Authors, Irish -- 19th century -- Biography; Wilde, Oscar, 1854-1900
"I will now describe in as few words as I possibly can, but with
absolute accuracy and detail, the cell in which Mr Wilde spends his
time and the manner in which he lives. The cell in which Oscar is
incarcerated is not an ordinary one--that is, it is not one that is
used by any condemned or ordinary prisoner under remand. The cell
is known in prison _parlance_ as a 'special cell,' for the use of
which a fee is payable to the authorities, and is the same one as
was occupied by a certain well-known Duchess some few months back
when she was committed by the Queen's Bench Judges for contempt of
court. The prison authorities only supply the 'cell,' the prisoner
himself has to find his own furniture, which he usually hires, by
the advice of one of the warders, from a local firm who have a
suite they keep for the use of this 'special cell' in Holloway.
When Mr Wilde arrived at the prison last Saturday week afternoon
this 'cell' was vacant. He promptly gave orders for the furniture
to be brought in, and in an incredibly short space of time the cell
was furnished, and the distinguished prisoner took possession of
his apartment. I will first describe the room, and then take one
typical day in the prison routine, which will clearly show the
kind of life that Mr Wilde is compelled to live.
"Now to the cell. The room is situated at the far end of the east
wing of the prison, and is entered from the long passage which runs
from the head warder's rooms past the convict cells, and terminates
at the door which protects Oscar from the common herd, and helps to
make him secure. The door is an ordinary prison cell door,
possessing spyholes and flaptrap, and large iron bars and locks.
The cell itself is about 10 ft. broad, 12 ft. long, and 11 ft.
high. The walls are not papered but whitewashed, and the light by
which the room is supplied is obtained through an iron-barred
window in the wall placed high up and well out of the prisoner's
reach. A small fireplace is also fixed securely at the end of the
room, but it is seldom lit, as the room is well heated by hot-water
pipes. Now to the furniture in the room. Just on the right-hand
side of the window is placed a table made of hard, white wood. No
cloth covers it, but at the back is placed a looking-glass, whilst
on the table itself is a water jug and a Bible. Near the table and
almost under the window is an arm-chair, in which Oscar spends most
of his time. But more of this anon. In the corner near the
fireplace is placed a small camp bedstead, which is so small that
it seems almost an impossibility that so massive a form as that of
Oscar could recline with any ease upon so small a space. No feather
bed is upon the iron supports, and the sleeper is compelled to
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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