The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-11-29
THE CONVICT QUESTION.
Mayor MeIdrim FavOrs Certain Views
on the Subject.

on the SuOJect.
Mayor P w. Meldrim has views upon
the convict question which would seem to
be worthy the attention of the legislature.
I'm the first place." said the mayor,
when spoken to on the subject, the legis-
lature should postpone all discussion of
this subject until it can dispose of the gen
eral and local legislation now before the
House, and make the convict question the
special order to be taken UP at a specific
time when no other business shall be con-
sidered The endless discussion of the
subject, which has gone on before the leg
islature since the session begun, has ac-
complished nothing and has simply re-
suited in interfering with and delaying
the other business before the House
The main things to be kept in view in
discussing this question, in my opinion,
are security and hard labor 1t is abso-
lutely essential to the thing itself that
whatever disposition is made of the con-
victs that they should be secure and the
possibility of escape reduced to a mini
mum. Otherwise sentences will lose their
force. The next essential is that there
should be hard labor. Otherwise there is
no punishment. The intention is that
those who have been sentenced for
violation of the law should be placed at
hard labor. The state does not intend to
maintain places of ease and retirement
Tor convicted felons. Mr.. Hewlett Hall
of Coweta. chairman of the special com
mittee to which this matter was referred
a he los ,
study of this subject, and would just
as soon see the whole matter left to him
to formulate a bill to be presented to the
legislature as to dispose of the subject in
any other way.
There is sentiment, which has devel-
oped in the discussion of this subject in
favor of dividing the convicts into three
classes, which impresses me favorably.
Ihe idea is that the first class or long
term convicts, those sentenced for ten
years or more, should be placed upon a
farm, preferably upon an island where
the expense of guarding them would be
small, and there kept at work secluded
from the rest of the world. The second
class conVicts, those sentenced for less
than ten years, would be placed under
TINS plan, at labor on the public roads or
public works of the counties of the tudi-
cial districts in which they were convict
Gu these COHNlcIS could be worked in
conjunction with the misdemeanor con-
Victs of the county
IF any county does not wish to UNDERGO
the expense of maintaining its convicts IL
should he permitted to transfer them to
any other county in the same circuit. The
conVicts would be maintained by the conn
ties without expense to the state In this
way the more enterprising counties in the
various circuits could avail themselves of
the use of these eonvicts for improving
their highways, and for other public works
such as drainage"
Inc third class of convicts, under this
plan, would consist of the women, the
aged the infirm, the cripples, and those
under 10 years of age. The state owns a
1arm near Milledgeville, and it is nro-
posed to care for these convicts tbero
where they could maintain themselves In
connection with this branch. a reforua-
tory could be established for the care and
reformation of youthful criminals 7 DO
not Know that this plan will be adonted
py that legislature, but am satisfied tbat
unless a specific time is set apart solely
Iof the discussion of this question thar ali
the EFFORTS Of the legislature on This 1ina
VIII ne fruitless, and that we will raanb
the end of the session without havino a.
comp1shed anything in this most inror
tant matter" A0i