Baton-Rouge gazette. [volume] (Baton-Rouge, La.) 1819-1856, 1840-04-11

tHB weight oI eOHEBteHsu oVsDtOu SCENE 10 pie
pondofa,e In favor Of lie policy Hers ,eoornhtep-
ded, and IL csnnot IL doubted thss where the
State can mike choice Of occupations and manu-.
features Tor the pio6'sble employment OF the
c~onvicts. which d, MT compete With The thschsn.
iesi labor Of the citizens, That . wise and just pol.
icy requires Ina, II should make that selection"
IN appfobs,io6 III these vic~s. the legislature
made an appropriation Of an additional sum for
the purchase Of an engine and machinery, for the
manufacture Of cosise cotton and wuoien clotfsl
which has be5n applied according TO the pfovi-
sions Of ,hs oct, aud the manufactbry 10 now IN
full operation, giving employment TO abou. ss
Of tho %convle's. and WEAVING daily abou. 400
yards Of cloth, and Of ~excslsn. duality. !. will
he perceived by the inspectors report, hereunto
annexed, that the engine and machinery have
been made in conformity TO tho ~eontfact, shd io
workmaolike order; bat the inspectors srs NJ
cpinion tbs, the power u the engine which pro.
pels the machinery Is not sufficient. and recon-.
mend the sale Of il and the purchase Of another.
and a resolution Il herewith submitted oa tie Sob
ject.
In further prosecution Of the views Of the I,s-
g~isIa,ure inferred from The adoption Of the report
Of their committee Al the last SESSION, the inspsc-
tors tiave resolved to st.smpt the manufacture Of
negro shoes on an extensive scale, aud finding
upon enquiry that The manufacture would be un.
profitable. unle N The leather required be prersved
by the labor Of the %conyicts, they have resolved
upon the establishment Of = tan yard within The
walls Of the institution.
Your committee are Of opinion that smother
manufacture might be directed. which would ON.
ploy very proftatly a number Of The conviets.
10 wit the manufacture Of white lead. Your
committee arc advised that wherever this manu-
fsciure has been attempted II has yielded gres.
profit, that the raw material may be obtained
here on the cheapest tef;ns, aud that the apparatus
and outlay for the manufacture will occasion en-
expense Of inconside'ahle amount.
Your committee therefore advise tic passage
Of 4 resolution directing IN inquiry on the sub.
jec,, to be made by the board If inspectors, with
instructions TO repof, 10 the ncxt LegisIstufs the
expediency Of establishing this manufacture, snd
your committee herewith submit 4 resolution TO
that effect.
Thus your committee believe tina, manufac.
lures may be within a very short time introduced
into tho psni,ehtisry, .bs. will give employ mens
10 oil the c~onvicss, which will effc,ualiy sulssi-
tuto manufactures for mechanic and jdb-work,
and hiring tho labor Of this institution into CON.
petition with northern labor, AMI also into com.
petition viii cspitsl, and not with .has Of me.
chspic labor. This il the policy Recommended
by your committee In their last report, and whith
they now earnestly ~reise'ats. II 10 true that ii IL
utterly impossible to give . prohsabls direction
10 the labor cf tho c~onyicts, without id slime de-.
gree interfering with some intefsst of o.het bit
your committee think that the direction should
ba given 10 il which coinpetes with The stranger
rather than with our own citizens, and with csp
iial rsther thai, with tho mechanic cissses.
Yout committee Anis that some d~iscontsn.
prevails In the Town Of Baton Rouge, 10 relation
10 this institution, which they doom IL proper to
notice. One Of the complaints ID, thst tho peni.
Tertiary comes in composition with the mecfan-
les your COMMITTEES think that hitherto this bss
been 10 q considerable degree unavoidable, 10 no
other employ pent could be sived to shs coatic,s
but II the policy recommended In this and their
former report b. persevsred 10, II 10 hoved thst
every csuse Of reasonable compliant on this &C.
count will, in the course Of no great length ol
time, be removed smother ground Of cod1pfaihs
was alleged 10 exi.t on account Of the dimialsbtd
prices charged by tho Penitentisry; bot your
committee conceive there must BE some misap-
pfebension on this point, foi on the oshef hand,
the planters complained thst the prices Of STITCHES
were at the highest rates sud tho INSPECTORS
Informed your COMMITTEES that they had
Instructed prices sc to he regulated, - to obtain 9
Medium that would effect . cumpfomiss between
Ill interests which while it was duly considsfate
Of the in,eres. Of the town, should not afford a
Just sround Of complaint 10 the plshting end -.
r~icuisu,al interest.
Another complaint was brought to the stten.
ton Of the committee il was stated ihs! ITO Of
tho ~convicss were permitted al times to appear ia
the town, without being attended with . guard.
Your committee found that this had happened
on some occasion, by these convicts being sent in.
10 The town on business Of the Penitea,iary; ba'
that the present Inspectors had fofSidden it, snt
that il had never occurred under their sdminissra
ton. Another complaint IL, that the convict'
are sent into the woods to cut timbtr,t TO be work
ed 10 in the Penisentisry-snd this 10 though
wrong, although they sre attended by = comps
.snt guard. This, lift DO IN evil, 10 not probsbl,
ono Of a very frequent occurrence; but ycar CON
mi,tee thinks thst If timber could be procured by
other means, and without heavy expense 10 th'
institution IL would be 10 conformity with tn
main objects Of the institution. to shs"dou shis
manner Of employing tho c~onvicts, who should
never, without weish,y reason be empIosed out
side Of the walls Of the establishment. Your com
,nittee viii! submit . resolution on this subject.
COMPLAINT wss made, too, that the cdnsicts wss
| employed in doing job. work outside Of the peDi
| Tertiary; but your committee recsised no proof o
this, excep. that some considerable time ssd
some ~convic,s were employed in sssistins to pu
together some work which had been msds In th
Peoitep,iary, for The Parish courthouse and jsi
Another subject Of dissatisfaction sttons . poi
ton Of ths citizens Of the town, 10 the establist
meus Of a retail store at the Penitebtia'y; the sr'
cles retaiIed at this s,ors, are not Of . varied naius
they consist principally Of shoes Of every dea
~cription, Of small articles Of coopcsags, and
plain casinet work;-but il is thought to interior
with the nserehants and mechanics, and your con
mitsec thinks it advisable to abandon this stor
as soon n 10 consistent with the vital interests
An ianuostant institution. Your committee Their
fore, submit q resolution on the subject.
OF the So ~convicts received last year. 30 81
foreigners: Of the other 30, only 2 were born
Louisiana, and one Of these 2 Is . slave; 70 q
from other States Of the Union; Of the SO thus .
:.d "a xexe caasicfcl and sentenceel in Il