Sacramento daily record-union., 1888-10-20
PRISON MANAGEMENT.
THE OBJECT OF THE STATE In
PUNISHING CRIMINALS.
Suggestions on the Employment of
Prison Labor-Advantages of
the Folsom Prison.

the following communication WIS lncccpo-
rated. Lack Of space prevented It's pubIi-
cation with the report on Taesday last:
san FRANcIsco, 0cteber /, 1855.
j. X. LofzreA, Esq, State Prison Commits
sioner Glen Ellen, Soaoala County, Cdl.-MY
DEAR Mr.. LUTTRELL: Yours of Septem-
ber 18th, asking my views on prison man
agement, etc, has been received, and ]
take great pleasure az presenting taem
herewith, although ] doubt whetherthev
are new 10 you, or ce1 give you much in
formation.
The primary obiecs, as ! take it, Of pun
ishing nalefactoTs Is TO Jlaie them feel
that they are suffering tho consequence of
their misdeeds; for, without the fear of
punishment Ineaacing tie evil-door, crime
weuld rapidly increase; and, as the inno-
cent community have already suffered by
the commission of the criminal act, !
think the public should not be called upon
TO bear the additional burden that the
maintenance of the snaleiactefs in idle
ness would entail The labor Of prisoners,
during their Incarceration, should 90 to-
wards defraying the expenses CT their con-
viction, aad of maintenance while in
prison, but their work should conflict as
little as possible with free labor, as it would
be manifestly unjust for low priced prison
labor to compete against tie honest arti-
san struggling to make living for himself
and family This would necessarily limit
the field of convict employment, and
think, therefore, that prisoners should be
employed ON works Of a public or quasi
public nature, which would result in bene-
lit to the community as whole, while
not hurtful to the interests of the laboring
classes
Several ways occg9 10 me that might
possibly tend towards making our prison
self-supporting, among them the employ
ment OF prison labor in the construction of
irrigating canals, manufacturing in GER
tain lines, and the quarrying of stone at
Folsom for general and public use.
The first OF these would materially aid
In the development OF the agricultural and
pomological resources of California, which
are fast growing in Importance, and
would hare to be accomplished by the
" farming out' of prisoners, unless the
State Itself would inaugurate sys-
tenn On its own account, which is unlikely.
But this scheme is open to the objection of
competing with unskilled labor in the
same employment. Such objection is a
strong one and might possibly offset the
advantages which the State as a whole
would gain from the utilization of convict
labor in this direction; but if found prac-
ticable, the plan would furnish employ
ment for long time to come, as our dry
valleys need many miles of these canals in
order to reach the highest state of cultiva-
tion.
There is, however, great need OF manu-
factories in California, where we are at
present engaged in developing the agricult-
ural resources of the State to a much
greater extent than any other industry.
As our State grows in Importance, the
necessity becomes greater for the produc-
tion at home of everything that is con-
sumed here, and the prosperity of Califor-
MIA, in my judgment, depends as materially
upon the establishment and operation of
manufactures as upon the development of
our agricultural resources. We are now
in the condition of a man who is using all
his faculties for the purpose of feeding
himself-letting all his other faculties lie
idle, although fully competent not cnly to
cloth himself, but also to manufacture the
implements with which to raise his grain
and fruits As it is best for the develop
ment of the human body that all its parts
be exercised, so in the body polite all in
dustries should be fostered and developed
to the end that the greatest number should
be benefited by the strength derived from
their association.
| am aware that prejudice exists in the
minds of the people against convict labor,
and, as stated previously, it is not right
that the standard of wages should be re-
dueed and legitimate business enterprises
crippled by competition from such
source. But, SO far the California State
Prisons have not encroached on, or inter
tered with the manufacturing industries in
our midst to any great extent. Perhaps
chiefly because there have been but few to
interfere with. Still, there is certain
class of manufacture that prisoners could
engage III without competition with cut
side free labor to any damaging extent.
The manufacture of grain bags, now car
ried on at San Quentin, has been appar-
rentiy Of benefit to the farmers, and has
saved the State large sums of money.
However, | think it is only Il question of
time when all California grain will be
handled through elevators and shipped in
bulk, as 1t is the custom in the Eastern
States. This will not happen for some
time, though, and meantime the iute ma
chinery can be utilized as at present. /
also think well of the sueges
tIon male by the Pathological Com
mission, that the State prisoners
he employed to make clothing, boots, shoes,
etc, for themselves and for the Insane
Asylums and other State institutions.
This would possess the advantage of en-
abling State officials to know what mater
ial and workmanship went into the goods
consumed by these institutions, and think
prove saving in the long run. / under
stand that there are now 3, ,l47 insane
patients at Napa and Stockton combined,
and the new asylum near San Jose will
make room for more. The State Prisons
at Folsom and San Quentin contains 1,779
inmates This makes 4 total of 4,92l
persons in the four institutions, which of
itself creates u large consumption of what
would be manufactured. 1t might also be
found economical for the State to make
equivalent donations of clothing and boots
and shoes to the various Orphan Asylums
which are now aided by appropriations of
money, or at least do SO in part; thus as
slsting the State in furnishing work to its
conyicts while also lessening the drain on
Its Treasury. But in all these operations
due regard should be had to the cost of
hAiulucluie, aS Sne iState certainly can
not afford TO expend, in labor, the equiva-
lent Of more than that for which it could
purchase like goods in the open market;
because in prison management, as in other
pursuits, economy is the basis Of thrift and
financial sounduess
70 carry out this plan suitable buildings
would have to be erected, either at San
Quentin or ut Folsom, and the proper ma
chinery purchased for their equipment.
think the fact is beyond question that
cheaper and better buildings for the money
could be erected at Folsom, as there
the State owns a valuable quarry of gran
ite, and the buildings already erected at
test the skill of the prison labor that con-
structed them. Folsom also possesses
advantages over San Quentin as manu-
featuring center, because in the latter place
steam po#er has TO be utilized, which is of
necessity more costly than the fine water
power available at Folsom. where the
gorge of the American river concentrates
the waters Of an immense watershed, and
where, by the construction of dams and
reservoirs, the water could be controlled
during the summer months. In fact, |
think that even the manufacture CT jute
rasr, h.,r- I.