Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1855-07-31

the only one tlht expresses the nature and character
OF our government and institutions, and that We
are willing to sink or swim.
We really hope we have raised ones ire by this
candid expression "f opinions, for il IS too hot
indulge in hard words or works. and we should pity
! any one who had it 10 do"
VIRGINIA AND HER STATE PRISON.
As coon travel South and get out OF tho reach
Of largo cities We find the State Prisons thinly pop
| ulaed. Virginia. one Of tho largest States Of the
Union, and continuing respectable number of peo-
pie, has only one.cD;h of the offenders against the
laws u confinement, that New York has. At the
date Of the ast repor, from her Peniteuary in Rich
mond, there were 2G prisoners in charge "f It's Off
| ces-lS0 of them were white males, 81 colored mnles
| and colored females. or the lSO white males, -
were natives Ui foreign countries.
| This upp-ars to be one Of the very best managed
prisons in tho country, and has contrved always TO
pay its expenses owing to tho fact TINT IFS outer
guards are furnished from tho Richmond armory and
cost the prison nothing. The varied erIployinens
Of the convicts necessarily contribute greatly tho
PRISONS prosperity, will be apparent from the no
ture Of them. Sixty.siI Of them were Engaged IN
making boots and shoes, making harness. ii ma
king up clothing, ~ backsmthng, % making, grind.
ing, polishing aud painting axe., making mill.
stones, ii wbeel-Srighting, making rarts, making
wagons, ! making wheelburrows. 6 bo1.nasiug and
carpcntcring, coopering, and 81 at manufacturing
country kerseys and linseys. Here enployments
enough IL al conscience 10 make the prison pay well,
| particularly when the State makes itself customer
in everything made there that il may have occasion
| 10 buy.
| The earnings Of oil the convcts for that year
Ss,S ,SS9 6S. Its expenses for provisions, clothing
and such like objects cannot correctly ascertain
hut gain Of S2,S25 81 on the years operations, is
claimed by the Superintendent. But II they had
been subject to tho expense Of the outside guards
like other PRISONS it would have fallen behind about
the amount. Taking it on an avera"1 1t trans
good business aud ought not to fail to do so
with tho different branches Of mechanics and manu-
fuctures there carried OH.
Two or three months ago all the workshops Of this
prison destroyed by Are, to replace which VIII
cost the State vi Virginia hundred thousand dol
! lars.
| The present manager of that establishment has
held his position for more than twenty years, and has,
therefore, the advantage OF long experience, rs well
| as Great intelligence Washington Scrtsne!.
The above article from the Washington Sentinel is
made up from the report Of the Superintendent Of the
Virginia Penitenary for the fiscal year OF 1885,
The report or the fiscal year Of 1854 has just been
published with tho public documents Tor the LeGis!a
ture From this paper II appear. that on the 3Oth o.
September last, lS7 white pcrsous were confined in
the Pen,cntiary Of Trguia--one woman only, who
has since been dschargedi and 96 free persons OF
color, u of whom ere females; making in all 283;
an increase of seven white persons aud nne free NO
groes corresponding with the increase Of tho last pre-
ceding year exactly. This increase, however, We
learn goes rapidly on; for they have less than 3
inmates at present. The superintendent has annually
for several years, called the attention OF the Leg'
laturs to what he deems the inadequacy o! many
sentences uuder our present laws. In this oplron
the Directors concur and in their report Of the th Of
June last they "ugain invoke" the Governor To bring
the subject before the next General Assembly. They
remark:
I'VE think tho arguments In favor OF the change
proposed are almost unauswerable. and With great
pleasure refer that portion OF the superintendent
report TO .he Board this suhs.i, which ID treated
by him with so much ability, and so thoroughly that
We cannot add anything to its force"
We quolc the following paragraph from the Report
Of tho Superintendent of the lth May last:
"Of tho FREQ convicts OO7) received, twenty-
three come under sentences for one year. Jour for
oT Two and hall year., respectively making tiV.
oae per cent Of tho whole number for less than three
years. The number of mechanics received in this
institution has always been remarkably snall-nertr
more than sixteen per cent. aud the proportion Tor
several years past has been much less, probably IN
consequence Of an increase OF free negroes. among
the lU7, there were thirteen mechanics, only III the
branches carried on here, five Of whom had acquired
knowledge Of their trades under lornsr sentences
in this nstitution the residue werc OF course com
rused, for the most part, Of mere Undergraduates
| women and mcu Of broken.dnwn constitutions or
otherwise unqualified for profitable eMploymens' d.
rectly after imprisonment.
