Evening star., 1909-05-17
PROFIT IN JAIL SITES
Commissioners See Chance to
Quarry Stone for Local Use.
SAVING OF $4,000 A YEAR
Land Offered in Virginia on Potomac
River Looked Over.
WATER TRANSPORTATION GOOD
District Might Own Fleet Of Vessels.
Maryland to Be Location Of
One Institution.

In selecting sites for reformatory and
workhouse, for which Congress provided
In the last District appropriation bill, the
District Commissioners have plans for
saving to the District between $4,000 and
$4,000 per year.
This will be made possible by the pur-
chase of sites that contain stone that can
be used for concrete work on streets
sidewalks and buildings. and from which
there will be cheap water transportation
to Washington.
While no decision has been reached, II
has been practically determined by the
District Commissioners to purchase one
site In Maryland and the other In Vir-
ginia, both with frontage on the Potomac
river and accessible by boats from the
Districts wharves in this city.
Visit to Sites Offered.
The possibilities of this plan were dis
cussed Saturday, when the District Com
missioners and members of the penal
commission, which has in charge the
preparation of plans for the prison build
ings, made trip down the river to In
spect several offered sites.
The sites visited were on the Virginia
shore near Occoquan. 1t has been prac'
tically decided to take one of two sites
in that section which have river frontages
They have over 1000 acres each. Both
have many resources, the development OF
which will keep the prisoners busy.
The chief features OF the Virginia sites
are the stone quarries. 1t Is through
these, it Is expected, that the chief saw
ing to the District will be accomplished
Capt. E. M. Markham. assistant to the
Engineer Commissioner, who has been
doing much of the detailed work in con-
nection with the selection Of sites. has
made rough estimates that the selection
of either one of the two sites will mean
saving of between $4,000 and $SO,OOO
Under present conditions the District
must buy all the stone 1t uses for street
and sidewalk concrete work and stone
used in school and other buildings OF
that kind.
District May Own Fleet.
If either one Of the two sites contem-
plated are selected the stone on them
can be applied to these purposes. As
the site will have a river frontage. there
will be cheap water transportation to
this city.
To reduce the transportation charges
to minimum the District might own its
own fleet of vessels to carry the pris-
oners back and forth and to haul the
stone and other products of the site.
tug and several scows would probably
compose the fleet.
Capt. Markham has also suggested that
the scows be used to haul back to the
sites manure gathered from the Dis
trict's stables and from the street sweep
ings, to be used as a fertilizer for the
Of he Sif Drf
A small amount would be lost to the
District through the loss of services of
the chain gang on new roads In the Dis
trict. As that loss Is estimated at not
more than $1,000. the larger gain through
the use of the stone and other resources
more than offsets it.
Sites in Different States.
The workhouse, it is practically deter
mined, will be placed on the Virginia
shore and the reformatory on the Mary
land shore. The land in Virginia, 1t is
explained, is pugher and will require
hard work to put it into good shape. in
volving the quarrying of stone, the clear
ing of forest land and other similar
work.
The sites offered on the Maryland side
of the river are now used for agricul.
tural purposes, and therefore will not re-
quire as much work as on the opposite
shore The reformatory prisoners. how
ever, will be used to work the farm.
No choice of site will be made, said
Engineer Commissioner JudsOn today
until a report has been obtained from
an expert of the Department of Agri-
culture regarding the nature OF the soil
A request has been forwarded to the de-
partment asking that an expert be sent
to several sites under consideration tC
gather samples Of the soil to be tested
by the department experts. After those
reports are in. selection will be made