Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1873-09-06
tFrom the Springfield Republican,
THE MAINE STATE PRISON.

In the stagnation of State politics down in
| Maine this year, where they have no virtuous
! and prosecuted ma or general of militia to stir
| up the voters, the democrats are complaining
that the state prison at Thomaston costs too
| much year, and that the administration there
| is not sufficiently frugal. 1t appears by the
| annual reports that for the last three years.
| the earnings of the convicts have averaged
| some $1,000 above their expenses, IN each
year, while the average number OF convicts
| has been not far from 10. During the ten
| years that Mr.. Rice, the present warden,
has beer in charge of the prison, it has
more than paid all its current expenses, with
an average number of less than so prisoners !;
has been enlarged and partly rebuilt, and has
had all its business affairs put on new foot
ing. In doing this the cost has, no doubt,
somewhat exceeded the income received, but
so little that we here in Massachusetts, who
appropriate 81 900, 900 for a new State Prison
without winking, and expend 5000. 900 on
new Jail in one of our counties, should hardly
notice it at all We believe the whole outlay
for buildings and repairs on the Maine State
prison, for ten years, has been less than
100000 mot so much as the county of Bris-
toll, with a population one-sixth as large as
Maine's, has expended for one of the two jails
in which it INDUCES, and while Massachusetts
is supporting, at this moment, in all its pris-
ons, from 5000 to $500 prisoners, Maine, with
more than third part as many inhabitants,
has to maintain less than 800, or not one-tenth
so many as we do. Under these crcumstan-
ces we should advise the Maine democrats not
to say much about the costliuess of their
prison system.
Mr.. Rice, the warden at Thomaston, is. in
deed, one of the few successful prison officers
in the United States. He has not only made
his prison pay its expenses, which not one
State Prison in five persistenty does, but he
has governed his convicts without the use of
reyolvers. AMI so as to secure good conduct,
in most cases, after they leave his custody.
Being practical mechanic, Ga carriage build
er,) he has introduced or greatly extended
that kind of work among his men, thus giving
them good trade, and preventing them from
being drawn into crime through idleness,
when they leave the prison. At the same
time he makes them self-supporting while in
prison, as all able bodied convicts ought to be.
There is one circumstance about the Maine
State Prison which should be generally known,
both for a terror to evil-doers, and 10 the
credit of the juries and sheritfs and prison.
officers of that State. 1t contains more danger
Gus bank-robbers and safe-openers, in proper
ton to the whole number of Its convicts, than
any prison in the United States. No less than
four different gangs of bank robbers have
been caught and convicted and shut up in
Maine, within the last five or six years, and
at one time there were dozen of that class
in the Thomaston cells. In other States such
rascals compound their felony, or get Oft on
bail, or tamper with juries, or buy their way
out of prison by corrupting the turkeys with
money; but in Maine they are caught and
held. Among them is one first class Massa
chusetts rogue, Langdon w. Moore, who has
been concerned in robbing several banks in
his native state, but is now serving seven
years sentence at Thomaston, to expire in
1877. Along with him are several of his own
gang and of rival gang of New York finan-
ciers, in the same line of business.