Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1911-11-15
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II. GeiSer. a Swiss manufacturer. this
week visited For, Madison 10 !aves:t-
gate the farm tool factory which
makes and ships large quantities OF
pitchto-ks, garden rakes and other
farm tools in Switzerland. a dispatch
from Fort Madison says:
"Geiser's trip TO Fort Madison was
because the pi;chforks which his COM
pany deal in are manufactured in this
city. His inspection Of the factories
here created surprise. ven astonish-
ment. The factory appeared to him as
a gigantic enterprise n the rapidity
and apparent ease in turning out the
farm implements aroused a deep inter
est and wonder"
This factory which he considers a
gigantic enterprise. is in the Fort
Madison penitentiary and the men who
turn out the goods with such rari1ity
are the prisoners. The state hires these
men 20 the contractors, who pay the
state 60 cents a day and receive SER
vices they can not hire on free labor
markets for less than 50 to 81 a day.
In addition to furnishing this cheap
help the state carries the tool! company
for months, taking notes instead Of
NcS!I " sclllcliiClllSs 3
are furnished by the state and all the
the raw material. This tool company
is a part Of a great combination OF
prison manufacturers. Once they gold
prices than other manufacturers and
thus made prison labor a menac TO
free workingmen. but row they are in
- ---L-- 10 z.-- I.>. 49,
sell at the same prices as where the
goods are made D. free labor. This
gives the trust an enormous profit.
There IS a general belief that Cover
nor Carroll and the board OF parole
have an understanding with the con
tractors by which they do not parole
men working on contracts, but be that
as it may only two o. three contract
men have been paroled in several
wears. The men In the tool company
shops are not worked as hard as those
on the chair contracts. When a pris-
oner gets the i'll Will OF the officers. he
finds his lot on the man killing chair
contract. That Is where Haley was
ordered to go. and for his refusal he
has been In solitary confinement since
July %.
The natter OF p"ice OF contract !abo!
rests entirely with the governor and
the board OF control. Just why the
state does not get adequate conpen-
sation for the labor !: give: TIT. tool
tr"st, is a matter that should be ex-
pl'ined.
The time has come when the state
should employ the prisoners and pay
the men a part Of their earnings. to go
to their families, or 70 be invested FOR
Their benefit when released. But Iowa
is fifty years behind the times in !ts
prison management, and what is worse.
these IN charge seem eve to have
thousht Of making n improvements
til driven to II.
Since the Republican be4an ffs ex-
posures OF conditions at Fort Madison,
most Of the thinSs complained Of have
Ncen corrected that Is 90 far as sani-
:etioT ana sooi are concerned y tenG
all unnmer TO make the improvements,
and just three days after the closets
were removed from the dining hall,
Governor Carroll sent members OF his
personally appointed board Of health
TO Fort Madison, r-ho reported that the
charge that uch . cloaet existed Vas
false. The same committee reported
that the stories relating to the condt.