The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1902-03-21
Testimony as 10 the Care Of Prison
ers at Huntsville.
COMPLAINTS FEW AND uNIMPORTANT
Result OF Five Days investigation by
the Committee Created by the
Last Legislature.

inc publlc service. One week has already
been devoted TO securing information about
IT, during which fair idea OF how the
Huntsville prison is run, together with
faint Impression Of prevailing conditions
on contract and other farms was obtained.
stGrt has also been made In the investiga-
lion " Rusk prison aul Of the camps Mt
which convicts are employed under lease
but a.. yet no study Of the industries main
tancd nj RuSk aud Huntsville has been
inausurated and tho orcc books aud poll
cics OF the superintendent and Of the
financial agent Of the pententlaries a~r
stil awaiting scrutiny
The Inquiry into the condition Of Hunts
willie prison, which WAS pretty thorough,
was made with the view ~ ascertRinirs
whether Captain !. 6. SmIhcr aud his
undcrkccpcr, Captain Icft Kelley. who are
In charge there, hnve correct convention
Of the object az penal institutions and work
to the end that II may be- attained Roth
Of these gentlemen have Hllcd their respec-
tive positions for r. number Of years aud
their experience In the convict husiuess has
been cont nuous. varied aud at times cxcit.
ing They have had to do with thousands
Of criminals Of all sorts during the past
twenty years and they have handled then
under Tho lease and other systems. having
boen identified with the evolution OF the
pcnitcntarleS from private to State COZ
troll Few men are more competent than
they arc to express an opinion MS to the
management Of convicls. and no hotter his
tory could have been obtained of the grad
ual hrticring of the penal system I'm Texas
than was told by them while teStifyinE he
fore the committee
Speaking under oath, Captains Smtther
of prisoners is practically impossible under
the lease system, and that, Furthermore,
q is IN great measure defeated by tho
iudiscrminate mixture OF young men and
first ou,ud,rs vith od'r dmnnlS and mcr
with lrug sentences captain Smlthcr "s.
pc6aly had great 'lcal "a say ON TN,
subject aud vas positive In his views
vhirl, aside from contemplating tne com
pletc separation If apvicts Of dnor, mt
ages drlreCs and chlflcter of CRIME, IN
clulcd thr ownership Of Al convict farms
by thp state and reduction Z" tho mini
mum of the number u prisoners put ~
vork thereon ~ addition he spoke ar
prnNirsn 81 tho educational and rc"ki"ns
features developed Of late wears in "ouno".
tlnn with the IGuntstilie prison, md was
sure that they aided materially I'm tho main
t,ururc OF discipline serving a. th"y do,
To- divert III" attention of he inmates lr9n
ihrir condition OF servitudc, besides oquip
ping them with useful knowledge ana ac
uuantinc them with principles, the posse,
sion Of which may aid them IN avoiding cNl
In the future.
ON rho subject Of punshmcnts. Captain
Smithcr declared himself a firm hcucNer ~
the efficacy OF phyelcn' persuasion. u
had been his experience that some mo-
we're inatrA depraved ana ucurrigihly hat
and thar discipline WINS Impossible Withonl
the fear OF corporal punishment 10 cnntro
them He had found IT nG''fIn,{ on on, %
crsion &c whip men Of TN, Nlud' hui y
WIS seldom that second tFpilcailoh OF
the staT with which The whipping NA'
administered was required. rs M" ou'
til. .ft,,. cd tn
thereof That IL was best Ia obey iuc lu''
or the prison aud no iurlhcr W"un', WV
had with him. CoWicts Wiling 10 lh'i
the dHf ger ut q second whipping were VI
tgptnn SmithCr's opinion. bup"l'SS cHe,'
and whpr he came across sn'h ne g'h'Il ~
locked them mp and denied mem every pr "
ncgr enjoyed by those who behaved mem
.piyc, Instead ~ again whipping thom ~
