Woodville Republican. (Woodville, Miss.) 185?-current, 1888-12-22

Meridian News.

The News having seen dispatches
in the New Orleans, Chattanooga
and other of its exchanges, about
the cancellation Of the Penitentiary /
lease, and desiring to lay before its
readers the real facts concerning the
same, a reporter interviewed Capt.
Hardy, the president of the G. & S.
/. r. r., and had free talk with
him upon the subject, and by re-
quest has furnished the following
statement for publication:
GAS you know, prior to January,
1887, the convIcts were hired out on
farms, railroads, levees, or wherever
the leases could hire them, but they |
we're worked mainly on farms There
was great dissatisfaction in the State
at working them on farms, and com
peting with honest free labor in the
agricultural pursuits, and one Of the
perplexing questions of the day was,
"What shall be done with the con-
yicts!"
"In this state of the public mind,
| suggested by short publication in
leading paper in the State that
they be put on the Gulf and Ship
Island railroad and other public
works or works of internal improve
ments.
"Ihis suggestion met with much
favor and eliminated in the passage
Of the act creating a Board of Con-
troll, and leasing the penitentiary TO
the Gulf and Ship Island railroad for
term Of five years from January l,
1887.
II believed the building Of the
Gulf and Ship Island railroad TO be
the glandest enterprise in the South,
and especially for our State, as it
would open the splendid harbor at
Gulfport to the commerce of the
world. l thought the convicts could
be used in its construction and be
we'll treated and worked properly,
and the spirit and purpose of the
law fully and fairly carried out and
thus cure the evils of the convict
system complained of, and at the
same time be the means of giving
the State seaport of her own, and
thus establish commercial indepen-
dence, and place her on the high
road to great prosperity.
"These were the beliefs and
motives which actuated me in the
beginning.
"Our company took possession on
the 1st of January 1887. had not
long to wait to find that 1 had made
a mistake in supposing that l could
work these conviets on the railroad
and fulfill to the letter all the pur-
poses had in view by the laws under
which they were sentenced.
1 thought, however, that some of
the defects in the system could be
remedied by legislation, and ! pointed
them out and urged them on the
legislature, but little attention was
paid to the suggestion.
II then went before the commit
tees of the Legislature and asked
them TO take the penitenitary off my
hands. l went even further and
urged it, but to no effect, as a bill
introduced for that purpose was
defeated l then proposed to the
Board of Control to exercise their
power and take 1t back. This the
Board declined to do saying very
properly that as long as my company
kept its contract it could not cancel
the lease and resume control.
$50 there was but one of three
courses to pursue:
"1st. To continue to work them
with all the disadvantages and odium
attaching to any and every one who
may, as a lessee, have anything to
do with them, or
20. Turn the whole concern over
nolens volens and stand suit on the
bond or
"3. Violate the contract Of lease
and thus force a cancellation of It,
sin this condition of affairs l met
the Board of Control on Monday,
the 3rd of December, and the lease,
by agreement, was cancelled without
damages, the G. &. S. 1. r. r Co.,
agreeing to pay the sum Of $3.50. due
by it on the Superintendent salary
and travelling expenses of the Board
of Control, and $40, 900. in bonds
due for this years lease.
"Of course The Board of Control
assigned number of breaches of
the contract to justify its actions in
cancelling the lease. Some of them