New-York tribune., 1879-05-05
GEORGIA'S CHAIN-GANG.

RESPONSIBILITY FIXED UPON The DEMOCRATS-
DETAILS OF OUTRAGEOUS cRUEITy-THE sYs-
TEN CONTINUED FOR TWENTY YEARS LONGER.
IPRoM AN cAsIosAL CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRIBUNE.
ATLANTA, Ga, April 13.-A letter on Georglas
chain-gang IN The TRIBUNE of the 4th inst. has
called forth the response from the Democratic press
of this State that the present chain-aang system
was embodied in the State Government by the Re-
publican rule of ten years ago, and that succeeding
Democratic legislation has been unable to eradicate
it. This response is disngenuOus and an atrocious
perverson of facts, heapmg upon party that had
Just abolished slavery the charge of maiciously es-
tabshing an institution that Is -tenfold
more brutal A brief history of the origin and
development OF the chan-gang will not only
show that it originated in Democratic House. that
1t has been perpetuated by Democratic legislation,
and that the only act that tends to moify the sys-
tenn was passed by Republican State Govern
ment but such history will also reveal how for ten
years the chain-gang system has been continually
productive of immortality and death where 1t should
have only ameliorated and punished and how in
humane Is the recent lease by which the system Is
to he continued twenty years longer.
Georgia originally supported penitentiary that
differed from other State penitentiares in no inn
portant respects. But on the 2Sth of June, 1869,
an act was approved authorizing the Governor to
to a company of persons, OF single person. for
period of two years. No one can presume that the
then legislators foresaw the evils of which this law
was to be productive. 1t originated from spirit
of economy. The penitentiary was financial bur
den to the State, and this law threw the
burden from its shoulders. The fatal proyiso
of the law, however. was that all State
officers Of the penitentiary, the principal
keeper, should be discharged. There were only
about $50 convicts, and since these were to be
leased to one company, it was thought that one
officer could that the States duty towards them
was discharged This law. which the Press of to-
day has avowed was a Republican measure. origi-
mated IN a Democratic Houses tho Senate was so
equally divided between the two parties and the
Independent element was consequently so powerful,
that no strong partisan measure could ever have
passed. 1t was approved twas there then any rea-
son WHY il should not have been p by Republican
Governor. This law. originating in a commendabe
spirit of economy, was experiment which from
its incipiency has been so abused that its nom
repeal has been disgrace to all civilization. Let
us glance at the first results
About $50 convicts we're leased. On the 1st of
January, 1870, report showed only eight deaths
though above the average. not a remarkably heavy
mortality. But though the lease had not half eX-
pred the weakness If the system was glarlngly
manifest The lessees had worked the convicts from
early morning till 10 o'clock at night, and had not
allowed them TO rest on the Sabbath. Female con-
victs had been worked ndscriminatoly with the
males. One had been whipped to death, the
clothing of another had been brought TO the State
officer, with the statement that the convict
had escaped; but the clothing was bloody and
perforated with bullets; no report OF his
death has ever been made Prisoners, at the ex-
I,o,l hoa,, mad lons Will H.
out other clothing than their stripes, thus being ex-
posed to the danger of being shot for escaped con-
yicts The State officer reported the suspicion that
many conycts had been foully dealt with, as the
lessees were unable to account for them Of course,
these revelations melted legislatiOn-lt was never
productive of results hOwever-prOhIbiting these
outrages but as to the contract. 1t had been made
for two years and could not be annulled. The sec
ond wear of this experimental contract there was
only slight increase in the numbcrof convcts, but
n remarkable increase In the death-rate. This year
revealed the appalling fact that the evils of the sys-
ten had extended to almost all the counties in
the State. For prisoners made open complaint
that for the offence the judges had sentenced
them to terms Of different length. One negro had
been sentenced for life for stealing mackerel from
a country grocery. Ii was while tins experimental
contract was in force also that here in the City of
into burning furnace by one of the lcssees. Such
is the history of the earlier days of Georgas chain
gang
In December of 1871. the House was Democratic
and the Senate was Democratic the last Republican
Governor of Georgia was in pOwcr-n0t from cleo
ton however but in virtue of the fact that at the
resignal ion of his predecessor he had been Pres-
dent of the Senate. The expiration Of the convict
lease now demanded new legislation on the subject
Let MS even assume that the Act of 1869 was a
purely Republican measure. and product OF wilful
and deliberate malice. Here was a solidly Demo
cratic Legislature with every instance OF the evils
of the chain-gang system that have cited record
before them, vested with the power TO pass an act
abOshing the system even over the veto OF
the Governor Did they eradicate the evils OF
the so-called Radical rule from the state
Government Instead, they passed an act authorz-
ing the Governor to farm out the c0nylcts not TO
one person or one company OF persons,
but IN such numbers and to such persons
az III his discretion he might see proper
10 the evils Of having only one State
officer of the Pententiary, here was added an act
allowing the cOnvicts to pass still farther from the
states control, and to become scattered all over
the state. In accordance "lth TINS act a Den3-
cratic Governor on the 18th OF the following March
leased ont the Penitentlary for two years TO
the same company, under whom the qut11
RACES Of the preceding two years had
been committed. Georgias cOnvicts entered
upon another era OF inhuman outrages. Inc NOR
tal,ty during the existence of this contract ranges
at about per cent per ahnun. Mheh IT - leulcm-
bered that the average mortality OF all the prisons
I'm the United States is less than per cent per an
nun. one naturally infers that during these two
wears other than natural causes hurried some OF
Georgias convics into eternity The meagre reports
Of tLfs period evince some slight indications Of an
attempt at reform. 1t Is stated that the male and
female convcts were kept separatelyj but, ad-
mitting tins to be true, the fact that children
were born in the penitentiary was stain OF the
backest dye upon The character OF the essees Com
plants of the gross inequality of sentences were
atin rIfp
the same offence for which Others received one year
I'm brief during the existence of this contract find
unmlstakable indications of the same lnhunanity
and hrntolitv that were terminated with the 5ys
In ifself Tic contract cXpired AprLl l, 1874.