The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1905-09-13
Pen AND POULTRY
Interesting Letter from Mis-.
souri, by an Old Subscriber.
TELLS OF THE PENITENTIARY
Also Gives Figures as to the Work Of
the Hnmble Hen in Old
Mizzoury.
DURHAM, Mo Sept. 9, 1905.

DURHAM Mo Sept. 9, 1905.
In the pleasant rivalry among our
American people some feature of greatness
is found in each state of which its citizens
boast that it out-classes all other states
Thus New York has her Niagara. Maine,
her paper mills, California, her fruits,
Iowa, her educational institutions and so
on, through the list of states are disting-
uishing characteristics Here comes Mis-
souri, with her State prison. She has the
largest penal institution in the United
States-larger than is needed at present,
our authorities having built with an eye
to the future.
Doubtless in the campaign for honest
government now being waged under the
vigorous administration of George Folk.
rascals will be rounded up and escorted in
to grace the vacant wards.
This penitentiary covers little more
than fifteen acres of ground. While ex-
ternally, it is a thing of beauty in design
and workmanship, internally and exter-
nally it is to be center of industry. 1t
is so arranged that the States guests,
while stopping there, may be given an
abundance of healthy employment and
the sale of the products of their labor
apply on cost of maintenance. Having
in youth. learned that man should earn
hro,d h., tha t.eu,a,t of ~, l,an, ~ .,i
that ''if any would not work neither should
they eat,' we have grown up with the
idea that able-bodied convicts should do
an amount of labor equal in value to the
States outlay in giving them their culture
and by no means live of the throw sweat"
Of honest people.
"A. this prison various lines of industry
are carried on. Convicts who have no
fj are given an urgent invitation to
dessae and q Of sentence
lthsstn AN go out and earn an honest living,
should they wish to do so.
During the month of June, 1905. the
sale Of labor from the Missouri prison
aggregated to more than forty-three thou
sand dollars, which was six thousand
dollars more than total prison expenses
for that month. Binding twine is one of
the leading articles of manufacture and
the large output was principal factor in
reducing the price of twine to farmers for
the past harvest more than two cents per
pound and so saving to them large
amount of hard earned money.
Hitherto, prison wardens have restored
to the private cell, scourge dungeon, cold
water bath, ETC., to govern convicts, and
it was hoped that such harsh methods
would intimidiate law breakers and lessen
crime.
1t now remains to be seen whether the
fear of having to do actual work will les
sen crime more than those measures,
which we're calculated to antagonize the
disposition Of the average convict to the
point of greatest resistance. Right here
we recall the remark Of celebrated Ger
man traveller, who, when asked if among
/ the nations he had visited, he had discov.
/ cred any one thing characteristic of all,
replied in broken English; II dank find
dis, all men live lazy.'
Perhaps you will say a penitentiary,
however vast and hourishing, is not a
proper thing for the people of great
state to take pride in or boast Of. Permit
US to say few words relative to the Mis-
souri, pen. The bureau of labor statistics
have just finished compiling statistics
from all Missouri counties regarding the
poultry products shipped out of them dur
ing the year 1904. Here are the figures
showing quantity and value as per said
report:
Live poultry. 16S.454,747 pounds at
cents. sI3,47o, 37o.7o; dressed poultry
4s,553,o36 pounds at 10 cents, s4,s55.3 $685.
60; dozens of eggs, 90, ,oo7,415 at II cents,
sI3.o ,o46, 10; feathers, 642,6o7 pounds.
at IS cents, s2S9, 1876.
This is only the surplus actually shipped
out of the one hundred fourteen counties
of Missouri in the one year and is esti.
mated to be only two.hfths of the whole
product. three-hfths being consumed at
home. Had this surplus product been
shipped on one train, it would have re-
quired 26,751 cars and would have been
157H miles long and moving at twenty
miles an hour and twelve hours per day,
it would have taken eleven and one-half
days in passing any given point. Adding
to the value lof the poultry shipped, the
value of tha. three ffths remaining at
home and we have the sum of s79, 1o6 1906,
50, total value of the poultry of Missouri
during 1904; Ia sum only five million dol.
lars less than she total output of gold from
the United States and Territories the same
year as per report of United States mint,