The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1908-12-30
Counties GET Together
On The (0nbict Question
Yesterdays Meeting May Result In Contracts For Several
Counties Difference Of Opinion On ACCESSIBILITY Of
Working Convicts On the
County Roads

AS a result of the meeting of county
representatives yesterday afternoon, JET
ferson county's convicts are already prac-
tically leased to the Pratt Consolidated
company for $10.5O each. including men,
women, children and sick.
The conference also appointed COM
mittee with instructions to confer with
the boards of revenue and the county
commissioners looking to permanent or
ganizaton and plans and legislation to
provide a better system for the work
or hire of the county convicts.
The sentiment expressed unanimously at
the meeting was that legislation is greatly
needed and that the next legislature
must be induced to place the hire and
leasing of county convicts in the hands of
the state board
The first meeting began at l p. M, and
after going carefully over the conditions
OF each county, list of available con-
victs for the 10 counties represented was
made out, and the Jefferson county
Board of Revenue was instructed to see
what best terms the corporations would
make for each county, or the whole bunch
separately.
At o'clock yesterday afternoon the
Jefferson county board met with Presi-
dent Mccormick of the Pratt Consoli-
dated company and received his bid.
While it was not entirely closed, it is
practically settled that the contract for
one or more years will be signed this
morning. and that the other counties will
make the same terms. At p. m. the rep
resentatives who had remained met at
the Hillman hotel and received the Pratt
Consolidated companys bid. They VIII
all return to their boards and put the
proposition up to them.
Among those present at the early ses-
sion were Judge w. S. Foreman of st.
Clair county, who presided; Judge w. e.
Skeggs of Morgan county, Judge j. G.
Brown of Tuscaloosa county, Solicitor
Lacey of Walker county, Judge l.. III.
Reynolds of Chiffon county, Judge A. P.
Longshore of Shelby county, Judge Smith
of Green county, Solicitor D. F. Green
of Morgan county, Hard Labor Agent B.
B. Cooper of Morgan county, Attorney
w. A. Weaver of Blount county, repre-
of Taladega county.
Judge Foreman, in calling the meet
ing to order called attention to the "un-
reasonable bids" which had been made,
and thought it the common interest of
all to look to the welfare of their coun-
ties
while not trying to make money out
of our convicts, we at least expect rea-
sonable compensation" he said.
President Job Going of the local board
was called on I'VE have $50 convicts on
an average in the mines he said. eve
have today received our second bid from
the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad
company, which is very discouraging.
The new one is just about the same as the
one we all received. We would rather
give them to the company merely for
maintenance than accept $12 for able
bodied men over 80 days sentence, and
have to spend all we received to maintain
the short-sentence prisoners. Four years
ago our county was getting SO month,
and the prices offered now are getting
back to the old conditions. l believe the
companies have been making good money