The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1893-02-24
PRISON LABOR.
Republicans Push the Magee Bill In the
House-Mr. Suixer's Speech.

Republicans Push the Magee Bill In the
House-Mr suIzer's Speech.
The Magee bill. preventing the letting of
contract prison labor for less than IS cents
per day. was called up as q special order in
the House by Mr. Sulzer yesterday after
noon. and Mr.. Deery spoke briefly for it.
Mr.. Sulzer spoke for it ct more length. out
was harrassed by questions and then called
down at the end OF tive minutes by Red
man. Barnes and others. On motion of Mr.
Higbee, however. he was given more time.
Among other things he said:
The following contracts will expire be-
fore the meeting of the next Legislature:
Northern prison, IS men at cOoperaRe, re-
ceivIng GO cents per day. Dec. 2. 1893.
Ford, johnson az Co., chairs and furniture.
100 men at TO cents day, Feb. 20. 1894; so
men at go cents, Aug. 16. 1894 Dodge ~
Co.. boots and shoes. 180 men at IS cents
Amazon Hosiery Company, 200 men at IS
cents Dec. l. 1893.
''Othet contracts in the northern prison
expire at future times, ranging as far
ahead as 1895. At the southern prison no
contracts expire previous to the meeting of
the next Legislature. So If this inject ia
considered as matter of experiment. IL
the result is q failure. it would work no
injury TO the State except TO keep out of
employment about four hundred men at the
northern prison for short period until the
next Legislature could take some decisive
action upon the subject. Many important
matters were originally experiments. Some
experiments have been failures, but some
OF the most signal successes of ancient or
modern history have been experiments.
$50 the objection raised to the Deery bill
was Its expense to the State in the pur-
chase of manufactures or requiring. as
many of the member claim. tho expendi-
ture Of large sums of money. But this 10
not required by the Magee bill which, as
/ have said before. would not cost the State
of Indiana any thing. There has been o
demand for this class of legislation from
manufacturers or laboring men and other
citizens interested in the coOperage. fur
nlture, boot and shoe. harness, hollow
ware. saddletrees and brush and wire goods
manufacturers. In the last campaign in
Indiana both political parties promised
relief upon this subject, and this bill Will
test the honesty or dishonesty OF
the pretensions made in that campaign.
The value of the Indiana prison product
is nearly million dollars, and for
this the State of Indiana receives S1S3, 600,
leaving profit of One-half q million 70 the
contractors. who get their labor for less
than 80 cents per day. and put 1t into active
competition with the honest labor engaged
In producing the same character of goods.
which receives. on the average, nearly 50
per day, and the chief injury is not from
the number of men that are employed by
this competition. but it is in the lowerin &
nec6a-
sarily cOmpels the manufacturer working
honest labor to sell his goods for the lower
price. which necessarily reduces the wages
of his workingmen: and the average of
about two or three hundred men engage ed
in this prison affects MANY thousands of
honest wOrkingmen throughout the State.
Il believe can secure the price de-
manded by the bill for this contract labor
In the State of Kansas they contract their
labor at Sf14 cents per day. The average
In Ohio, working medium class of goods is
so cents per day. In OHIO. carriages and
wagons. "a cents per day. On iron goods
we receive for our contracts an average of
81 cents per day. while Illinois receives for
cOnvicts making the same character of
goods 6lA cents. and yet the average price
of the free labor in both is the same; if
anything q little higher in Indiana than in
Illinois. In harness and saddlery We To
celve Is cents per day for our men: Illinois
Ola cents; Ohio, II Is cents: Missouri
leases her men on the public ways and re-
ceIves 81 day for each.
NOW are these contractors going TO
cease and not pay % cents per day. and
take their machinery out of the prison and
start factory operated with free labor az
cost of more than $3.50 for each employs
daily! This bill even now will give them
labor at 90 per cent. less than free labor
would cost In like pursuits"
Rednan demanded the previous question
as soon AS Dir. Sulzer had closed, and the
bill was passed 10 third reading by the solid
vote of the Republicans.