The Superintendent thinks that
"In addition to the increase OF crime which he
| lCol Morganl believes no one now doubts, unori
the influence uf the Code II Gun hurdly De long
er considered matter Of speculation that the pre-
sent laws uuinvurabe alike 10 the reforming anu
se.supportns principles upon which the feni!en'ia
ry svse WAS founded. AMI long aud ably lnalutan-
ed, by tho friends Of humanity. These principles are
inseparably connected with il as system. More
taau half the sentences are OF character ~ renher
the humane provision Of the law requiring conEic's
10 be taught in muchauic trades almost Impractical
be und necessarily to make the support of that cuss
Of persons burdsnsoue 10 the people, whom they
have aready injured BY crimes. Thus they are 'raue
to inaict double injury upoa the innocent coniHu
ntv to which indemnity IL more juetly due, "'lslon
much capacity for beuehttins themselves. ihey are,
also exposed 10 the cOrrupus Influence OF the worst
men. without hope Of learning a useful trade, or
being ouursd to udustty consequently they eau nave
but little incentive to Improvement IN morals, Or "
! restraint upon mind already embarked III tho pur
suit of crime. While they can acquire nothing use
full they Gun hardly avoid imbbiug much that Is irJu'
! ripus."
The Superintendent remarks, that "since 1t has
been pretty we'll ascerained that short sentences are
in general unfavorablo to the scfsupportng prnci-
pie, new views are taken upon the reformaory inbu'
ence Of such sentences" He then hasheo up dish
upon the earnings, profits aud losses Of Psultentla
ries Of near four pages OF close matter well
10 establish the correctness Of bis position lie shows
from the reports Of several fcn'entiaries where tue
system OF laws correspond with ours, 90 to short SEN
tspces that the earnings email and the expenses
aud losses to the State large ond that where diner
ent Icy exists the earnings larger and the IMAM
cis result. Uette-. For example, ut Philadelphia, the
pr,opers earned an average Of 81 2G per hend and
| tb,ir mere support exceeded the amount earned by
46e which with the salaries Of officers ,oos aO
aud some items for repairs, show that the whole ex'
penses for the last year exceed the products OF labor
by s2U.iss 26. At the Western Peuentia.y OF
PENNSYLVANIA, tAleghany City,) the average amount
! earned was y5i IS per head and the merc support
of the prisoners without giving the salaries and re.
pars) exceeded the products Of labor by $3,3bS g..
In the Murylsn Peniten;iary, at Baltimore, the def
cheney last year wa. ss,5G O5, when but the yesr
beor, profit resulted from convict labor. The ave.
rage earning last year amounted to s'S 70 per head
The proportion Of free negroes is for'ythree and
half per cent, aud short sentences thlrytour per
cent. In the Maine Peritentiary, where the 'hor'
sentences amounted to twemty-hv per cen the ave
! RAGE amount earned was sll5 81 per head, but not
sufficient TO pay expenses by s3,76O -
In Ohio, with 57s prisoners with only eevon per
cent of short sentences, three large steam engines
in use we'll adjusted system Of manufacturing aud
the employment of large number OF conv'ct' IN
building new State capitol Col. Morgan thinks pecn'
iay favorable circumstances exit for pTohtaoe ope'
r.tion. and the report Of last year exhibits balance
in favor Of tha, institution OF 1888 o. The ave-
rage earning was equal to sl3' s. per bead. Not
withs,unding this apparently favorable exhibition OF
tho operations, the Directors OF the Ohio Peuen'ia'
ry nav, 10 ther last report, "whsu the plan Of that
Fspitsptiary wa, trs: proposed the opinion was ad-