The prison mirror. [volume] (Stillwater, Minn.) 1887-1894, 1889-03-07
MISSOURI CONVICT WRITES.
He Scores the Contract system as Car
rfed OH in that State, and Shows that
the Lot of a Convict without Money
or influential Friends is a Hard One.


or influential Friends is a Hard One.
Editor Prison Mirror:
l don't know whether am out of order
or not in sending these lines to you, but if
you think them worthy 1 hope you will
give them space in the columns of your
valuable and interesting paper-THE
MIRROR.
| read with interest the article, Take
Notice Legislators" in your issue OF Feb.
and wish that were able to PROFOUND the
same question to the ''eminent statesmen"
now assembled here-ostensibIy for legis
lative purposes, but who have been in session
for forty days and forty nghts-in the sa-
looms. think they must have come here
fOrfive dollars day. as they have not passed
solitary bill yet The chaplain reads
prayers and then they adjourn-tO the sa-
loon. This seems to be the order OF the day
and all they have accomplished as yet. But
AS | said, ] wish some one would PROFOUND
the same question as did the Hon. Frank
Searle few days ago before the conference
of the prison committee OF the Minnesota
legislature: do not forget the convicts;
they should receive a part of their earnings
dS q ItWdlU lOl CllclI SOtO Ou
can set this state. Missouri. down as one of
the sister states that practices cOlluSiOn with
contractors and suffers her convicts to per-
form outrageous tasks. Poor fellows get
their backs lacerated for not being able to
cope with the expert who has had the ex-
perience of three or four terms. Even they
who are able to accomplish the task get
nothing for it from the contractors, or the
state except their fare back to the place they
came fronl--and they may live thousand
miles from there-a suit of clothes which
a Jew in town here will give them ''doilah
and halaph'' for; that is if man is lucky
enough to have friend who will send him
suit of clothes fit to be seen in. 1t looks as if
their object was, to have the man go out in
such condition that he will be compelled to
steal, be re-arrested and sent back, that the
contractors may profit by his past experience.
There are two or three hundred men who
have gone out and come back again, since l
have been here. l have asked great many
of them, when / had an opportunity on
holidays-we get two a year; Fourth of July
and Christmas-nO Thanksgiving here. that
is Yankee institution they don't believe
in, besides more dollars in the con-
tractors and perhaps in the states pocket
AS l said, have asked them why in the
world they came back-ther answer in
variably was: ''What could l do? l didn't
have enough money to pay for nights
lodging after paying my fare. Everybody
seemed to smell the penitentiary in my
clothes; looked upon me with suspicion. as
they naturally would at a man pale and
emaciated as we all look going out of here.
Not a second shirt to my back; clothes hang
ing on me like scare crow. Who would
hire such forlorn. suspicious looking object?
l had to steal or beg. and as stealing is con-
sidered by respectable people the most hon
orable of the two, stole. was arrested and
here AIN. What could l dO?" Echo ans
wers, what.