Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1903-03-29
CONVICT FARM PURCHASE
Endorsed by Committee, and House
Adopts Committee Report.

j Little Rock, March 2S.-Mr. Chest
nut, for the committee appointed by
the legislature to visit the convict
farm recently purchased by the peni-
tentiary board, sent up the following
\ report:
Mr.. Speaker-We, your special com
l mittee heretofore appointed to in
vestigate the purchase and transac-
tions of the convict farm. submit the
following report:
"On the morning Of the 9th of March
1903, seven of the members of tie COM
nlittee, consisting OF the chairman. ".
W. Cotton, and Senators Brown and
Hinkle, and REPRESENTATIVES Chest
nut Campbell Cook of Chicot. and
Thompson, proceeded by way OF Pine
Bluff on steamboat to the property
purchased by the state. situated in
Lincoln county. We took all the testi
mony ebtainable while on the trip az.
fiyng at the plantation said evenil@
Early the following morning each Of
the said members provided himself a
conveyance and rode over the planta-
ton, with the purpose of viewing it in
person, the territory being divided
among the members in such a manner
as to permit them to see as much of
the plantation as possible. This
mode of personal investigation was
continued until March 8, at noon,
when, after completing said inspection,
the committee returned by way of
Warner to Little Rock.
Upon our return to Little Rock, we
conferred, by subcommittee, with both
the governor and the other members of
the penitentiary board as to their de.
sire whether Or not the committee
should take further testimony regard.
ing the property, and if they so desired
to submit the committee list of
witnesses whose testimony they de-
sired ID have considered by the com
mittee; also indicating to both parties
at the time of the said conference that
they preferred said list of witnesses
to be as limited as possible. They
also intimated to both of said parties
that they preferred that they do not
appear before the committee and eX-
anime the witnesses in person, re-
qusting them at the same time, if
they wished, to submit the committee
a list of such interrogatories as they
desired to be propoundea to each
witness.
eve desire to state that we have
taken the testimony of witnesses,
whose evidence has been reduced to
writing and is filed herewith and
made a part Of this report, the ma
jority of said witnesses having sign
ed their statements. All have been
duly sworn. and when not convenient
to sign the statement our stonOgrapher
has sworn as to the correctness OF her
notes. From personal observation and
testimony of witnesses we find the fol
lowing:
"That we were unable to ascertain
the exact number of acres in tie en-
tire tract of land, by survey; that we
find, according to the tax books of
Lincoln county, that there are 7,80S.S3
acres Of decided land and according
to the testimony of Mr. j. A. Martin,
civil engineer and surveyor, who tes-
tilted that he had surveyed the entire
tract, that there are between 1000 and
5000 acres of the accretions. The
committee has been unable to obtain
complete map or plat of this entire
tract of land, or any other exact, auth
orlzed survey, including the accretion.
We find that there are seven miles
of river front and that there are seven
mile OF river-front levee to be kept up;
that sfout one-fourth of mile of the
1,sss n,se A. the extreme upper end of the
p'ap 1pn has given away within the
ias. lew years, and that the balance of
INC leVee. about mile and a quarter
III length was in danger of caving
out that loop has been constructed
winch constitutes an excellent levee
ana gives full protection to the entire
plantation, with the exception of about