Stan triggers a riot when he fires a machine gun into the air while all of the prisioners are eating causing a panic.
During the prison riot scene, several guards can be seen firing heavy duty machine guns from an upper level downward directly at the prisoners.
Some of the more "sensitive" viewers, who forget this was made in 1931 and such things were out of the ordinary, will feel uneasy when Stan and Ollie are wearing blackface. They're wearing it to HIDE from prison guards, NOT to offend. Similarly, when going along with their disguise, Stan calls Ollie "Sambo", not to offend, but because it was the first 'black' name he could think of.
The ending prison riot is intense, with many guns going off.