East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1905-09-08
HIRING CONV|CTS
PRISON LABOR PUZZLES
THE GOVERNOR.
Matter will be Left as 1t Is Until the
Legislature Outlines Definite Plan
for the Future-COnvlcts will be
Employed In Small Numbers on
Farms near Salem.

In discussing the matter Of hiring
out the convicts in the Oregon peni-
tentiary, at profit to the state, the
Salem Statesman says:
Unless satisfactory arrangements
can be made with the Lowenberg g.
Going Company for the employment
of convict labor in the northwest stove
foundry for an indefinite period, ex-
tending at least beyond the meeting of
the next legislature, there will be no
contracting of convict labor until such
time as the governor sees tit to nego-
tiate for II again.
This fact developed when Governor
Chamberlain announced yesterday af-
ternoon that he had refused to accept
the bid of the Portland Air-tight Stove
Manufacturing Company, which had
offered $40 cents per hour for at
least 100 men per day at the stove
foundry or 6S cents each per day, for
period of ten years, on the ground
that the company failed to comply
with the conditions of the contract Of
fered.
The state has been receiving 3 1-2
cents per hour for each convict en-
ployed in the foundry from the Low
enberg & Going company for several
years past.
This year however, he advertised for
new bids on the contract and received
two offers. one from the present man
agement of the foundry and the other
from the Portland Alright company.
The former offered 1-2 cents per
hour per man on the five year con-
tract and 5 cents per man upon a ten
year contract, while the latter offered
6 $40 cents per hour per man for a
ten year contract The latter. of
course. was the better offer but the
governor, i'm order to secure the state
from loss upon the proposition, re-
quired the bidder to offer satisfactory
evidence OF its financial responsibility
by the furnishing of a $4,000 bond,
as security of good faith and to put
up an additional bonus to be for
feited in case of on-fulfillment Of
contract.
This matter the company had under
constellation and was to give its an
swer by the first of September. In
the meantime the company suffered
the serious loss of its stove plant in
the recent fire on the east side at
Portland. and by reason of this loss
was so seriously crippled financially
that II did not feel able to undertake
the proposition of entering into con-
tract with the state at the peniten-
tiary.
The expenses of running the prison
stove foundry mounts upwards of
$1,000 per day. besides the great eX-
pense of equipping the plant and the
new company did not feel competent
to undertake the task.
In discussing the proposition last
evening. Governor Chamberlain said
he had not decided upon a future line
of action in the matter, definitely. but
that he thought he would endeavor to
enter into an agreement with the Low
enberw & Going company to continue
the operation of the foundry but not
at n less rate than cents per hour
for the work of the convicts until af-
ter the legislature met again and
adopted n future policy for the em-
ployment of the prisoners.
In the meantime he Will try to put
his theory Of working the convicts. or
such of them as are idle, upon the
farms in the immediate vicinity of
the prison. in grubbing land. He has
already received an application from
a farmer named Frank Cutter. of near
Huntsville, who has twenty acres of
ground to grub and wants to contract
for convict labor, but the governor
has referred the mater TO Superinten-
dent James for definite action.