The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1905-09-19
REPORT ON
PENAL LABOR
Commissioner Wight's Views
on Confinement Of Prison
Labor to One Branch.
ADVANCED DFAS SUGGESTED

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The Rey. DR.. George B. Wight, State
Commissioner Of Charities and Correc-
tions, win present to Governor Stokes
in about two weeks the special report
requested by the Governor several
weeks ago on making the reformatory
and penal institutions of the State
self-sustaining.
The investigation to gather material
for the report was begun August 10
and since then Commissioner Wight
has visited ali the State institutions in
questions
His report will summarize the find
ings of his quest and will make certain
recommendation deduced from the
findings.
Commissioner Wight has found the
problem hard one to solve, because
any plan for the further employment
of the convicts with a view to placing
the institutions more nearly on a self
sustaining basis must be made to llar-
monize with the State regulations
which prohibit the employment Of
more than 100 c0nyicts at one time in
any one industry. These regulations
were forced upon the State by the la
Dor unions, and we're designed to pre-
vent the competition between convict
labor and the honest labor and indus
tries of the State.
The question whether these regula-
tions could be modified without detri-
ment to honest labor is one Of the
points being considered BY Commis-
sioner Wight. Any conclusion arrived
at along this line will be taken up with
the organized labor Of the State before
an attempt is made to put it in prac-
tice.
One proposition is that if would be
better for the State, for the convicts,
and even for the free labor, to concen-
trate all the convict labor at the State
Prison on one industry, The prison
accommodates 1900 inmates, not more
than 800 Of whom, ON an average, are
able or capable of working at mechan-
ical labor. Under present methods,
even if the prison shops would accom-
modate all, these 800 workmen would
have to be divided among at least
eight industries.
Thus the prison manufacturing must
constantly be maintained on a small
scale so that large contractors will not
take hold of it. 1t is argued that il
800 men could be employed on one in.
dustry, large contractors would be at
tracted and the State would receive an.
increased income, a portion Of which
could be turned over to the families Of
the conyicts.
All goods manufactured at the New
Jersey State Prison must, under the
law, be stamped "prison made. This
law is supposed to benefit the honest
artisan Of the State by preventing too
large competition between him and
the convict laborer. But it is a we'll
known fact that thousands of dollars
worth of prison-made goods, made in
other States that have no law requir-
ing a stamp, are sold in New Jersey
every year. This being true, it is
claimed that If, in conference with the
State Federation Of Labor, the State
authorities should be permitted to se-
lect one industry and the 800 convicts
worked at that, it would cause no
greater hardship for the honest work
men of the State than now confronts
them. 1t is likely that Commissioner
Wights report will suggest that this
question be taken up with the State
Federation of Labor.
Another proposition to which Com
missioner Wight is giving special att
tention is the one presented by him in
his address before the recent session of
the State Federation, involving the
payment to the families of the con-
yicts of the sums earned by them
while laborlng in the prison. Commits
sioner Wight says this idea is not a
new one, but that its serious consider
auion by organized bodies of labor is.
| The commissioner hopes to reach some
satisfactory ground along this line