The Wadsworth dispatch. [volume] (Wadsworth, Nev.) 1892-1899, 1894-07-18
Shall Uncle Sam Board His own Pris

"a Ros WV yChrs
Shall Uncle Sam Board His Own Pris-
oners?
It Is probably known to but few dwell
ers on Unole Sans farm that the gov
ernment of the United States owns only
one prison, small tumble down affair
on McNeill's island, situated within the
limits Of the city of Washington. There
Is no other first class government in the
world that Is so short of prison space as
ours. and an effort is now being made to
induce congress to supply the want.
Although Uncle Sam has SO few cells
Tor the reception Of prisoners, thousands
Of persons are convicted annually in the
United States courts, the number during
the last fiscal year being 1904. These
convicts are invariably sentenced, unless
their offenses were committed in the Dis
trict Of Columbia, to some state prison
or penitentiary, the general government
paying the state in which the penal In
stitutions patronized are located daily
sum for the keep of each prisoner so SEN
fenced.
Over 90 such institutions are on the
lists for the reception of violators of the
national laws. These sums are paid
quarterly, the states guaranteeing In re-
turn that the prisoners shall be well fed,
well clad-according to thePrison stand
ard--and well housed. TIE lowest rate
per diem is 18 cents and the highest 81.
This latter is allowed to only two or
three western states, where the number
of Uncle Sans prisoners is small, and to
the aggregate in each case is added $5,
advanced by the prison authorities to the
convict ON his release at the end Of his
term.
Prior to 1887 the expense of keeping
the general governments prisoners was
much less than now, for down to that
time they were invariably sent to state
institutions where the convicts were
made to work, and at profit to the
commonwealth, so that not only was
the government able under the condi-
tions then existing to get its prisoners
kept for nothing, but often, because Of
the profit realized from their labor, the
states were willing to pay premium
for every United States prisoner sent to
them. In the year mentioned, however,
law was passed by congress prohibit
ing the hiring out Of any United States
prisoner at profitable work, and natu-
rally the states receiving them have ever
since insisted on also receiving pay for
their keep.
Unless committed on United States
territory, as distinguished from the do
main Of the separate states, the general
government never tries criminals for or
dinary crimes, such as robbery, murder,
etc. Yet the crimes for which offenders
are tried in United States courts are nu-
merous, including among others counter
feiting, smuggling, robbing the mails,
violation Of postal laws, national bank
embezzlement and forgery. About $780,
600 was expended during the last fiscal
year on the keep of United States con-
.victs, and it is the claim of those who
advocate the building of United States
prisons that, rightly managed, such in
stitutions could be SO conducted as to
make the cost considerably less than at
present. One Of the most extensively
used prisons at this time is the Detroit
house of correction. Others are the
Columbus (O.) penitentiary, the Albany
penitentiary and the Kings county peni-
tentiary at Brooklyn.