n he is thinking of a wife or mother or someone else at
home; but as soon as the mist clears away he begins to see and think more
clearly."

I am about to answer when a warning whisper, "Look out! Here comes the
screw!" tells me that our new Captain is approaching.

"How many bottoms do you two men make a day?" asks that officer.

I look at Murphy and he promptly answers, "Five."

"Then continue making five for a day's work, just as you were doing under
your regular officer," says the Captain; and moves on to the next pair of
men. Our new officer evidently does not propose to have the work slack off
during his management of the shop.

My other shopmates have greeted me warmly, and presently I have pleasant
conversations with some of them. To-day for the first time the ice is
thoroughly broken, and I am quite made one of them. It happens in this
way.

As we are working away, Jack and I, trying to accomplish our morning's
task with very stiff material to work with, the P. K. shows up. He has
come, I suppose, to see how the new Captain is getting on with the
toughest bunch of fellows in the prison. After he has conversed awhile
with the Captain he walks slowly over to where we are working and remarks,
apparently addressing the world in general, "Don't you feel the draught
from that door?"

As he has not spoken to anyone in particular, I look at Jack and wait for
him or somebody else to answer; but Jack is bending over his work and no
one seems inclined to say anything.

"Thank you, sir," I begin politely; "as far as I am concerned I don't mind
it, for I like fresh air. It doesn't trouble me any."

"Well now," says the portly and dignified dispenser of law and order, "I
don't want you men to catch cold. I think you'd better have that door shut
and perhaps the windows farther open. I'll just speak to the Captain about
it. You mustn't work in a draught if you feel it too much."

As the P. K. steps back to the Captain I glance over at Murphy and catch
an answering gleam in his eye. "It's all right, Jack," I remark, in a
cautious undertone, "I'm wise."

He grins. "Well, did you ever see anything so raw as that?"

I chuckle, and glance sarcastically over toward our highly respected
officers. Jack continues, "Does he think he can put that over on us?"

"Not this time," is my reply; and when the Captain, upon the P. K.'s
departure, comes over to shut the door I tell him that if he doesn't mind
we should prefer to ha