The log cabin Democrat. [volume] (Conway, Ark.) 1908-current, 1912-12-17
800 CONV|CTS PARDONFD
AND 5 CAMPS ABOLISHED

|pardons l was notified by the peniten-
tiary officials that after serving near
ly two years the negro sentenced to
thirty-siX years had died"
Among other instances he notes the
following: Jefferson county negro
sentenced to 1914 days for petit lar
ceny; another from same county
319 for petit larceny; another from
same county, 1481 days for petit lar
ceny; Craighead county white man,
200 days for assault and battery
Miller county negro, three years for
stealing few articles of clothing off
a clothesline. These, he says, are but
a few typical cases that should be suf-
ficient to move the legislature to ac-
ton.
The Governor says that these con-
ditions are the fault of the system,
and not Of the management of the
penitentiary, which has done all it
could to correct the evils. The peni-
tentiary board has no jurisdiction
over the county farms.
The Governor calls attention to the
fact that the state convict farm is
too small for the employment of all
the convicts in the penitentiary, and
because of the imperfect statutes on
the subject, not enough counties can
work convicts on the county roads to
take care of the surplus. Under the
law the penitentiary must be self
sustaining and it is permitted that
convicts be hired to contractors to be
worked under guardians of the state,
which feeds, clothes, and provides
medical attention for them. These
contractors work the men on the rail
roads and pay the state 81 day for
each man. He says the railroads pay
the contractors $1.50 to So day for
their work, and the state, during the
last four years, has lost $4,000 in
money contractors had agreed to pay
The men do not fare well in the
railroad camps, and three-fourths of
the cases of sickness and death occur
there. ut costs the state more to
maintain them in railroad camps than
it does either on the farm or on the
public roads," says Governor Dona-
ghey. "In profits the farm yield
more revenue. On the public high
ways there is no cost to the state at
all, while the communities get the
benefit of the roads. When on the
farm there are seldom any escapes,
and fewer guards are required. On
the railroads, Notwithstanding the
large number of guards, there are
many escapes, and from this work
many of the worst convicts in the pen
itentiary have gained their freedom
sometimes only temporarily, but too
often permanently. If they are re-
captured, it is after the state has Of
fered reward. One-half of the con-
victs in the penitentiary, with the
proper management, could be worked
on the states farm or on the public
roads without guards at all. This is
now being successfully done in other
states with worse class of criminals
than we have. This being true, the
expense can be very much reduced.
But to do it, our laws on the subject
will have to be rebuilt, and specialists
in the study and treatment of crimi-
nology employed"
1t has been claimed that nothing
else could be done with the convicts,
but now the penitentiary is out of
debt, and the governor "is convinced
that satisfaction to the state and the
necessary protection to the convicts
can never he had under the operation
of such laws and such system as we
have"
In order to effectually check the
system, he selected from the list of the
state convicts the names of 316, be-
sides a. who are on county farms,
pardoning them so that the total num-
ber may be reduced from about 800
to about 500. This, says the COVER
nor, will remove the incentive for the
formation of an opposing lobby to
fight any plan that may be proposed
for the abolition of the convict lease
system. This will leave enough men
in the penitentiary to cultivate and
improve the state farm. The pardons
are all granted on the condition that
the benefciaries shall not again vio-
late any Of the laws of the state
The convicts thus selected are in the
main those convicted of minor Of
fenses and having short sentences, al.
though some are under conviction of
graver crimes. Practically all have