The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-02-02
The CARE OF THE CoNVIcTS.
THE COUNTY COMMISSIONERS TO
LOOK INTO THE NATTER.

Placing the COnvicts Under n Su-
Perfntendent or Keeper Instead of
Under the County EnEineer-An
OverhauIIng of the Convict Sys-
tenn Likely 10 BE Undertaken.
Il IS very probable that at the next
meeting OF the county commissioners.
TO be held Wednesday. Feb. Is. there viii
3 be some discussion Of the convict camp
I question. due, perhaps. 10 the investiga-
ton Of the matter and report that has
been made by the grand jury OF the city
court II the findings Of the grand jury
are brought officially 10 the. notice of
the commissioners. some sort Of investi-
cation Of the matter viii no doubt fol-
low. This seems 10 be the sentiment with
sorIe Of the commissioners at least.
The treatment and condition Of the
county's convicts have been reported by
several grand juries without effecting
any reform which it has been said was
needed. A good deal has been written
about the mater. and the Morning News
has taken pains to look into 1t.
The present condition OF affairs brings
up the question as to why the county con-
victs are under the county engineer,
whose duties in the latter capacity. it
would seem. would require so much Of his
attention that he could not give sufficient
personal supervision to the care and
work Of the convcts.
Commissioner Carson, who is a member
OF the chain-gang committee Of the board.
has some very decided views on the sub
Ject. 1T has always been the custom"
he said, for the county engineer to have
the supervision and management of the
county cOnvicts and our board, i suppose
has simply followed the lines laid down
by those that have gone before. think
the county engineer is now required TO
perform duties that are foreign to his pro-
fess.on. The superintendence of force
of convicts. I think, is entirely foreign
to the profession of an engineer.
After the developments that have
taken place 1 think it is utterly impossi-
bic for Mai. Blandford to be held respon-
sible for all the duties that have been
put upon him as county engineer and SUI
perintendent Of the county convicts. II
seems to me no more than right that the
office should be divided, and we should es-
tablish an office to be known as superin-
tendent of convicts. I would heartily
support movement to establish such an
Office. 1t Is, no doubt, a matter Of econ
Omy that what are apparently two po-
sitions are now combined under one
man, but 1 cannot say why that arrange
ment was originally made. I think II
we could establish such an office, super
intendent Of convicts should be held di-
rectly responsible for the condition of
the men and the work they are required
TO perform.
with regard to their working in the
ice during that cold spell, 1 might say
that at the July or August meeting of
the board L introduced an order direct
ing that when the weather was too bad
to permit work being done on the canals,
the men should be put to work on the
Meridian road. This was amended by
Commissioner Kehoe so as to make it
imperative until the rights of way for
this road to the Waters road had been
secured, and in that condition was
passed. We had considerable trouble in
getting the rights Of way for the canal
and the road through the lands of Mr..
d. p Myerson, and it was not until
October that they were obtained. Sim
liar trouble was met in endeavoring to
secure the rights of way through the
land owned by the Home Building Com
pany, who refused to donate any of it's
property for the purpose. The commits
sioners were thus blocked in their efforts
to secure the rights of way required by the
order. Much labor has been wasted by
the convicts being required to work on
Z
the Casey canal in all sorts of weather,
and had the engineer been placed in
position to work on the Casey canal or
the Meridian road, as the weather per-
mitted, l think equally as much work
would have been done on the canal,
and the Meridian road would have been
pretty well finished to the Waters road or
farther If the commissioners are Off
cially notified Of the presentments made
by the grand jury. and they will no
doubt, l think an investigation of the
matter of the injuries to the conVicts
from exposure should be had. 1t is
strange thing that the convicts in the
tents did not suffer at all from the ex-
posure while those in the building
did"
Chairman Dale was not inclined to say
/ anything about the matter. The cap
tains of the convict camps, he said, have
! charge of the camps, and they are under
! the direction of the county engineer, who
| is the executive officer of the board. 1t
would entail an extra expense on the
| county if the management of the con-
/ Viets was put under a different officer
/ The county engineer is now paid 81 400 a
year for managing the whole thing, he
/ said, and every man connected with the
county work is under his order and direc-
/ ton. Under the circumstances he did not
1 see the necessity for putting the con-
victs under another man, as it would only
entail an extra expense.
Dr. T. j. Charlton, who is the chairman
/ of the chain-gang committee, would not
/ be quoted on the subject at all. He said
it would probably be talked of at the
next meeting of the commissioners and
that would be sufficient The probable
ity is, then, that the commissioners will
take the matter up at their next meet
| ing, and from all that can be learned.
they viii likely go very thoroughly into
l it AS one of them said the matter has
/ necessarily got into the newspapers and
/ is being read in other parts of the country,
/ where It will be understood only in its
worst light, and. if there were any abuses.
/ 1t is now time to have them corrected
TO INVESTIGATE THE TUG.