Arizona republican., 1895-04-05
THE NEW REGIME
First Meeting of the
Board of Control.
Suggested Reforms at
Yuma.
A Purpose to Make the Prison
Self Sustaining.
A Financial and Physiological Re-
form in the Matter
of Rations.

Territorial Auditor Leitch and Citi-
zen Member McCord, of the board of
control, returned yesterday morning
from the first business meeting of the
board at Yuma, beginning last Monday
morning and closing on Wednesday.
Governor Hughes, ex-officio chairman
of the board. went directly from Yuma
to Tucson and will return to the capital
ON Sunday morning. It is a fitting
preface to an account of this meeting of
the board at the penitentiary to say
that it cost the territory $18. Each
meeting of the board of prison COM
missioners, only one of the commissions
suDplanted by the board of control,
cost Arizona 1920. Four such meet
| ings were held annually.
Naturally the session just closed was
occupied largely IN study OF the
| workings of the prison and plans of
Improvements and means for a reduc-
| tion of expenses. On this latter SUBJ
ject Messrs. McCord and Leitch say
they found the prison officials disposed
to cooperate in any plan for making
the institution self sustaining, an idea
which has been uppermost in Governor
Hughes mind for nearly two years.
The matter of revision of the prison
rules was discussed and a revision will
certainly be made, but the character of
it has not been defined.
! 1t was decided to put twenty-five men
at work clearing up stretch of prison
land lying near the junction OF the Gila
and Colorado rivers, 400 acres of land,
unsurpassed perhaps in the whole
world for fertility. The cultivation OF
this land will be the first well directed
| effort to test in an extensive way agri-
cultural and horticultural possi bilities,
which experts haye predicted would be
| followed by astounding results.
Twenty five more prisoners will be set
at work at enlarging the prison grounds
and making room and preparation for
the erection of manufa curing plants.
| Complaints and applications from
about sixty prisoners for pardons and
parole were taken in short hand to be
considered later.
All bids for furnishing supplies for
the prison for the ensuing year we're
rejected unopened. The bids were ad-
vertsed for under the old regime and
it was suspicion, if not foregone
conclusion, with the board of control
that the same old recklessness OF figures
would prevail in the bids. This sus-
picion, OF course, would not have war;
ranted the rejection OF the bids, but
but there was desire to start every
thing anew and with an impression that
the prevalent idea was economy.
/ For financial and physiological
reasons the board decided to effect a
sweeping change in the matter of
rations. Under tie old management
there seemed to be an idea that the
prisoners ought to do additional pen
ance for their crimes by eating them
selves into a condition of Indigestion.
There was appropriated daily therefore
for each prisoner the following menu ::
fresh beef, II pounds; potatoes, "a
pounds; -four, IL pounds; coffee l 5
ounces tea, l ounce; sugar 2 ounces.
That is, each prisoner was expected to
consume little more than 81 pounds
OF food, really more when it is con-
sidered that water necessarily enters
into the composition of tea and coffee.
But this is not all Beside all this
dose there was placed before the un-
fortuate inmate weekly another bill of
fare not a substitute for that to which
he was daily exposed but as an ad-
ditional horror, ounces OF rice, 2
ounces of bacon, l pound OF beans,
6 4-5 ounces OF dried fruits and 3 l 5
ovnces of lard.
To a hungry man. ignorant of the
principles OF physiology, this showing
was an inducement to break into the
penitentlary. In the interest OF econ
omy and humanity the board of control
has decided to cut the rations down
fully so per cent. The result will be
that while there may not be so many
obese prisoners, there will be more
healthy ones, and man about to enter
upon period of servitude in the terri
torial prison need not be haunted by a
fear that he will emerge flom it with q
ruined stomach and a permanently
disordered system. He will still have
enough to eat and the healthy employ
ment just arranged by the board of
control will furnish him physical fa-
cilities at least for renewing his strug-
gle with life when he again becomes a
free man. Under the old system he
would naturally have had the health
of dyspeptic and the DISPOSE
tion of murderer.
The next meeting of the board will
be at Flagstaff next Wednesday in the
| m attor of tna roforro ccbooI