Two of the inmates’ dining rooms are located just above the officers’
kitchen and beneath the prison chapel. The population of the prison,
however, has increased so rapidly during the past few years that it was
found necessary to make room for the overflow in the chapel and mess room
opposite the officers’ kitchen. One of the rooms in the main dining hall
is devoted to first‐grade prisoners and the other to the second grade.
Entering the dining room, the prisoner promptly takes his seat and remains
with his arms folded until the signal to eat is given by the deputy
warden. There are six waiters in each dining room, and it is their
business to see that the men are promptly served. Some pass nothing but
bread, others coffee or water, and the rest attend to distributing the
miscellaneous items on the bill of fare. Talking is forbidden in the
dining room at all times. The food is very plain, but wholesome, and there
is always plenty of it. The following bills of fare, one for the winter
months and the other for summer, will give an idea of the food served.
They were selected from the house steward’s records and are authentic
copies for that date: