Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1908-01-28
AMAZED AT
CONDITIONS
COMMITTEE INspEcTs THE CITY
JAIL
FIND $40 PRISONERS CONFINED
IN CELLS
Members of Improvement Association,
Mayor and Police Chief Form
Party Which Visits lnsan-
itary Prison

Rasped and cudgeled to the hair line
of endurance by the comments of news
papers because of the purchase by the
council of $4,000 automobile for the
use of officers of the University police
station when the city jail was crying
aloud in its misery for relief, which
was not given, a committee of the Uni
versity Improvement association came
downtown last night to inspect the
Black Hole OF Los Angeles and see
with first eyes what truth there was
in the stories of inhuman conditions as
reported by the press to prevail in the
city prison.
In the party of inspection were Rev.
George r. Bovard, president of the Uni
versity of Southern California; Samuel
Young, president of the University I'M
provement association; Senator George
Williams, D. w. Hare, real estate
dealer; M. b. Golden, real estate dealer,
F. A. Griffin, capitalist; DR.. e. j. In
wood, Mayor A. c. Harper, Police Com
missioner Woodill Chief of Police
Kern and Capt. Paul Flammer
All prisoners had been locked up for
the night. The visit of the committee
was unannounced and unexpected.
There were no frills or furbelows pasted
on the program of the evening.
The committee arrived at the Jail I'M
expectedIy and asked permission to in
spect the place and view conditions as
they were Culel fNGI1f anu 0dpt. It ldi1i-
mer, who were present, invited the
members to go through the place and
see all that was to be seen.
The men accepted the invitation, and
what they saw is but repetition of the
story printed in newspapers for weeks.
Jail Crowded
In tanks and cells built for the ac-
commodation of 1875 prisoners they
found confined 319 men. and in the
women's department, built for fifteen,
there was confined thirty.
The faults of the Jail were pointed
out in as gentle a manner as possible.
Attention was called to the poor ven
tiIation, TO small space, to the lack of
sanitary and hygienic appliances. to the
lack, in fact of everything that would
go to make a decent and healthful
place for the confinement of human
beings.
IT was unnecessary to tell members
of the committee all these things. They
saw with their own eyes and smelled
with their own nostrils.
When they got out of the Jail and
concluded a tour of the lily built and
illv supplied receiving hospital, they
breathed sigh of relief and gulped in
great draughts of fresh air which blew
from the big open doorways in the
front of the station.
Samuel Young, president of the Uni
yersity Improvement association, voiced
the sentiments of his companions when
he said conditions were worse than
they had imagined possible.
saThe newspaper reports have not at
all been exaggerated" he said, land
am glad we have had the opportunity
to inspect the jail and see for our
selves just what the conditions are.
"They are really worse than we ex-
pected. 1t has been usual to make
allowance for newspaper reports, but
in this case we have found the news
papers have been modest and moderate
in comments upon the conditions which
prevail in the jail.
I'VE have read a great deal about
the place and we came to see for our
selves Just what conditions were. At
our meeting February we shall take
this matter up and hope our action
will aid in improving conditions"