The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1872-11-02
Convict Labor.

We clip the following important remarks
upon the subject Of convict labor, from a
speech recently delivered by Col. A. \.
Colyar, at Lebanon, Tenn
by encouraging immigration We can
replace the capital lost by the war. Con
trast the State of Tennessee with Massa-
chusetts, Pennsylvania and Ohio; we have
5000 square miles, PennsyIvania has
46,WW square miles, Ohio 4O,OOO. and
Massachusetts 1000 square miles. Our
lands are far superior to Massachusetts
lands, and equally as good AS Pennsylva-
MIA and Ohio lands
Our lands are worth e272, ,OOO. 900. those
OF Pennsylyania are worth $685., OOO. .OOO.
and Ohio $666, ,OO0, 900, while the 1000
square miles in Massachusetts are worth
Sl23, 900 600.
What makes this difference The reason
of the difference is, that Massachusetts,
has l3S people to the square mile, Pennsyl-
vania has 6;, Ohio 6S, and we have "a.
When Pennsylvania and Ohio had only "a
people to the square mile, the land Of
neither was valued at $272. 900 600. Now
if by inmigrs ton, we can enhance the
value Of our lands to $500, OO0, OOO or $780,
W0, 600, is not this the best speculation We
can engage in in other words, if we can
sell $}NHI, ,WO, ON worth of lands to the
people Of Ohio. Pennsylvania and other
Western States, and still have $500. 600
600 worth left would it not he happy re-
capture of the capital we lost by the email
cipation Of our slaves. By a little effort
We can get the Immigration, because BY
collecting the statistics We can make A
h. 1t ,f,,I
Besides our agricultural products We can
show resources chat no State in the Union
has. Pennsylvania has the coal, but
brings her iron ere |, 200 miles England
is the only country yet fully developed that
has both the coal ana the iron in such
abundance and varieties. Having both the
coal and the iron, she has made the whole
world tributary to her. She has built
workshops and ships. and for century
collected the raw material Of every coun-
try. and now no nation has such CONNER
cIil power.
Last year the coal dug IN England aver
AGED 43,oOO ears ually "a per cent. Of it
was used at home With our advantage If
coal, iron. copper, timber. climate and soil.
now that our institutions are the same as
OmJ and Pennsylvania, I'd suppose that
the disparity IN the price Of lands will be
kept up Is as absurd as to suppose that
that water will not seek its level A man
III OH" has lOD acres of land and a grow
nI family he can sell his land for 80,
600 he does not want to 90 to new coun-
try, he can come here and buy 3OO. or 4OO
acres Of as good land as his for the money
This he will a.. and large numbers will
make such charges They will do this until
IN population and value Of real estate the
States arr. equal
have not time tn pnrsuethis interesting
subject further
The PenIteutiary Is a subject deserving
"t much consideration, and which ! will
discuss. just here, which | had not intend
ed
II has cost us y vast deal of money, which
the hnuks show Int twice as much III the
way Of legislation which the books do not
show The practical workings Of this in-
stIuui"u since 80. prove. il they prove
anything. tiIar the State cannot make the
Pcrit utiart -,if-sustaining as a work
shop.
Nhy Is it that five hundred men. over
hait ut them mechanics. cannot he made t.
feed ami cuthe themselves The answer
is to be found IN the argument made on the
other question. and this case but illustrates
that argument, that business under the
direction NJ Government does not pdy
And II proves the necessity NJ removing
from an institution of this kind all colupli
cation. Different trades, many pursuits
requiring much skill as well As careful su-
pern,andence, changes from one thing "a
another, with heavy mercantile business
10 dispose of the goods are all unfavorable
t. the success of such an Institution.
But there is another argument in favor
of change equally forcible This institu-
ton, which has cost the State 80 much
money to run it. has well-nigh ruined the
mechanics of Nashville. and materially
affected them all over the State Through
this institution the ~tate is breaking down
all its mechanics absolutely competing
with all the mechanics in the State and i'm
poverlshlng the State 10 break them down
None know better than the mechanics Of
Nashville how this competition affects
them. Many of them are broken down by
it, others are driven away. while many
good mechanics, are kept out Of the State
because they will not compete with convict
labor.
Can this labor be protitably employed
without coming III competition with the
mechanic ! say, most unquestlonably,
YES Tennessee must he great iron State.
She has an abundance Of coal and iron.
and at this time before we have fully EN-
bsrked in the great business of iron and
coal, which we will soon do, all this con
vict labor could be employed permanent
Iy fixed as laborers either III digging coal
or making railroad iron In PENNSYLVANIA
and other States where there are great
numbers Of miners, the opposition would
he 50 great that the experiment would be
dangerous. This is the reason the con
victs are not employed in the mines IN
Pennsylvania hut in most of the States
this labor has been simplhcd rs much as
possible. and everywhere they are using
this Labor at the business which least al
fects the mechanics.
In many If the States they are taking
this labor out and putting 1t to work on
railroads. but this is found tO he costly
and the convicts are insecure. because of
the large number of guards it takes, and
because Of the constant moving fl..i.. place
to place.
But few, II any of the States, have the
same chances to use tins labor protitably
without miuring the mechanics that We
have. Iron and coal are in their incipien-
cy. ] am employing more miners than all
the other coal mines i'll the State, az least
my company is supplying more coal than
all the other mines, and do not hesitate.
to say that now, this convict labor can be-
employed without the slightest conflict
indeed, the skilled miners which we have
in Tennessee, would all be needed IN open
ing mines and instructing the new laLur.
Mith some penpl. the emnlnNmrtLt nf