The San Francisco call., 1898-01-15
MR. WILKINS
 DEFENDS THE
 PRISON BOARD.
He DiscIaims Any knOwI- edge of the Operations
 of MiddIemen.

SAN RAFAEL, Jan. 14-James H. Wilkins, one of the members of the Board of State Prison Directors. was seen to-day in regard to the jute bag trouble. Said he:
 T took my office as a member of the board in April, 1896, and at that time we had large supply of bags on hand, but though the season was advancing we were getting no orders for them We sent out circulars and posters broadcast, but they failed to have the slightest effect. We then resorted to an eXpedient never before attempted Four drummers were sent throughout the State, one in the Northern Sacra- mento Valley, one about Stockton. one about Tulare and Bakersfield ond one in the Salinas and Santa Clara Val leys.
 They sold, all told as nearly as I can say about 100000 bags, and I think it Is safe to say that they inter viewed one-half to two-thirds of the farmers who raised wheat in commer- cial quantities in the State of Califor- mia. Many of the farmers could not take the bags, as they were unable to raise the necessary 10 per cent cash payment, and in number of instances the middlemen came to their rescue by putting up the amount.
 Well, we reached the end of the fis- cal year 1S96 barely managing to get through and keep things on a level keel. We couldn't sell the bags. All the working capital was tied up in the bags-about s15O,000.
 Tt took about $5000 a month to run the jute mill and this sum must be realized from sales of sacks, for the general appropriation was only suffi- cient to pay the salaries and subsist- ence charges. The appropriation for that year was $147,00O, but we could only draw one-twelfth of that amount a month, or little over S12,0OO, which barely paid the salaries and the sub sistence charges. We had no money for the running of the jute mill, and the Board of Examiners allowed us to overdraw the one-twenty-fourth act, we overdrawing a little over S5000 a month for several months in the fiscal year ending June 30, 1897.
 Shortly after we relieved the situ- ation, securing orders to manufacture 1,500,000 sugar bags and received cash
 
 affairs existing, yet we were away short on the one-twenty-fourth act. However we had relieved the embar- rassing situation. Otherwise the mill must have closed shortly after the fis- cal year began.
 ''On the close of the 1896 calendar year we almost determined to close down the jute mill, for the sugar bag business was exhausted and we couldn't see our way clear to make both ends meet, yet we determined to run along in the hopes that something would turn up, and it did. In January, 1897, the boom began, and it purely arose over the scare among the farm CTS about the Mckinley bill A com mittee had formulated tariff bill and the tariff on bags was run up to 23s cents, and this meant that the price of bags would reach at least cents. There was a rush to get the San Quen- tin bags. as there were no Calcutta bags on the market at all.
 Inquiries for our bags came in thick and fast and we fixed the price at s4 75. Of course we were anxious to straight en out our affairs, and we desired to put the jute mill again on a business basis.
 we directed the sale of a millio- bags, as we had the right to do. a, regarded the sale as a perfect godsen relieving us. as it did, from a mos embarrassing position.
 T never heard of Diggs before. Very