The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1893-01-13
The ARKANSAS PEN.
The Wholesale Death of Convicts Due to
Bad Food. Ehth and Bad Ma agemeH {
Generally

| The Wholesale Death of Convicts Due to
Bad Food. ENth and Bad Ma -agemeHt
| Generally.
ST. LOUIS, Jan. 7.-Dr. g. NJ. d. Cam
trell, of Little Rock, is in the city, and
to reporter made an interesting state
ment regarding the recent deaths OF
convicts at that place. DIR. Cantren
was penitentiary physician for four
years, his last term of Office ending in
MAY, 1890. when he was succeeded by
DR. J. j. Robertson. 1t was during his
| term of Office in the fall of 1858 that so
much excitement was created By the
| exposure of the treatment of convicts
at Coal Hill. At that time two or three
deaths occurred from the excessive use
of the cato -nine-tails. DIR. Cantrell
was called upon by the state peniten-
tiary board to accompany its members
upon q tour of inspection of the Coal
| Hill camps and was afterwards sent to
! inspect the different camps throughout
the state. DR.. Cantrell in speaking up
on the subject said:
II always dwelt upon the proper
treatment of convicts and the sur
roundings Of convict camps in my re-
ports made to the board prior to the
time when the legislative assembly ere
a,ed the Office of prison inspector in
1888. In my last report made in Janu-
arg, 1891, to the present state board,
consisting OF Gov. Eagle, Attorney
General Atkinson and Secretary of
State Chism, devoted fully one-half of
it to the unsanatory condition of outside
camps, and showed that the death rate
was greater among convicts in tho
camps than those confined in the peni-
Tertiary walls. The custom is for this
report to be submitted to the board,
and in turn sent to the legislature with
the governors message.
''All that portion OF my report bear
ing on the filthy condition of the camps
was stricken out by Attorney General
Atkinson. who argued that my prov
ince was within the penitentiary walls
and that I had no authority over con-
eicts confined in camps. Further, that
the report. if presented to the legisla-
ture as had drafted it, would act as q
two-edged sword, inasmuch as that
body would bring the board to task for
being derelict in their duties, and
therefore he thought it best to strike it
out
His opinion was seconded by the
governor and all that portion was sup
pressed; was never printed, and never
found its way into the legislature of
1891 That report in full is now on file
in Secretary Chism's Office, and it is
only just for me to say here that both
he a:d Prison Inspector Carroll were
both in favor Of submitting my report
in full.
with my past knowledge of the IN
sanatory condition which existed at
times past in the camps during my term
of Office, and exposures to which con-
victs were sometimes subjected, l know
as a positive fact that there was a
larger percentage OF deaths than should
have occurred.
Now as TO the recent deaths at
Helena and Little Rock: Personal in
vestigations coupled with past expert
ence suggest to my mind that the
deaths were due to bad food and I'M
sanatory oundings-sleeping in
freight cars and drinking water from
sewer drains contiguous to slaughter
houses, etc, has been reported. If the
precaution that l suggested &c the
board in my last report had been put
into force the recent deaths would not,
in my opiuiou, have occurred. l re-
peatcdly tried to get the board To sup
ply the convicts with better bedding,
and my efforts did succeed in having
new stockades built at nearly all the
camps in the state during my first term
of office. 1t is impossible to keep q
large body of men healthy when their
beds arc covered with vermin and their
food unwholesome.
The convict lease system is inhuman
aud is a blot upon the name of the
state. In my opinion, the best thing
that can be done 20 alleviate the evil is
for the Legislature to abolish the lease
system during the coming term and let
the state run the penitentiary itself
These convictS are men. and should be
tree ted as men. The lease system is
all wrong and the state should run the
penitentiary, even If it does not make
quite as much out of it as under the
present system"