The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1907-11-09
LARGEST FEDERAL PRISON IN THE U. s
BY MRS. c. R. MILLER.


BY MRS. C. R. MILLER.
AT the Federal prison at Leaven-
worth, Kan, o65 prisoners are en-
gagged in building around and over
them the very prison in which they
will be confined. This institution,
when completed, will be the largest
and best equipped Federal prison in
the country. 1t was begun in 1898,
and will probably not be finished for
several years. It has frontage of
800 feet, with depth of 600 feet in
the rear. The wall which surrounds
the buildings and incloses sixteen and
one-half acres will be thirty-one feet
in height. The entire reservation in
clud@ TAO acres, 100 under cultiva-
ton, and an equal amount in pastur-
age, The rest being still covered with
timber. The prisoners are white, col
ored Indian and Japanese. Twenty
four are military prisoners, while the
osilefs are offenders against the civil
law. The majority of the Indians
came from Indian Territory, and their
crimes rethe result of too much bad
whisky. The Mexicans are being
punished foismuggling of them,
a shoemaker. having sent in severel
hundred dollars worth of Mexican
opals hidden n the Innings of shoes.
The two Japanese were caught seal
poaching off ST Georges Island last
year. One hundred and three are
serving life sentences. One hundred
and thirty-four are TRUSTEES" en-
titled to wear the blue uniform aud
white numbers andallowed more free
dom in their movements in the prison.
Cray is the regulation uniform of the
Federal prisoner, and stripes are worn
only by refractory men as punish
ment for habitual disoNedience to the
rules. No women are sent to Leaven-
worth.
The prison is like model town,
and in time the officers expect to
make it self-supporting. Uncle Sam
is economical, and as far as possible
the prisoners are made to earn their
food and clothing. In many of the
State prisons the inmates are allowed
to work overtime, for which they are
paid, the money being held for them
until the time of their release. A
Federal prisoner receives no pay for
his work at any time, those in author
ity thinking that the plan works un-
fairly, as some of the prisoners would
be in position to make more money
than the others, and the Federal Gov
ernment's aim is to treat all men alike.
When man is released he is given
transportation to the town from which
he came, IS in money, new suit of
clothes, hat and shoes. If he is re-
leased in winter an overcoat is added.
The Indians are usually model pris-
ouers and are excellent workmen.
They have little to say, and in almost
every instance are obedient. The In
dian has sensitive nature, and as a
result of it-or, rather, the inability to
practice self restraint under strong
protocation some Carlisle graduates
have landed in this prison. At the
close of their school days they returned
to their tribes, and were shown little
consideration by the older men. Edu-
cation had equipped them for newand
more useful life and then failed to
provide proper place for its develop
ment. The grief and modification
resulting from this condition soon led
to drink, and crime was the result.
A number of these Indians are en-
gagged in dressing the stone which is
to ornament the front of the building.
They are known by such names as
Wash Beaver. Crazy Snake, PIANO.
waski Tiger, Handy Bear, Amos Rab-
bit, Tiger Tom, John Ruuabout,
Brown Takes the-G Gun, Fred Charg
ing Eagle, John Hogkiller and Willie
Little Head. Many of them receive
letters from home, and one mau has
a regular correspondence with his
sweetheart, who rejoices in the name
of Lucy Standing Goose.
The two japanese, who speak little
English, are engaged in the tailor
shop. AS far as possible everything
needed in the prison is the handiwork
of the inmates, and the shops i'll
which these articles are manufactur
ed are interesting in many respects.
The men are usually proud OF their
work, and frequently ask the foreman
whether he thinks them capable of
earning an honest living on the out
side. In several instances released
prisoners have obtained work on rec
concentrations of the warden, and it
is not uncommon for discharged pris-
oners to ask for letters as to their abil-
ity as workmen.
In one of the shops I was shown
some remarkably well-made shoes.
This place is busy, as the keeping of
nearly thousand men in footwear is
no small item. In the next aisle
number of prisoners were making
harness for horses which were doing
the hauling. The tailor shop, which
is equipped with electric irons for
pressing and electric sewing machines,
turns out all the clothing used by the
prisoners, as we'll as the neat uniforms
worn by the officers. Old clothing
and carpets are cut up and woven into
rugs to be used in different parts of
the building. All the brooms and
scrubbing brushes, mops, etc., need
ed are the work of a few prisoners,
and in this department a slender
young man wearing "trusty" uni
form silently handed out one brush
after another for my inspection, and
as 1 had word of praise for each ar