The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-05-22
JUDGE GoRDoy,s CHARGES.
No Accuses Eastern PsnitcnrIary officials u
Inhumnnity.

hnnuu1hnIy.
PHILADELPHIA, May 2l.-Judgo James Gay
Gordon, one OF the Judges Of the Courts OF Conn
mon Pleas of Philadelphia. appeared to-day be.
fore the committee OF the Pennsylvania Legis.
lnture now occupied with investigating the COM
ditlon OF convicts in the Eastern State Pehiten.
dary, and made these specific charges: "
"I wish now TO charge tho inspectors OF the
Eastern Penitcntiary with falschOod In theil
official reports, with conscious and deliberate
m~isstatements before this committee undep
oath. l wish TO charge them with cruelty and
inhumanity in the discharge OF their duties.
with neglect aud incompetence. l wish to charge
them with s~ecreting evidence. with fabricating
evidence. I wish TO charge them with intlmt.
dating witnesses. and / want to present the
proof seriatim against every one OF them. and I
am glad that they are all here
Judge Gordon then said that tho Lunacy Com.
mittee OF tho State Board Of Public Oh lritiao
publ shed In their annual report that there were
only ten cases of insanity among the onvictso OF
tho penitentiary in November last, at the time
when no publicly charged tlptt there were moro
than that number OF insane %cOnvicts undergoing
penal punishment there. he said he proposed
To provo by the keepers ana other attendants nj
the pHison that. instead Of ten lunatics there
were fifty.
penitontiRry. and gave a description Of one con-
vict who was found in n deplOrabiG mental state.
The Warden Of tho pcnitcntinry insisted that thQ
man was a malingGrer. and the Judge ST mmoned
experts in insanity. including Dr. w cir Mitchell,
and appointed a commission 10 o&hinino the
man. -
The commission pronounced him insane, and
he was removed To "A state hospital.
The convict referred 10 by tho Judge was pres
ent ut the Investigation and the Judge Produced
him, with a report from he resident, physician
OF the hospital where he was confined, to show
that he WAS. TO all appearance. y hopeless
~lunatiC.
In March last, Judge Gordon said, he found
that n man who had been discharged from the
pcnitentiary WAS afterward taken 10 the county
hospital suffering with Acnte mania. Aft0r this
discovery he made searching inquiries and
found that there were flfty more men confined
In the prison who were ia a similar mental con-
that "A convict who was removed 70 the state
hospital ON tho ground OF insanity some months
ago died there shortly afterwnrd from the ro-
suit OF brutal kicks and other bodily Injuries in
ficted upon him in the penitcntIary.
The Judge then read tho names OF twenty-five
%conyicts, seventeen of them stiil In the pGniten-
tiHry, who no said were insane. The remain.
ing eight were either in asylum5t TO which they
had been removed or were head.
Speaking OF tho keepers, no said:
God has delivered these men into my hands
from their own written and sworn testimony,
and they shall fall on the reports | present 0t
what they say from their own months. IL shall
speak against them, and II ! can't prove that
mouths officially, condemn me, Mr.. Chairman
and gem lcmeh Of The me
II ] don't prove IT,
system Of the Eastern PenitentlHry. and said 10
was neither the 81 parIto nor the COngresate, bub
q mongrcl system OF their own, and not a good
one. There we're 700 cells for 800 pritou6Ts,
Tho only oneB who had separate cells were TIE
insane.
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