, Mad hYG hut fcw prisoners OF IN" ku'
, aud the locking up process hh"'N ''"
p 'Oucst,oncd as to the frequency and sever
, nv of whippings at Huntsville, captain
Smithrr said he seldom usro In' HlI"P' "H'
even then only Va aEEr" ,Htou ,..,ins
fear Of hping punished lhcr'Wlln N','",
moro as n prcscr,atiyc uf discipline ih3l
lie aclunl coming IN contact Ine''W Nv
A. matter Of fact ne 3uu'u, "u, ~ ,h"r,
r,rticts generally under Ms rharIr in'I'
vonld always ne 81 least 'fW Mu"nl
would never become necessary lH Pm H ~,
i'm any way, and VINO. " in'N f'"HlI,,a,,,,
,,lcy M gli would do 50 illtonEn iEh,l nv
. ,"5 ,f,b,ut increasing tn" dihlculty "
auI ,inIn,, dlsciplinc such Offenders ~
e III needed hut a slight rcprimanu l" i"N
y them walk straight ,,,, ,ysrt Of
RGplyug to II question as 10 ~" ~. ,o
, v.hinnincs upon the health OF 'nosH ~,
10 coiyinp thcm. Captain Nmilh'i 70" a,
=. nm no convict not physically ah,c 20 h'H,"
=, ,, .t,,,cpt hul ever been whipped ny ~
- n11crs and that none oi thcm han
bocn injured or inchpaclalFu l"' W." ,l"
"a T,r ua he was concerned, u WAS u'h "'u
"a clyc every prisoner . rhhnr' l." ~
G,nc ag pasily ~ possible ana u'H'l
. rycr, ptiyilygc consistent WIN ~ ,"',' ,
Z ,Ion lie took no pleasure IN puhleh'hS ~
," ana regretted every occurrence ina
e made punishment necessary ,,,tt
A., ClcSe Inquiry was made hr the e9minl1
D" , ~ T., Tho character quantity ana p,'I
u aratIon Of he food furWsheH me ."", ~ -.
I ~ itnntsyillr the character OF the W9L
N, rnnuiyod OF them ana inc nh HI' "l ~
r treatment glyrn mem tIn G grm,n of6ciaj source
~ ,,-se nrtalupd on these subjects ana D. wa
X gsrertaiucd that due regard Us paH u" S,H
e- tation ana thnl th' t'"''"' "''" "
70 I6c committee also examined numbe
,t ! ~ conyirts whom they selected mems ~ ~
49, / ,,.iibout suggcs tiOns from the othfrfs ne
- / ,,ar,, brought ont gnd questioned hcalN
40 rlosod doors with no prison oin"aiS
~ euards present to hear what they nad !
~ s,v and advised that such testimony
\ they might give would moi DC dNulbtu, !
=; cTcrv Instance they were told 10 untI
- seryedly make any complalnt lhrN ulEi
"a desire 10 lodge aud TO tax without an
~ Fcar ~ u0s,lble consequences as thol
y, v.@uld he none. Those with had prison re-
ls ords and hard regulations. both inside ~
ne out of the peniteniiarv. were especial
~ selected in order that the worst that con
re- be- said 81 the prison by It's inmates mug
IN hc brought out.
~ As result ~ this policy about eve'
' man V-bo had ever hecu whipped or ?
n ~orelv punished at Hun sville was heu
iran, In most cases II Was found H.
those men were Ongtimcrs and had serve
I'M DAYS gone by at Rusk aud also at hunt
,.ile under previous adminIsirai Ions. Sol
~ Them had been concerned Ia aitelnp
lie "a escnpc AS well AS actual ESCAPES az liu
and transferred o Huntsville hecauSr
10 | thoir dcsppratr characters. In every
.toucr though sullenly enough lon two CA
Ia h was admitted by them that they had u
10 t,irJ re- deserve the best uf trea mrnt
"A, the hands ~ thc prison officials With a
''' iou. pyccuilOn they admitted, that as so
ar 81. they manifested q disposition 90 subn
he ., fhe rules they had found IL easy m 6
-, along Not one NJ them complained
w ti,e work or the food ~ the present tin
~ contempt for restraint OF any kind bel
re tbe underlying and more than appnre
en- foundation OF their dissatisfaction. Sol
~ ~ Them had been punished pretty 4
~ guentlv hut none Of them could show
M even undertook 80 say that tho puuis
Ms nents they had received had Injured thu
vs. / physically though some ~ them relucta
az ~ admitted that their spirits had he
al broken therebv. which WIS hut anoth
nd vav Of telling that they had been broug
| - f,ffi 81 dafw ~