Daily Republican., 1886-07-16
A southern Convic, ReyoIt

southern convict Revolt
We are informed by telegraph tina
the DSde County, Georgia, troubl,
amongst the convicts are over. I
might be interesting to examine into
ano see what these troubles were. A.
far as we can inform ourselves, tn,
men who are blamed with causing the
trouble are black oonvicts, sent te
prison for petty crimes very easily
trumped up against colored people In
she South. These oonvicts, by q de.
spicable law Of the State, are hired out
by the superintendent to work for any.
body or any corporation that wants 70
hire them. In the present instance
they were hired, to coal miners oorpo.
ration and were put to work mining
coal. They rebslled against being
compelled to work for nothing In COM
petition with other honestly paid labor.
Ignorant men that they were, they
knew 1t was not right that their COM
pulsory service should be used against
their more fortunate brother workmen,
Doth black and white. They knew IL
was not right that they should be COM
PEELED to work for nothing but the
scantiest kind OF prison fare to enable
their employers TO take contracts lower
than others who were compelled to hire
labor from other sources. We do not
oensure these poor black men for refus-
Ing TO work. The inhumanity with
which they are treated Is sufficient
cause to make them rebellious with the
additional one Of being compelled to
com pete with honest labor to the dis.
advantage OF their fellow laborers.
THESE poor men when they mutinied
were subdued by force, and to make
sure that they were reduced to q proper
state OF humiliation they were put in a
stockade and deprived OF food and
water for two days. We are not sur
prlsed that Mr.. Towers, the keeper of
the penitentiary, who rides about
amongst the convicts with a rifle
ACROSS the pommel OF his saddle, ex-
plains the situation In telegram in
this manner:
"Mutiny over. am taking convicts
out OF the stockade as fast as irons can
be put on. All the leaders are out but
one, who says he will not 20 out alive.
but have no fears Of him, as they are
all coming out now as called. Will be
in Atlanta in the morning. Glad | did
not have to kill any"
A refusal OF even bread and water
will bring the answer. MI. Towers
himself, we doubt not, would have his
martial spirit somewhat curbed IL he
were put upon strict diet of nothing
for two days.
Yes, the poor convicts are coming out
OF the stockade now, Mr.. To wers writes,
as fast as they can be ironed; that is,
with balls and chains fastened to their
limbs, In which condition they will be
compelled to work after satiating their
thirst and satisfying their hunger with
bread and water. There was one stub
born fellow amongst them, who said he
would not come ont alive, but the hu.
name Mr.. Towers, rifle in hand, had no
fears for him. He, too, would come
before he starved. Good, kind Mr..
Towers was so glad he did not have to
kill anybody.
We can almost imagine many Of our
readers to say, Why, what Is this all
about, where did 1t take place, away off
In some desert island inhabited by saw
ages? Oh, no, kind reader, nothing of
that SORT 1t all happened In one OF the
states OF this Union, within sight OIL
church steeples pointing heaven ward,
and within sound Of the church-going
bells. 1t happened In country where
all meR are declared TO be free and
equal, In State where slavery has but
recently been abolished But this is
only the result OF the penitentiary sys-
tenn in most OF the Southern States. and
that 1t Is submitted to can only be ac-
counted for on account OF the degrade
ton of labor. These poor con victs are
so inhumanly treated that they live bu,
q few short years, and diseases arising
from filth and neglect carry them off in
fearful ratio Of mortality. 1t takes but
q small provocation in Georgia and
some other Southern States to make a
colored penitentisry convict. The
smallest kind OF an offence lands them
In the penitentiary, when they are
loaded with ball and chain and sent ont
I olsbor. This system effectually pre-
vents crowded penitentiaries In the
south but ts 1t humane? Here Is a
held for prison philanthropists How
different Ia the working OF an Ohio peni
tentiary, or penitentiary in any Of the
Northern States, where, unless for cApi.
tai offenses, prisoners are given A ohsncel
TO reform and become good citizens, In
stead of being starved and worked tol
death.