The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1901-01-16
CONVICT LABOR.

For many years the question of
how to employ pen!:entiary convlcts
has been live one in this country,
now to employ them and make them
self supporting and useful at the same
time without putting their labor IN
competition with labor outside Of the
prlsons
North Carolina has tried to solve
the problem by working them on
State farms, and hiring them out for
railroad construction, which is only q
partial solution. for even in this way
their labor comes somewhat into com.
petition with other labor.
The Star has repeatedly urged that
the best way to employ them is In
road-building. and has illustrated it
by citing Mecklenburg county, where
several thousand miles of admirable
roads have been constructed with the
labor mainly of county convicts
This idea is favored In other states,
and is now attracting attention IL the
State of New York, where it has
been tried by some of the counties
With az satisfactory results as it has
been in Mecklenburg. in this State.
From there the idea is spreading to
other states as will be seen by the
following. which we clip from the
Cleveland, Ohio, Leader:
"Tbe warden Of the Kings county,
N Y. penitentisry has succeed in
arousing interest iu . road-building
project which be is advocating. and
if his plans can be carried out long
step will have been taken in the
direction of the solution of the prob
tenn as to what should be done with
convict labor BE proposes that q
highway be constructed from New
York to Buffalo. distance of more
than 400 miles, and the work be
performed entirely by convicts. He
thinks the road could be completed
in ten years without expense to the
State. in view of present conditions
"Tbere are several strong argu
mepts in favor of road building by
convicts. In the first place, it would
take the convicts out of competition
with free labor in industrial lines.
In the second place, it would give
the prisoners beslthful outdoor EN-
ployment In the third place, it
would devote the labor OF the COZ
victs to improvements which would
be of benefit to the people
"Many Of the foest rosda in Europe
are constructed and kept in repair by
convict labor, and in view of the con.
slant agitation for good roads, and
also against the leasing Of convict
labor to contractors engaged in the
manufacture of goods sold in the
open market in competition with the
products of free labor. there is no
reason why the Inauguration of such
a plan in the United States should
not be favored
Experience has taugb, that it is
bad policy TO maintain convicts in
idlenees-bad for the men as we'll as
costly and e1travsgaut for the State
and there is no doubt that the Civ
ing of employment in the open air at
road building or similar work would
have very beneficial reformstory
effect upon large percentage of the
prisoners.
We have in roand numbers twelve
hundred peni,entiary conv1c,s IN this
State Several hundred OF them are
employed on the fa'ms. others hired
ou: The State derives no bench,
from their Iaoor, save the rednc,lcn
it may make in the cost of keeping
them If these convicts, or as many
of them as practicable, were put to
work upon the pubic roads, Oh some