The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1903-01-18

they come in, it may be stated that last
month q went out and 4 were received.
Counties send the able bodied to the
roads. the feeble, the disabled and women
here.
To this date 13, 463 convicts have been
received. A large number of these serV-
ed more than one term, some three terms,
a few as many as five.
The best convicts to manage are those
convicted of the most heinous crimes.
Such is the testimony of veteran prison
officials. OF all the inmates the thieves
are the most sneaking and underhanded.
There are now 43 women convicts, only
3 of them white. AS a rule women are
sentenced for graver crimes than the men,
murder being the chief. 1t is strange but
true that one woman served term for
rape, having held her own young daugh
ter while the latter was outraged.
When railroad work began to slacken
the penitentiary officials cast about for
some other employment. They first
leased three farms in sight Of Raleigh.
Then lands on the Roanoke river were
leased until at one time four farms were
thus held in that section and one near
Wilmington. and in response to a clamor
for an ''up-country farm one near
Wadesboro, was leased. None of these
leases have been renewed The State
has bought one farm, the Caledonia"
$4,000 acres, on the Roanoke. The Til
lery and the Arson farms are yet work
ed The Tillery lease ends this year.
1t is cultivated on shares. Only Is con-
Victs are this year on the Arson farm.
The lease with the latter has three years
more to ruI. The penitentiarv OWLS 80
acres of land south of Raleigh, bought
in order to get the clay for brick max
ing, but not used for four or five years.
The clay now used comes from point
on the Raleigh and Cape Fear Railroad.
The annual production is about 100000
brick. Sixty-five convicts are now en-
ployed in the brick-yard.
The penitentiary tried the laundry
business on quite large scale. 1t also
tried shirt making under two contracts,
both of which proved unremunerative.
1t took machinery in part payment Of
what one contractor owed it.
Only one Jew has ever been in the
penitentiary He served several years.
He is now prosperous merchant in this
State There are now Cherokee In
dians in the prison. Life convicts are
now required to be kept in the prison
Under the recent administration some
of those were allowed to go out, as
"trusty" prisoners, while in law there is
no such thing as ''trusty,'' as officials
indicted for escape have discovered.
But under the late regime two offers"
Andy Wincoff and Jordan Pritchett were
allowed to go out Winecoff was noted
as the convict longest in the peniten-
tiary, 20 years.
Much has been said about Ex-Governor
Russells numerous pardons. The Off
cial pardon book shows that during 1900
and up to January Is of this year he
pardoned rs. Many of them were long
term men; some of them noted criminals.
From September to January Is he par
doned no less than AZ. These got as
Communication or good conduct money from
81 to sos.
There are So criminal insane. OF these
four are females, all colored. The Off
Gals say these criminal insane give no
trouble. Twenty of them are white.
There have been some sensational es-
capes. About two years ago convict
hid out" and for three days and three
nights search was made. Finally one
night he made a dash out of the then
partially completed administration build
ing, seized short ladder and running
to the stockade on the north side placed
the ladder against it and actually got
over and on TO the railroad tracks before
he was hit. Then he was shot down, the
bullet entering the small of the back.
AS he was dying he said: II swore
would get out and l did" He was
desperate from Duplin county. One con-
vict got out but was seen crossing
field some 900 yards away. AS he climb
cd on fence ne was shot dead
There is now lake east of the great
wall of the prison. 1t is so feet deep AMI
fill the old stone quarry. 1t is used as Il
water supply. It's depth is much lower
than it was 20 years ago. An outlet pipe
or wonder box let out the water then. A
convict ibid OUT and crawled into this
box, intending to get out under the stock
ade. But the box narrowed and he was
fairly caught. He could go neither back
ward nor forward. By good fortune he
was found. 1t took an hours time to
get him out. During the last admins
tration a bunch of desperate convicts
walked out in broad daylight, through
a plank in the stockade 1t has always
been said this was by collision of
guards. Once when wagons were passing
into the main gate three convicts slip
ped out: Two were shot and killed, one
dying on the old Confederate breast
works, and the other surrendered amid
a hail of Winchester bullets.
The dining hall of the convicts is one
of the early buildings. 1t was long used
as chapel until the main building was
finished, when the chapel, as stated, was
provided in the east wing. The number
of convicts in the prison became so
small that the chapel was taken for
shirt factory, and a room in the central
part of the building was arranged for a
chapel. The part of the original cell
building was arranged for chapel. The
part of the original cell building now
remaining is used as a stable and wagon
shed.
The prison clothing is all made there
Women cut and make it, in their build
ing and they also operate the laundry
which now does only prison work. Under