After that process, which by the way was quite illegal, he softened toward me somewhat and said, "Well, you seem to be an honest man, and if you have no other place to go you can go to the city prison," and pointing to a bright light some distance down an alley, added, "It is over there. They'll give you a cell." With his eye upon me, in spite of some hesitation I had to go as he directed. I reached the prison and entered, and, as I had done in other cities, asked for a place to lie down until daylight. I was asked no questions. The night sergeant simply said, "Come this way," and he locked me in a cell which, although it was not of the bull-pen type, was little better than one in its general appearance and condition of uncleanliness. The only places in it where I could lie down were the floor or an iron slab which partly covered the lantine. I could hear the groanings of the unfortunate men and women who, for reasons of their own, were compelled to spend their nights in prison. I could hear other prisoners appealing to the jailers for medical aid, water, or release from their cells. One young fellow in a cell opposite mine, for about two hours hung in one position to the bars of his cell in an endeavor to attract some attention. Every little while I heard the crying of a young girl, one who had "forgotten her mother and her God." Never in any prison did I feel such oppression. I came near swooning. The thread of endurance as I lay on the stone floor snapped, and the darkness that came upon me brought forgetfullness. My sleep was of short duration. Long before daylight I asked to be released. The jailer, who seemed to hold a spark of humanity, said, "I wouldn't go out if I were you for the police are liable to pick you up." Shortly after dawn I was released. Taking my belongings from my lodging house I left for more comfortable quarters. After a refreshing bath and a restful sleep I interviewed the Mayor of Pittsburg and the members of the City Council, and gave an interview to the newspapers. On the following morning, while passing by a newspaper office, I noticed on the bulletin board a headliner reading: "Free beds for the homeless poor of Pittsburg." CHAPTER XII OMAHA AND HER HOMELESS "_A good mayor is useful; a man should not recoil before the good he may be able to do._"--HUGO.