Page:The Jail, Experiences in 1916.pdf/48

 and young, in clothing which varied from the workmen's dress to a lounge suit, healthy and sick, as shown by their gait and the colour of their faces, swarmed in fours like a large dark reptile along the ellipse of the yard.

"The thick-set man in the cap is Markov,—condemned to death" explained Dr. Soukup to me, "the old man beside him is Kurylewicz, also condemned to death, the one who is just greeting us is Giunio."

All were talking, a muffled buzzing penetrated to the room where we were.

"They walk for half an hour like that in the morning, half an hour in the afternoon", remarked Dr. Soukup. We all stood at the windows and looked out. "The jail was built for two hundred people, now there are more than seven hundred in it. They are let out for exercise by floors, and when they are relieved, it is the turn of those who are locked up in the tower."

"Kramář and Rašín are in the tower?" asked somebody.

"Yes, here on the left."

We looked out. In a semi-circle squeezed into the yard, arose a grey building with small barred windows. Angel's Castle,—l was reminded of Rome.

The prisoners were guarded by defence-corps men with bayonets. The half hour was up; there was a word of command, the door opened, the black reptile crawled into the dark entrance of the building and was lost within it. The yard was empty.

Mayor Groš returned. Flushed, in high spirits, he was obviously glad that his period of torture was over.

Dean Burian went to relate what he knew and what he had seen.

It began to be tiresome. Udržal who was present at the proceedings in the body of the court, looked in for a moment and gave us an account of his impressions.