Newport weekly independent., 1901-08-23
Voted to Annul Convict Lease.

By vote of 3 to ?, the state board of penitentiary commissioners on the 18th instant annulled the ten-year contract, entered into during Cover nor Jones' administration, for the hire of 300 convicts to the Arkansas Brick Manufacturing Company for term of ten years. The principal stockholder of the above company is Mir. w. W. Dickinson. At several previous meetings of the board Gov ernor Davis had endeavored to have the contract annulled, taking the position that the board making the contract exceeded its authority when 1t leased the convicts for term of years beyond its tenure of office, thereby binding future managers of the penitentiary to a policy they might deem disadvantageous. Here tofore the board stood two for an- nulment and three against, those voting in favor of the state carrying out the old boards agreement being Commissioner Hill, Attorney Gen. eral Murphy and Auditor Monroe. At the meeting on the 18th Governor Davis offered the following, which was adopted, Governor Davis, Sec retary of State Crockett and Auditar Monroe voting for the resolution:
 "Whereas, the state of Arkansas on the 31st day of July, 1899, by its financial agent, J. c. Massey, and Superintendent E. T. Mcconnell and the penitentiary board, made a con- tract with the Arkansas Brick and Manufacturing Company as assignee of the Arkansas Chair Factory, whereby the state agreed to furnish to said brick company two brick buildings, one 50x200 feet and two stories high, and one 40x70 feet and one story high covered with iron; also to furnish boilers, 200 horse- power capacity, and to place said machinery in position and to fur nish free of charge all the necessary force to operate said machinery; the boilers and engines to be paid for in one, two and three years at actual cost and 6 per cent interest. The state also agrees to furnish as many as 300 able bodied men to said brick company at the cost of 50 cents per day, the state to guard, clothe and feed and furnish medical atrentia' to said convicts, said contract to last for a period of ten years.
 "Believing that said contract is un- just to the state and made without legal authority, because the same was made for term of years beyond the life of the board making it, and amounts to lease of the state con- victs, which is prohibited by law, and believing that 1t is to the best inter- est of the state and the management of the penitentlary that the same be annulled and set aside, therefore,
 ''Be it resolved by the penitentiary board, that said contract so entered into between the state of Arkansas and the said Arkansas Brick and Manufacturing Company be and the same is hereby annulled, cancelled and held for naught, the cancellation of said contract to take effect Octo- Der 15, 1901, and on and after said October 15, 1901, the state refuses to further comply with the terms of said contract, and the superinten- dent of the penitentiary is hereby ordered on and after said date to withdraw from said Brick and Manufacturing Company all con- vlcts in their employ and turn them back into the walls of the peniten- tiary subject to the further orders of this board"