Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1903-08-01
FOR BETTER ROADS.
LABOR UNIONS AND AUTOMOBILE
MANUFACTURERS JOIN HANDS.
The Use of Prison Labor In Building
Public Highways A Labor Lead
er's Plan For the Employment Of
Convicts In This Work.

Convicts In This work.
The convention of American road
makers which met in Detroit was re-
markable in this respect. that Mr.
George Burns, the great labor leader
and president of the Michigan Labor
labor either in building roads or In
preparing material to bc used for hard
ening their surfaces. lie is the first
great labor leader to advocate this
course. although it has been suggested
by many speakers and writer's on this
question during the past ten years. Mr..
Burns sees that it would he clearly in
the interest of such prison labor and
also in the interest of free labor TO
have the great army of prisoners now
in the jails in the various states who
are doing no good for themselves and
adding nothing to the common wealth
applied to the road proposition in some
form or other.
Many people object to a suggestion
of this kind because they say that the
uSt VI StNli lol SuNh IL pOSt
would have a communicating influence
in the community where the work is
done. But to avoid such result Mr..
Burns showed that this labor could be
applied in the preparation of material,
either brick or broken stone, where the
prisoners could be worked in inclO-
sures as they now are. The products
nrnfl1pn1 u-nI11I n a pt
with free labor as the articles general
ly produced by such labor do. Conse-
quently by this course you avoid COM
petition with the manufacturer who
offers for sale the manufactured arti-
Gle or competition with the free labor
er who works to produce these articles,
and at the same time the prisoner is
receiving more useful instruction, hav-
ing more hcalthful exercise and adding
greatly in the course of years to the
common wealth. If Mr.. Burns idea,
which is undoubtedly sound and
wholesome one, should be adopted by
the labor unions of this country gener-
ally, it would bring to the road cause
great aid.
The great meeting of the automobile
manufacturers of America held in Chi
cago soon after this Detroit convention
developed the fact that all of the auto
mobile manufacturers of America are
heartily in favor of some general plan
of road building that shall be applica-
BILE to all the states in the Union. Be
ing unanimous in this view, they
adopted a resolution indOrsing the pas
sage Of the BrOwnlow bill, which pro-
vides for a system Of national, state
and local cooperation in the perma-
nent Improvement of the public high
ways. 1t is very evident from the logic
of events that the time is rapidly ap-
preaching when the friends of the good
roads cause will be able to unite many
forces in favor of the general plan Of
road improvement that have hitherto
been either Indifferent or hostile.
The labor leaders generally have
been hostile to the idea of applying the
prison labor to this work, but now one
Of the most progressive leaders of or
ganized labor has come forward and
indorsed in the most hearty and intelli-
gent way the idea of applying this la
Dor to the general welfare of the COM
munity by building up the public roads.
In order, however, that this shall be
made possible the road building au-
thorities in the various states and
counties must be provided with neces-
sary funds in order to obtain proper
machinery, engineering skill and ex-
pert labor so rs to make use Of the
army Of prisoners who would be put at
their disposal under the new plan.
In order to secure this necessary fund
it is more and more evident that the
aid of the national government should
be called in to supply portion of the
money. This is all provided for by the
Brownlow bill, which was not only In
dorsed by the Chicago convention, but
also by the Detroit convention OF
American rOadmakers. Every cOnven-
ton met to consider this question since
the Brownlow bill was introduced in
congress has in .1'sed the bill and
urged its passage.-HOn. Martin Dodge.