hours after midnight
He abused that photographer till he almost made him sink through the floor , and then he fined him a hundred dollars . And he told him he might consider himself lucky that he did n't fine him a hundred and twenty-five dollars . They are awfully severe on crime here . About two or two and a half hours after midnight , of that first experience of mine in the city prison , such of us as were dozing were awakened by a noise of beating and dragging and groaning , and in a little while a man was pushed into our den with a `` There , d -- n you , soak there a spell ! '' -- and then the gate was closed and the officers went away again . The man who was thrust among us fell limp and helpless by the grating , but as nobody could reach him with a kick without the trouble of hitching along toward him or getting fairly up to deliver it , our people only grumbled at him , and cursed him , and called him insulting names -- for misery and hardship do not make their victims gentle or charitable toward each other . But as he neither tried humbly to conciliate our people nor swore back at them , his unnatural conduct created surprise , and several of the party crawled to him where he lay in the dim light that came through the grating , and examined into his case .