The Daily clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1866-1888, 1886-02-18
The Tennessee Mississippi Peniten-
tiary Question.

lfkhkNfN N A<CAkst NA0hA VII
Governor OF TENNESSEE" which deserves /
attention not alone from the favorable !.
showing as 10 the Tennessee Peniten-
tiary, but because 1t emanates from the !
chief executive Of our sister State Of
Tennessee. The figures given 10 that
communication show net profit ~ the
State of $8i,9l808 per anpum for the
years 1882 '83 "a and 80, (less 81, 900
loss by fire which ought not properly 10
tie deducted from The net profits. The
article ia question is evidently intended
TO contrast the Tennessee Pen tertiary
with that of Mississippi, ana deduce
therefrOm an uniavOrabe showing for
Mississippi. Mississippi will gain, not
lose, by the contrast.
We are very glad 10 have h 10 our
power 10 give sCme Information In
regard ~ tue Peniteutary Of Tennessee,
obtained from official and non official
sources We have endeayored TO view
the matter calmly, and certainly without
any prejudice TO Tennessee aud our
deliberate conclusion is that OF all the
penitentiaries in all this Southern cOun-
try. that Of Tennessee should have been
tue last in the catalogue selected to
compare with Mississippi or any other
Southern STATE, in order to make an
argument either for or against the lie az
ing system We have been on the look
out for the Tennessee Penitentiary TO be
dragged into the Penitentiary question
ia Mississippi. In fact, we had an idea
Of taking hold ourselves aud helping To
pull it in, but before doing So we began
search for more information on the
subject, and got all We wanted. Our
deductions are drawn from statistics
that go deeper down than any contained
IN the letter from the Governor of Ten.
nessee.
The example Of the Tennessee Peni
tertiary for some years after the war is
certainly not favorable to Safe control
and management, Tor il cost in the
neighborhood OF $l000 900, per annum, TO
run IL; and IL certainly is not favorable
to the leasing system, unless penlten.
taries are great tub mills of private
Ell ernrise for the ceaseless labor Of the
criminal classes, or huge criminal sau.
sage mills wherein the convicted wrong !
dUer, old or young, high or low, rich or
poor, male or female, white or cOlored,
Innocent or guilty, repeutant or repro
bate ere ground up together in one
promiscuUus mass TO turn out the shin
ing dollars for the State and lessees. |
Why, the records Of the Tennessee Pen.
iteutiary shoV that more crime and
criminal negligence have blen perpe |
trated under the guise Of enforcing the
laws of the State than were committed /
by the inmates themselves! The warden,
IN his report, says, that under the
present laws and customs the Tennessee |
Penltentiary IS n sCho j of crime Instead |
OF being a reformatory institution" lie |
also states that there were about 80 boys |
IN the Penllentiary under Is years oil
agei THAT no woman should be sen
fenced to the Tennessee Penitentary
until the State makes better provision |
Tor their care" and had the pardoning |
power | would reprieve every woman
now IN the Prnitentiary, and those who |
may be sentenced, until the State can or
mll provide u place to keep them, in |
keeping with the age in which we live
A sad commentary.
Did any of your readers ever visit the |
Tennessee coal and iron mics, worked |
by cOnvicts--say within the past few
years2 There the CONFLICTS are forced to
do work that free labor can only be |
hired to perform ut price of from two
to three dollars per day. The Tennessee
Penitentiary by the last report which
we have been able to procure, had on an
average nearly 400 convicts. Our read
ers can make the calculation for them
selves as to the worth of the r labor.
Had the conyicts of the Mississippi Pen
ltentiary been worked or treated as
those of the Tennessee Penitentiary, at
any time within the past eight or nine
years, all the lessees, the Superintendent,
sergeant and every guard connected
with the concern, would have been in
dicted by the grand jury. The investi-
CATION OF the treatment, etc, of the con
vets OF the Tennessee Penitentiary made
a year or two since, deye ped state OF
affairs in the coal and iron mines which
would put To the blush the deeds OF the
Duke OF Alva in the low countries. Pa
pers not only in Tennessee, but through.
out the United States raised their voices
IN condemnation of the state of affairs
existing. And il even half of the report
was true, the leasing system of Tonnes
see would be blackeueG all over with the
pitch OF their coal mines mixed with the
blood and tears aud sweat of the con.
yicts.
According to the report of lSS1-S2,
500 conyIcts were worked in these coal
mines, % in railroad tunnel, aud 6S5
at the prison walls at only $l.00 day
each, the 800 worked in coal mines,
would have returned the lessees $3.50,
00O out of which they could we'll afford
to pay the State Sl0l 900 for the lease
and have SIS, 900 left over and $50 con.
viots without cost.
he tennessee penitentiary has the finest
workshops south Of the Ohio river within
its walls. The machinery and buildings
are valued ut yearly a quarter OF million
dollars aud there Is on hand nearly half
million OF flashed and unfinished mate
/ rial. Inside the walls about zoo convictS
are employed. They work in stone. iron
marble, etc. Mouldings. castings, wood
work, furniture, wagons, etc, are turned
out in immense quantities. aud this is the
IuOst valuable aud remuueratlve labor
that convictS can be put at. Walnut lum-
Der can be purchased there almost as
cheap as pine here, and wagon timb can
be had in abundance and at low prices.
Rich stone quarries are at the very door Of
I fh., ..,l Il md