Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-08-10
CONVICTS IN TENNESSEE.
Troublesome Question for tha Legislature
to settle.

A Troublesome Question for tha Legislature
to settle.
Special to the New York Times.
NASHVILLE, August 8.-The questions which
will come before the legislature at the extra
session to begin the last day Of this month are
already enYossing the attention of laboring
people and politicians all over the state By
the careless enrolling Of bill at the regular
session the election laws were rendered in
operative. This error must be corrected. and
under the constitution the state must be re-
districted and the senator's and representatives
reapportioned.
There are several other important matters to
be disposed Of, but the matter that is attracting
attention in and outside the state is the peni-
Tertiary question, made prominent by the re-
cent trouble with free miners who had been
supplanted by convicts in Anderson county.
This penitentiary question is a complicated
one. The convicts, numbering about / 800, are
leased to the Tennessee Coal Iron and Railroad
Company at 100000 per annum. This COM
pany works nearly 500 men at Tracy City and
Inman in coal and iron mines and leases $50
to the Knoxville Iron Company at Coal Creek,
l65 to Georgia corporation at Oliver Springs
and 500 to the Tennessee agricultural works.
which occupied the main prison in Nashville
A little over year ago, however. tho workshops
not since been in operation. The 500 men
leased have consequently been on the market
and have been rented out to build street rail-
roads or engage in other labor.
Some weeks ago some of these men were sent
to Briceville to mine coal under a contract
and it was this that precipitated the trouble.
The lease has four years and some months to
run, having been made in January. 1880, and
the question as to whether the legislature can
annul this lease is an open one. 1t is contended
by some that the convicts can be sent back to
the main prison by process of law, that the
sentence of the court is not being carried out
in working the convicts at the so-called branch
prisons. and, as a last resort, this may be at
tempted.
The question naturally arises: What could be
done with the convicts here? The main prison
il in the center of Nashville unsanitary TO q
dangerous degree, being fifty years Old and
will accommodate not more than one-t third Of
the ], 800 prisoners. The state cannot we'll al.
ford to give up the lease system just now, as
the SlO0, 900 revenue would be lost and an ex-
penso of nearly 900 per annum incurred,
and the revenue is now barely sufficient for state
purposes.
The most sanguine believe that the most that
will be done by the legislature is the raising of
a commission to select O site and plans for new
penitentiary. with the object in view of doing
away with the lease system when the present
lease expires. There are some who favor the
establishing Of great farm on the Texas plan
Others think that manufacturing should be on
gagged in and limited quantity of any one
class OF goods made. Again, it is proposed to
revise the criminal laws and substitute the
whipping post for short terms in the peniten-
tiary and thus greatly reduce the number of
convicts. In the meantime the questions are
being discussed all over the state and laborine
men are making active preparations to secure
every concession possible. The best members
of the Legislature are at sea as to what to do,
1t is conceded that if no relief is granted or
promised for an early date the free miners at
all the branch prisons will rise up and release
the conyicts.
While Gov. Buchanan is opposed to the lease
system he has asked the legislature to provide
penalties for interfering with state convicts
and to empower him to utilize civil and mill
tary authority in suppressing trouble.