The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1899-07-08
COUNTY CONVICT FARM.
EDITOR GREENvmLE TINES

p serious charges against me rs con
!" tractor for the county convicts, all
= based ON the idle talk of an eX'
convict. | have deemed 1t due to
myself to have Il prompt and
thorough investigation made of
the manner in which convicts are
cared for on the farm. With this
object in view, asked and obtain
ed from the Board of Supervisors
the appointment of a committee
to proceed at once to the farm
and make such an examination as
would establish or disproye the
charge made. | append below
| the report of the committee which
you will concede is an ample vim
dication of myself, and which |
trust YOU will give as conspicuous
a place in your next issue as YOU
did to your article, of which
| think can very Justly complain,
! not doubling your desire to be |
entirely Just in the matter.
| am yours etc,
GEORGE +. JOHNSON.
At our meeting of the Board of I
Supervisors Of Washington Coun-
ty, Mississippi. held at the court
house ON July LIST, 1899, appear
ed George G. Johnson, r,sq.,
County Contractor, who drew the
attention of the board to the pub
ication of the Greenyle Times
of the LIST inst, founded upon IN
formation furnished by persons
present at the time, and founded |
upon statement made in the Cir {
cult Court by Handy Keil, and
the criticism Of the GreenyilIe
Times upon the report of differ
ent officers whose duty it is to eX-
anime the county convicts confined
on the county farm, and then and y
there urge the Board to make q
investigation of the
charges contained in The Times r
and have the true condition of his b
farm made public Thereupon, Y
committee of one. O
Captain G. 4. Winter, President t
Of the Board, and directed the 7
Health Officer Of the county to \
make examination in his capacity 5
and report thereupon. Captain t
c. A, Winter, President Of the |,
Board, accompanied by Messrs. t
HoIIiugsworth and Lee, members f
Of the Board, and DR.. j. ID. v
Health Officer of the f
visited the county farm on b
the 9Th inst, and made the fol
lowing report: n
GreenyilIe, Miss, July :, 1899. d
TO Honorable Board of Supervi- a
sors, Washington county: ;
| have to report that | have n
this day visited the stockade of q. Y
g. johnson and inspected same. Q Q
Also the county convicts confined /,
there. The food supply was f
closely examined as to quantity n
and quality and its preparation. | e
found the quantity abundant and h
it was well cooked, as | had OPP n
to observe, being there +
at meal time. The diet is varied
and that is absolutely essential to n
good health and well being to hui ),
man beings, and should always be n
scrupuIously carried out. ques o
toned goodly number rs to how +,
they were fed. The answer, with 7
out exception, was that they al Il
ways had plenty to eat three Il
times a day. Their condition bore h
abundant proof of that, as they
looked strong and well fed, They
all had shoes, and when question
ed, said they were not made to
work barefooted; and all that ! r,
questioned on the subject, said u
hey had clean clothing once each o.
week. The stockade was clean b,
md the bedding also. All said D
heir quarters were warm in the if
oldest weather, and they we're Il
not made to work when the wealth r
II was extremely cold. They in OF
formed that they were not requir- re
I'd to work during the cold spell ~
If last January and February, | il,
)nly to cut wood and make fires h;
o keep themselves warm. In hot ca
weather., as it is now, they SAID re
hey had 2! hours rest each day at t,
loon. | questioned four Of the ut
prisoners who had formerly sery tn
ID sentences in the Mississippi th
State Penitentiary, as to the com ey
,arison between the way they K
we're treated while in the peniten- bs
iary and the treatment received Ia
while on Mr.. Johnson's farm. The "
nswer OF all was, that the treat "
nent was practically the same. ri.
)ne said he liked the penitentiary tn
,est, because be was a "rOuster" su
hsfe and was not at Mr., John te
on's. Aaother said the only diff an
erencc was that the State furn- wi
she'd more underclothing than Mr.. 70
ohnson did. questioned anum- co
er of Mr.. Johnson's tenants who es
ad formerly been county con &c