work.
But all did not thus lack for bedding. Some, by oversight or favoritism, had a surplus, using comfortables as a substitute for straw. A man thus supplied sent one of his extra number to the relief of another, as this sufferer subsequently informed me.
On those cold Sabbaths, the men would wrap their bed clothing about them, sit reclining on their beds, and read. The warden would not allow the shop to be warmed at all. Those cold mornings and those cold days it was excessively severe. The overseers had to bundle up with extra clothing to prevent suffering. One day the men had become too much benumbed to work and the foreman stopped the machinery, let the steam into the shop, thawed them out, and then went on again.
Having heard the warden say that the water in their reservoir was low, causing him fears of its failing, and meeting the governor, to his inquiry about our prison affairs, I alluded to the coldness there and the warden's remark, and received the reply, "Why, it won't do to let the men suffer with the cold. If need be, he must haul water from the river," and he sent the warden a letter to that import. But no water was hauled, and no amelioration had from the cold till, at length, when the severest weather had nearly passed, one of the council visited the prison and ordered a coal stove to be placed in a part of the hall, which gave a measure of alleviation. Still the men continued to suffer more or less till the change of weather brought the desired relief. They will ever look back to that as a suffering winter.
The women probably suffered less from the cold than the men. Still, they were put on short allowance and were obliged to carry their wood up those two flights of stairs, taking it from quite a distance out of doors, some of it being very large. One of those cold Sabbaths, entering their room for meeting, I found it so cold as to endanger my health, and, not then knowing the restrictions, I attempted to kindle the fire, but found only a few coals in the stove and one large stick in the box, which I placed with the coals, but with little effect. We had short exercises, and I left them to endure this temperature as best they could.