Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1881-07-21


ton of the matter as the committee |
could well make. since they conceived |
their mission to be that not merely OF in
vestigators, but of reformers. But few
abuses of magnitude are reported, and
these have in some instances been cor
rected, and all combined do not, in our
opinion, initiate against the value of the
convict system of the State or call for
extraordinary remedies.
Col. B. G. Lockett, of Dougherty
county, President of Penitentiary Com
inittee No. 2, has memoralized the Legis-
lature in reference to so much OF the
committees report as refers to the camps
which he and his associates control
Colonel LOckett traverses the allegations
of the report as to prolonged hours OF
labor, want of ventilation, dirty bedding.
claiming of the convicts together at
night. insufficiency of water and food,
and deficiency of medical attendance.
He replies that there are but few work
ing days of twelve and fourteen hours in
the year; that the convicts are allowed
from one to four hours rest at dinner,
according to the season; that the matter
of ventilation is in their own hands; that
their bedding is summed frequently and
renovated three times a year; that only
such convicts as are considered bad are
chained at all; that an abundance of
water is kept in the building and stockade
at all times; that food is issued with par
ticular uniformity, consisting of three
quarters of a pound of bacon, or a
pound or a pound and a quarter of
fresh meat per day with vegetables,
unlimited. AS to medical attendance,
the same physician attends the camps
as attends the memorialist's family. The
two convicts whom the committee found
sick went to work the next day of their
own volition. He further says that no
boss is allowed to punish convict save
in presence of the manager, except for
trivial offenses. As to the three convicts
held after their term of service had ex-
PRED. he says there were six who were
held for bad conduct, and the facts were
reported to the keeper of the peniten-
tiary.
He has no knowledge of a female
convict being whipped except in one in
stance, and that was not in the presence
of men.
As to the Richmond county camp,
which the committee allege has an I'M
healthy location, he replies that the
camp is located near the limits of Au-
gusta, white families are living within
within fifty yards of the camp, aud there
have been no deaths at this location.
The convicts are allowed two hours for
meals, come out before daylight and
return before dark. Water is supplied
in the largest quantities; the physician
in charge resides in Augusta and visits
the camp three times a week, and, when
sickness prevails, as often as the neces-
sity of the case demands. A large num-
Der of convicts at this camp recently
came from the jails, ana they are troub-
led with swollen feet, naturally. The
stripping and whipping of women in the
presence of men never occurred.
The memorialists further stat that the
hours of labor at the Cedarto vn camp
are the same as at the other camps. No
convicts under control of Penitentiary
Company No. 2 have been cruelty
whipped at the Cedartown camp, save
one, and the guard who inflicted the
punishment was Immediately discharged.
The convict burned at Cedartown while
hiding in the brush was under the con-
troll of other parties and not of the
lessees. The memorialist further states
that his camps have been under
the constant supervision of the keeper
of the penitentiary and the physician
appointed by law. The Governor has
likewise visited them and is competent
to furnish information in reference to
them. In addition, three committees
from the grand juries of Dougherty
county have inspected the camps and
made full reports thereon. The memo
rial is fortified with exhibits containing
transcripts of the court records en-
| bodying the reports of the committees of
the grand inquests, which in every way
support the statements of the memorial
ist The inspection of the Richmond
county camp was participated in by
Messrs. Thomas B. Phinizy, w. II. Bar
rett and W. Daniel DR.. Eugene FOs-
ter, physician at the Richmond county
camp, denies that the woman Wilson,
who was delivered of premature birth,
was cruelty treated, or that any of the
convicts there were cruelty whipped.
The memorialist presents further in proof
of the humane and proper treatment of
the convIcts, a comparison of death rates
taken from the official reports of other
States for the years 1879 and 1880, as fol
lows:
Mississippi, 997 convicts; deaths 1872, or s1k
| per cent
Texss, s,577 convicts; deaths 25S or 16-1OO
| per cent
South Carolina, els cOnvicts; deaths 80. or 5
| per cent
Alabama. s2s convicts; deaths 60. or per
cent.
Maryland. IA convicts; deaths 10, or "a per
cent.
Massachusetts,, $50 convi0ts; deaths IS. or
2 1910 per cent.
Virginia, 9s7 convicts; deaths 20, or 2 4O1OO
per cent
Georgia, 1873 convicts; deaths IL. or q Of
per cent.
Upon which the memorialist observes:
Thus Georgia shows the smallest per-
centage of death rate of any prison sys
TEN, whose records your memOrialist has
been enabled to reach. The death rate
of the world at large is about per cent.
Upon a review of these figures, it would
appear that the penitentiary system of
Georgia, in every detail of labor, cloth
ing, food, medical treatment and punish
ment, presents a record which cannot
possibly be improved upon by any legis-
lation within the reach or power of the
General Assembly"
Such is the substance of the memorial,
and il is well to note that the statements
contained in it and in the added reports
of the grand juries, have all the binding
character given by the sanctity of an
oath. The memorialist urges, On behalf