The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-02-10
WARE" s~r~s I'VE WATCHDOG OF Hf IethsURY

passed and to lay that motion on the table.
The motion prevailed on a viva voce vote
and the bill will now go to the Governor.
DIFFERENCE OF OPINION.
The difference of opinion that exists
among all those interested in the convict
labor question is shown in the fact that
during the session there have been no less
than five bills introduced, each bearing on
the question and each offering a different
solution. The first bill introduced was the
one passed yesterday afternoon. OF the
other four measures, three provide for COM
missions to take up the problem and re-
port to the next General Assembly their
recommendations % as to the employment
of prisoners in the making of paving brick,
macadam and other paving materials, 90
to the employment in the making of
roads, and ca as to the employment in any
line of manufacture under the State ac-
count or contract system; the other Dill
provided for the establishment of a new
| State institution, to be located somewhere
/ in western Indiana, and to be known as
| the Indiana Industrial Prison, where con-
victs could be employed at farming, brick
making mining, etc. One of these four
bills does not conflict with the bill passed
| yesterday. 1t was introduced at the in
| stance of the committee on the affairs or
| the Indiana State Prison and is the one
| that provides for a commission to investi-
| gate the problem during the next two
years and to report on the best means OF
| employing the prisoners, but does not
| limit the investigation to any one line OF
work. This bill will probably be passed oy
| the House, as it is backed by the same IN
| terests that supported the Matson bill.
When the bill was handed down on third
| reading yesterday afternoon Mr.. Stechnan,
of Marion county. secured recognition, lie ne
| spoke in favor of the bill, but expressed
| the opinion that it should be amended so
| that it would not extend the present sys-
| tenn more than two years, or TOUR years
at the maximum.
Mr. Boyd, of Putnam, Democrat, was I'M
| dualifedly opposed to the bill and he said
| that he believed 1t was time for the state
| OF Indiana to do away with the prison
| contract grabs" He argued that the con-
| victs should be employed solely on the
| State account system.
HARLEY'S SPEECH.
| Mr. Harley of Carroll, the chairman of
| the prison committee, supported the bill.
| Mr.. Harley was warden of the prison dur
| ing a period when there were no contracts
| to give employment to the prisoners and
| his recital of the trials that he experienced,
| and of the pitiful pleadings of the con-
victs for work of any kind to keep them
( from insanity. made deep impression on
| the members. Speaking directly to the
BILL Mr. Harley said in part:
This bill carries with it the provisions Of
| the law now on our statute books whereby
| one-half of the population of the Indiana
State Prison can be engaged on contract,
| the other half on state account work. There
| are four contracts in the prison, namely,
! cooperage, chairs, wooden knit goods and
| shirtsl each working 100 men. No more
| can be employed on any one contract ac-
cording to law. The other half must be
| employed by the warden for the State at
| various occupations, including dining-room
walters. cooks, engineers. teamsters, farm
| ers. and doing other work about the insti-
4 tuition. This briefly states the condition of
| the law under which the prison is now OPP
| Grated.
1.-The present bill that we are trying to
| have enacted does not change single let
ter of the law by which the prison is now
| conducted, except in substituting the fig
ures 10 for the figure 4; in other words, ex-
! tending the contracts for six years, or until
| 1910. The reason for so doing is this 1t is
| an unwritten law of prison that the min
imum contract Is five years, the maximum
| contract ten years. contract cannot be
let at a fair price at less than five years.
| For instance, if this bill was amended so
| as to extend 1t for any time less than five
| years there would be no bids otherwise
than at the present contract. The reason
for that is there is probably $4,000 worth
| of machinery in the prison now belonging
| to the contractors, and no one would invest
| that amount of money in plant for any
| thing less than five years. That is what
| the present contractors in the Indiana State
| Prison want to-day. They would be very
glad to see this bill amended so 1t would
son that they we'll know no bidders would
| be on hand to contract this labor, and they
could dictate their own price, which. in all
| probability, would be no more than 20 cents
per day, which would be loss to the State
at rate of at least $4,000 or $4,000 per
year on so per cent. of the convicts that are
| now in the prison.
| TO REDUCE COMPETITION.
'"rhe object of this bill is to reduce the
competition of convict labor with free la
Ilvf 90 .fx1,v
prison recognizes the competition there is
between convict and free labor, therefore
in solving this problem which is now before
us. we should do best to reach the
minimum competition. 1t is also expected
that the manufacture of some lines of goods
will be carried on under the State account;
that is goods which can be used by public
institutions of the State. but it would not
be well to throw the whole prison popula-
ton on the State account system at once
Our sister States, especially Illinois, lost
$4,000 the first year by so doing. Illinois
| tried the State account system by this
method. and We do not want to follow her
| example, knowing the loss thus expert
| enced.
1T is thought the proper method to solve
the State account system is to a certain
number of men in conducting special In
dustries for institutional supplies. Machin.
cry could be had at small cost and opera.
| lions started, commencing on small basis
None of the extensive manufactures stu
ated in Indianapolis commenced with Their
| present population; they all started from
| small scale, adding machinery and mer
until they reached the present proportions
Why can we not the same business
method in the prison to manufacture or
the State account?
1.-The reason 1 am so interested I'm thi.
| question is that j hope no prison warder
| in the United States ever again will be In
the position of having a population o.
about 100 men thrown idle on his hands
| as was done under the law of 1897. a
which time / was warden of the Indians
| State Prison. Numerous were the method.
and modes adopted to give those idle mer
| each a very small amount of exercis,
| each day.
1T must be understood that under tn,
law a new contract cannot be let excep
by due advertising and then letting to tn,
| highest bidder. There Is no danger of tn,
| present contractors in the prison gettin.
| more of these contracts unless they ar,
| the highest and best bidders"
Mr. People. OF Laporte. and Mr. Boulder
| of Clinton spoke briefly in support of tn
bill. while Mr.. Slack. the minority foo
leader. took an antagonistic position HI
said that when the present contracts wer
ual growth of the State account system
7 | by laying aside the sum of 5000 eacl
| year for this work. and he declared tina
the State should stand by the policy as
sumed four years ago and proceed 10 ex
pend this fund in the extension of tn
State work until all the prisoners could b
given employment and the contracts abol
ished.
BRINGS IN BANQUOS GHOST.
Mr.. Sherman. of Decatur. who spent Sun
! l dav ar the prison. smoke In favor of ne hi