The record-union., 1895-12-07
CARE OF FREED CONVICTS.
Advanced Ideas for Helping Dis
charged Prisoners.
Matters the State Prison Directors
VIII Submit to the Code
commissioners.

(From the San Francisco Chronicle)
The newly appointed Code Commits
sion will hold it's first public meeting in
this city during January. The MEM
bers have been engaged in preparing
for this meeting by considering matters
submitted to them in writing during
their sessions in Sacramento. The
Board of Prison Directors is about to
make number of suggestions and to
ask, or rather suggest, a number of
notifications of the law which will en-
able them to conduct the two State pris
ons more economically.
The law governing the sale of jute
bags has SO many restrictive features
that it has been found to defeat the OBJ
ject for which it was passed, the sup
plying of grain bags to the farmers at
a fraction above the cost of production.
I'VE intend to go before the Code
Commissioners next MONTH, said
Prison Director De Pue last night, "and
ask modification of the existing laws.
We find that the farmers would sooner
pay more for grain bags in the open
market than buy from US and go
through the red tape necessary to Sc
cure a supply.
IF we could sell grain bags to any
and all who want to buy, we could dis
pose of large numbers. We have OBJ
tained an opinion from Attorney-Ge
| eral Fitzgerald as to the meaning of
the clause to actual consumers only.
| He holds that it must be strictly ad
hered to. If there were any leeway we
might make sugar bags and find large
and profitable market in the Hawaiian
Islands, and even at home.
I'VE want to make more use of the
Folsom prison, but we have no money
to expend for the transportation Of pris-
oners. There are ], 800 men at San Quen-
tin and only 800 at Folsom. We have
| just finished at Folsom one of the finest
prison dining g-rooms in the United
States, with a seating capacity Of 1,500.
Our idea is to transfer the younger
| prisoners there, and teach them trades.
| Now the only employment we can give
is in the jute mill. Every prisoner who
comes in is put to work there, and later
| transferred to other departments. He
may become proficient at jute manu-
featuring, but his skill is Of no use to
him outside the walls.
| I'm some of the Eastern States, nota-
| bly, Massachusetts, they have an ad-
mirable system for caring for prisoners,
| which we are going to ask to have in
corporated in the law here. That is the
appointment of an agent to care for the
/ QlSCndT2eu
| that an annual appropriation Of $4,000
or so, 600 be made, by which this agent
will be enabled to render assistance to
discharged prisoners Instead of turn
| ing a man out of prison with 50 and no
trade he would be sent to this agent.
| If he was a sailor, he would be given
a berth on some ship, and if a carpenter
he would be sent to same contractor.
In this way he would be at once placed
! in a position to earn livelihood, and
not be a burden on the community. Not
every man discharged would need this
/ assistance, but from the number who
would. the State would save by pre-
venting their committing crime for
want of means, many times the sum re-
quired to conduct the agency.
1--WE desire to make Folsom a re-
| formatory and working prison. To
do this we must have an appropriation
for machinery. There are many in
dustries in which prison labor could be
used to advantage which would not
come into competition with free labor.
All these suggestions are being con-
sidered and will be presented to the
! Code Commission
THE idea of an agent to care for dis
charged prisoners will, no doubt, meet
with as much opposition as did the pa
role law. which has been found to work
satisfactorily. The plan of caring for
| cOnVlctS after Iney ledNe Iie pIlSou 10
one that advanced penologists strongly
advocate. and one that works well in
| Massachusetts"
The members of the Manufacturers
i Association also propose to go before
the Code Commissioners and present
their views regarding prison labor.
Their plan is to discourage its employ
ment in any way that will conflict with
! free labor. AS the Prison Directors and
the members of the association are
agreed on this point, joint meeting
may be arranged in which the whole
subject matter will be discussed.