The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-01-18
WHAT CAPT. DAY THINKS
FOLLY TO TALK OF MAKING The PENITEN-
TIARY PAY BY FARMING.
Should be Leased. Federal Prisoners Don't
Pay. las been Made Pumping Ground
for Politicians to Unload Clam
oreus and Idle { | ,niaga.
orous and Idle G IMAGE. .
Cor. Wilmington Messenger.

t1OT. w llUllISlOu AnCSSeIS6T.
Raleigh, n c., Jan. 16.-(Special)-
In my opinion, it should be leased to re-
sponsible persons, on the best terms
possible, the State retaining all control
of the management and discipline of the
convicts in order to protect them from
harsh treatment. l believe such an offer
will be made in the near future"
In response to the question: Cannot
some ind of arrangement be made by
which the convicts could build roads*'
Capt. Day replied: 1T is impossible
because the people of the State will
not submit to the tax There are 90
counties and each would insist on the
working its roads first, and each, if
it could not get this done, would oppose
legislation along this line"
Capt. Day went on to say: but we
must face the conditions as they ex-
list now in regard to the plan of farm
ing. As they exist it is folly to talk of
making the penitentiary self-sustaining.
First, because under influences which it
is needless to discuss here, the peniten-
tiary has rented eight arms, averaging
1000 acres each. These farms are
SNNtlCIOu ONCl dlti vi -OO llIiltS
There are, utilizing every available man,
certainly not over 700 convicts who can
do farm work There are not nearly
enough to cultivate so great an area of
land.
THE immediate cause of the i'm
mense deficit is bad management and
incompetency. | am not prepared to
say there has been any dishonesty. On
each farm each supervisor, it seems, has
been authorized to buy ad libitum. And
he bought. At the central prison there
has been also lately no head, no one
person in charge of the purchasing de-
partment, and so they have bought there,
too, from bell boy to superintendent"
In reply to Il question as to whether
or not the entire body of convicts could
not be employed at manufacturing in
the penitentiary, Capt. Day said: mo.
The people of this State are not yet
educated up TO such a thing. Then
besides the prison is not large enough.
There could be started in the peniten-
tiary certain manufactures in which
we could utilize the United States pris-
oners, who cannot be employed without
tie walls, as for instance shirt-making
tNlilCI Is llON uOlltJ bIdltLtSSCS anu
possibly shoes. As to these United
States prisoners, | am not prepared to
say that the State has not made a bad
bargain. 1t gets % cents a day for
them. 1t costs that to feed, clothe and
guard them. We have on hand 200 of
them. Among this class idleness means
viciousness and trouble of all kinds. The
counterfeiter and the safe-cracker are
the aristocrats among criminals, and so
are the thinkers also,
"The real trouble with the North
Carolina penitentiary has, been the way
it has been made a dumping ground for
politicians to unload a clamorous and
idle clientage. When a fellow could not
be fitted to anything else they made the
penitentiary fit him. / will Illustrate
this by story of my boyhood / was
one at frolic at which there was
very diffdent youth. The little fellow
was asked to dance, but declined and
gave many reasons, none of which
passed as good. Finally he said to the
fiddler, I can't dance to your music
The fiddler replied, III play to your
dancing And that's the way with the
penitentiary; it has been made to play
to the dancing of the politicians. That
is the whole story"