The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1907-1917, 1912-12-12

trated comic weeklies, seems
to be that of a. Iow-browed indivi-
dual, with shaved head and pro-
truding jaw, clothed in a zebra suit
and seated upon a pile Of stone; a
chain and ball fastened to his foot
and in his hands an immense sledge-
hammer with which it is to be pre-
Sumed he is breaking the stone
Backing our statement with years of
actual experience, we can truthfully
say that there is nothing that ma
ligns the average prisoner, or mis-
represents actual prison industries
so much as this fantasy of the pub
lie mind. The real labor accom-
plished within the walls of almost
any penitentiary is as different from
the foregoing description as day is
from night, and yet should you ques-
ton any newspaper man or cartoon
list as to the reason for such gross
misrepresentation, almost invariably
the reply will be that they haven't
time to educate the public as to the
true status of the men behind the
bars.
Under the system at present in
vogue in many penitentiaries the
newly d141NSA dAO 4uSS-
toned closely as to the work they
did for a livelihood prior to their
Incarceration, and then the official in
charge Of such matters, if the OPP
portunity offers, puts them to work
at the same kind of labor inside the
walls. Where this is not feasible
the prisoner is placed in some shop
or detail where the work will be i'll
a measure commensurate with his
ability.
Officials in charge of penal insti-
buttons realize that nothing causes
the prisoner to deteriorate so much
as having nothing to occupy his time
and mind. Without work many men
within the walls would go insane or
sink to a useless and bestial condi-
ton little abovset the lowest of that
of brute creation.
Some States have endeavored to
solve this problem with the contract
or leasing system. While it is true
this system keeps the prisoner occu-
pied, the greed for gain frequently
causes INSCRIPTIONS contractors and
lessees to use brutal methods in or
der that they may secure maximum
output for a minimum outlay of CAPT.
tai This system works a hardship
upon, and tends to brutalize those
prisoners who lack the necessary
ability or stamina to perform the
tasks imposed upon them, thereby
sending them back into the world
menace to the public.
Other States utilize their prison
labor in, the manufacture of some
article or articles of general use, di
rectly under the supervision Of the
State, the object being to make the
institution self-supporting and turn
as large profit as possible into the
treasury of the State. This system
also possesses numerous drawbacks.
In some cases the products of the
prison labor compete directly with
those of free labor and force the Ia
boring man to work for lower wage
in order to meet such competition.
Union labor has done much to abol-
ish many Objectionable features of
this system, in so far as it completes
with organized labor. The opposl-
ton of the union to unreasonable
competition in the labor of men has
driven some institutions to the man
ufacture of lighter articles that COM
pete more directly with the product
of unorganized female labor, and
therefore many able-bodied prisoners
are released, after years of hard