Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1898-08-13
IN CONVICT LAND
Brief Description of New Mezico's
Penitentiary the Inmates
Do--Improvements Making.
"BRONCHO BILL" INTERVIEW
The Reporter Cleared Out on Being Re-
quested to Leave-Convicts Should
Be Made to Leave the City
When Released.
"Happy were men. if they understood.
There is no safety. but in doing good.

| There is no safety. but III dong good.
The average outsider knows but little
concerning Santa Fe's criminal colony
located just beyond the city limits, at
the penitentiary, so on yesterday, when
Assistant Superintendent Merrill said to
a New MEXICAN reporter, "have you
gone through the prison?" the implied
invitation to visit and inspect the instl-
tuition was gladly accepted,
On going in at the gate to the left of
the new cell house, which is to be an
exact duplicate of the north wing of the
prison, 75X11s feet, and will contain four
tiers of cells. to be of solid stone and
| have a foundation of the same material
| l6 feet thick. some single stones weigh
| ing five tons. The cell doors, locks.
keys and windows are of iron and are all
made at the penitentary by the convicts.
| The old or north wing cost $s5 900, while
the new addition, which is much strong
er, will cost about $4,000, and when
completed the prison will have a capacity
to accommodate between 400 and 800
convctS.
The kitchen is large, roomy place
filled with steam cookers, range and all
modern utensils. The tables the con-
victs nse are carefully scrubbed three
times day and the kitchen twice. The
grounds and buildings are lighted
with 600 candle power dynamo each
cell has an electric light, and many Of
them are supplied with pictures. rugs
and other articles of comfort, and all of
them are clean and orderly.
''What does it cost to keep these men?
"A trinc under so cents day this
year. The war has advanced the price
of groceries and beef is high. We give
them meat twice a day. just then
John Glass who used to work for Land
lord Forsha, was seen coming in. He
gave the reporter smile and passed on.
''What time do the men go to bed?"
AT $40 the lights go ont At this
point in the trip large number of
books were noticed and the information
was given that the collection constituted
the prison library.
what do these men make:"
''They make all their clothes, shoes
and caps. They have delivered over
1000, 900 brick to the capitol building,
grow the vegetables used in the peni-
tcntiary, do all the carpentering, black
smithing and stone work: bake their
own bread, and they consume 400 loaves
a day
"Well, could you furnish light for the
capitol?"
Eyes. if we had a dynamo a trihe
larger"
"Ths is the industrial building or ma
chine shop, but we haven't money
enough to finish it.
The industrial building is built of
brick, with a tin roof and two stories
high. and one of the strongest struct-
ures in the territory, in size 44X100 feet.
1t is supplied with some machinery and
when fully equipped can be made the
source of much income. None of the
brick buildings on the ground have cost
the territory cent.
'Do the men pay for what they eat?"
Eyes, and by making improvements,
lime, brick, etc, they have overpaid for
their keeping IA cents a day man. We
can make 10000 bricks per day. There
are now between 80 and so men working
at the capitol"
At the latter place convicts were seen
cutting stone side by side with and
equally as well as the artisans employed
in the building
as that Jim Harris?' was asked.
ayes, it is Jim he has entirely recov- !
cred from his lameness.
''Where do you get this ice?' was
asked after taking drink of ice water.
each year we put up about 100 tons.
We have our own brick ice house. This
is the cold storage room,' showing the
reporter a neatly kept and well built
room, 1--WE keep our meats here" The
penitentiary has a commissary much
larger than the average eastern cross
roads country store.
'How many men are employed here
by the territory"
Eighteen in all.
Here Luis Gonzales. of this city, was
noticed showing on one end of u hoe
"Now, here are the barns. We have
IS head of horses" and the reporter
stepped into one of the best arranged
stables in the whole country.
''There is the blacksmith shop. We
make our own wagons, shoe our own
horses and do all our own iron work.
This is the carpenter shop" The build