Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1883-02-08
Southern Prisons.

The report OF the inspectors Of the
Alabama penitentlary makes one shud.
der 70 think prison can become such
a pandimonium Of all that Is CHASTITY,
sickly aud dcathiy 1t Is enough alao
TO put onr own state on guard. The
horrors related By Prince liRApArEtSE
concerning the Russian prison are not
near so reYolting as these, when il is
considered the story came from an h-
mate instead of an official committee.
The Alabama couyicts are leased TO
contractors ms they are Ia this state
and In many other Southern states
Speaking on the mIues at NEWCASTLE
nd the convicts prison the inspectors
say.
",rhe beds and blankets were filthy,
particularly Mt NEWCASTLE. The plis.
ons were infested with vcrmin and
not ample for tho accommodation of
the conSicts. The squad working ON
the railroad was In Il worse condition.
They We're packed In small weather
houses, the sick and well together,
Their clothing and persons were inles-
TED with vormin. They seldom had
vegetable diet, The average number
Of this squad did not exceed forty.
Twelve have died. What has been
sald Of the prisoners at Cokctnu and
Newcastle as to hetlugleanlinessa
vermin may Gc said OF nearly all the
Prisons except that elsewhere these
evils and abuses exist in a modified
formn
The warden of the penlteutiary SAYS
this condition of affairs IS irremodlable
under the present system, and thus
pays his tribute to tlat system rs an
agent Of civilization;
~ am firmly of the opinion thukour
system makes men and women worse.
They are moro demoraliged, and less
ut TO return 10, or enter upon their sos
cial duties than when c0nvictcl So
clety Is less secure after tllcir return
than before their conviction How Is
IL possible 10 reform mau or woman
without first inspiring Self.respCct
and how Is II possible for him pf her
to have seli'rcspect when rolling IN
iilth and vermin and proved upon az
night by vermin % such an extent as
TO drive him or her mad2 | am pre-
pared 10 demonstrate that our system
Is q better training school for crin-
inals than any dens 81 inlquity that
exist in our large cities The first las-
som taught is that the state cares moth
ing for the criminal nor his won being.
that the only interest felt In HIM Is as
to how much money the statean con-
tractor can Jointly realize from his la
Dor
licre is what the chaplain OF the
penitentlary says about the system:
''rhis neglect OF rand cruelty "a con-
vlcts may 90 on for q time vet, but
sooner or later the curses OF Almighty
God will be showered down upon the
commonwealth. Unless the prcsent
system Is changed, the Judge OF all the
earth viii see that retrihutive justioe
Is melted IN due season ia the state OF
Alabama. Under the present modus
operandi the Alabama penitentiary, az
a reiormatory institution is, one OF the
grandest farces and one OF the most
sublime hlmbugs that hannah intplli-
gence could possibly imagine. The
whole az the present regime Is palpa-
BILE falschooi, and the state peniten-
tiary Is itself a lie.N
Let our legislators read these ex-
tracts carefully and see that the pris-
ons Of Texas are never brought to
such condition az to bring shame
upon our people and Disgrace to our