owls became quite
common, apple pies, meat pies, and sundry other luxuries being
introduced. Fish and jellies being still wanting, however, to bear out
the newspaper report.

I do not wish it to be understood that the Fenians receive better
medical treatment than the other prisoners, nor is their position
generally much better. They sat at work in the same room with me; they
had the privilege of exercising by themselves, but judging from their
eagerness for my society and political conversation, they seemed to
consider the privilege in the light of a punishment. One concession was
made to them, however, which at first rather surprised me. They were
allowed to write to their friends as often, when they were in the third
class, as other prisoners were allowed who were in the first, and the
censorship over their letters was not very severe. One of the
head-centres, and one of the principal writers and agitators in the
would-be rebellious sister isle was a tall, bony, cadaverous-looking
man, afflicted with scrofula. He could have ate double his allowance of
food, and probably he required more than he was allowed; at all events
he thought he was not getting proper treatment, and wrote a very strong
letter on the subject to his friends. This letter was considered a
libel on the establishment, but the governor and director decreed that
the letter should pass, as it would show the Fenians outside that their
friends in prison were not on a bed of roses. This was acting in quite
a contrary direction to that which was usually followed with the
correspondence of other prisoners. Any letter that told of the comforts
of the prison, and gave the friends of the prisoner the idea that he
was in Paradise was sure to pass, and the writer of it would also get
into the good graces of the officials; but if there was any word of
complaint, especially if addressed to any person of influence, the
extinguisher was put upon it at once.

I remember one of the patients writing to his friends that he was
unwell, but that he really did not know very well what to say about his
complaint, as one doctor told him to get out of bed and "knock about,"
as there was nothing the matter with him, while another told him he was
dying, and on no account to leave his bed, and between the two he did
not know what to do. This was at the time when the two medical officers
seemed to pull against each other. The letter produced an improvement
in them, but it was neve