New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1875-07-04
How Lieutenant Fitch Learned that he
Was Parent,

How Lieutenant Fitch Learned that he
Was n Parent.
"i..er:es" in late letter to the New
York Graphic. dated Jefferson city, Missouri,
June "a. na:rates the following interesting
il odent. "Aser;es." by the way. is one Of
the :rai:tu! aliases OF George Alfred Town.
send, mos. lately Of the St. Louis Times:
To-day was Of great event to the family
OF General Sherman.
His .on,in-.aw, late Naval Officer Thomas
". Fitch, who married his second daughter
Minnie Sherman. October |, 1874. visited
Jefferson city, the State capital Of Mis-.
souri,. to compel an execution on the prOp.
er:y of ;he bankrupt Missouri Hardware
Company in The State psnitentiary the pre-.
vious day. Last night as l returned from
a .fetc az the State House Mr.. Fitch said to
MT:
Mighty glad 70 sec somebody know.
You get up az eight o'clock tomorrow
morning and Ill show you some fun.
have been here all day arranging to break
into this penitentiary and get out some
property. have my posse and the sheriff
ready, and we go in betimes."
Fitch is a quick-spoken young man Of a
r6undish body, healthy and athletic, with a
light black moustache and dark brown eyes,
aud very considerable ease and decision OF
character. He was an apprentice to the
Neptune Iron Company in New York in
1859. and ii 1863, q finished mechanic, lie
entered the navy, where he remained until
six months before his marriage, October ],
1874. At that time he went into the Har-
rison Wire Company's shops at st. Louis,
ana worked in a subordinate capacity TO
test the cost c: the product and SEQ if the
work would be profitable. The company
uses blooms, scrap. billet and charcoal iron,
and runs the wire through rolling mill: it
is the only wire mill west of Cleveland.
Satisfying himself that there was money in
welded Miss Sherman at Sc. Aloysius
Church. He then plunged into the Wire
Company's business, and was elected
director ard finally president. The mag.
niiicent present OF the Khedive to M,e.
Fitch did not disturb his equanimity. Gen.
erat sAerman grew very proud OF his dill.
gerce, tho:oughness and practicability, and
said that work of that kind was better tor
young men than soldering.
This morning went TO the Missouri State
peniteniiary with Mr.. Fitch and the sheriff
Of the county. Myers. Half a dozen work.
ingnen and some wagons followed. Leav.
ing behind Us the old yellow capitol and its
dome, on The bluff. and the smart new OK.
ecutive mansion, We kept down the prinei.
pa: stree: I'll! we saw the white. irregular
wall Ok the penlteltiary, and the convicts
in their striped dresses began t" sprinkle
the road. Hundreds OF these are called
"t.Gsties.'' and are allowed to work any
where within five miles Of their jail. Many
OF ina wclnen are domes,ics around the
town. 4 few guards with shotguns we're
lying here SID there, keeping guard over
the convict stone cutters who are now build
ing an addition 70 their Jail, to cost 100000.
This penisentiary OF Missouri is the most
s:oyeniy institution ever saw; it is in hor.
rible discipline. Some OF the lessees ought
to ne in striped cults. They were at the
moment guilty of grand larceny in secretine
Mr.. hltch's property, intending TO steal it.
Pure ;nen are. NadGy Thompson, Fox. the
Perrys and others.
Waddy Thompson has some celebrity as
e rebel cotton broker and penitentiary con.
tractor. lie and three or four other per. !
sons lease the Missouri penitentiary, with
all its 1900 convicts, for 500 a year-the |
same IS one cent, merely nominal-and
they not only feed and guard the prisoners.
but sub-let their labor, SO that within the
prison q number OF industrial establish. |
nents have grown up; two shoe factories, a
wagon factory, a great saddlery establish. |
ment, a foundry. a hardware company, etc. !
The spectacle OF the fifth State in the |
Union thus ceasing its functions after it |
has sentenced a criminal and handing him /
over to set of goddess slave-drivere, is not |
very inviting. The people of Jefferson, and
he coDvicts also, detest the lessees. and |
hey had given Mr.. Fitch information how
% proceed within the prison walls. Previ.
,us 70 this yia.. another !orcible entry had |
Jeen made.
tbs warden. Soc3ree. standing a. the
,reat arcnel z .te. received the sheriff, who |
presented his wit.
Giant let YOU in, air"
''Ihen II! break in" said the sheriff
''Do you mean 30 gay you'll use force,
ir!'
~ De-"
The warden then ordered the door to be
pened. Fitch whispered to the gang of
nen: do not speak aloud, nor excite the
onvicts. March in line right after the
herif and me.''
Passing through the guardroom, the tum.
mi cage at the second wall was yeyoived
0 admit US.
"File righ'r said Fitch. +
Here the great Waddy Thompson looked
hops were to the left, but Fitch knew that
he thievirg iessees had hidden the goods
nder the coopershop. There we found |
undreds OF barrels and boxes filed with
inges, bolts, valves, handles, clothes pegs, /
whatever comprises hardware. The agent
T the bankrupt company was along to
heck off what was among their assets.
)urng that day Mr.. Fitch recovered in | I
rticles nearly the whole Of the $40, 600 due
ID house. He showed great decision and
agacity and cheeffulness withal, and we
aw many phases of convict life, of which |
1ay speak again.
Juat after Sheriff Myers shook adieu wi h
fr. Fitch and myself. and we had retired
D .ny room in the Madison Hotel to take
reath before dinner, servant boy came to
ne door with a. dispatch, saying, ais Mr..
itch here'' ''Yes." said Fitch.
He opened the telegraph. His black eyes
alarged, and lie cried, Great God! See
ere"
! feared to take the dispatch for minute.
read:
Thomas ". Fitch, of st. Louis:
''Minuie has son, and is reported doing !
ell. w. T. SHERMAN, General" (
We both jumped up and shook hands
cross my writing table, and without tur
Ter remarks proceeded to the bar.
TIN please the General" said Fitch, ''as {
3 his first grsndchild."
Then he stopped and said:
ut isn't very creditable that the day my
n was born his father was in the peniten-
airy at Jefferson City"