Elmore County Republican. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1910-1915, 1912-03-09


port, were beyond all reason. The
punishments were varied and frequent
+ but the most common was by the
paddlea scientific instrument careful
! ly designed, it seems, to inflict a
maximum of suffering without in
fringing upon the humane law of the
state, which is very explicit upon
this point. 1t reads:
THE warden or deputy warden M J
punish the convict for misconduct in
such manner and under such regu-
lations as Shall be adopted by the
board; Provided that punishment by
showering cold water or whipping wit
the lash on the bare body shall in no
case be allowed,
Now the paddle Is not lash. 1t
is merely piece of heavy sole leath-
er SHAPED like a tennis racket and
fastened, with copper riyets, to a
pounds. The auxiliary apparatus con
sists of ladder, barrel, chains
handouts and ropes The ladder is
atout nine feet long and has set
Of brackets in which the barrel Is
held firmly, lengthwise. The barrel
is small, perhaps the size of a
half beer barrel. The prisoner is
stripped, laid upon the barrel, his
feet roped to the rungs at one end
of the ladder and his hands bound
with steel cuffs which are chained to
the other end of the ladder. Tive
men then unite their strength to
stretch these ropes and chains taut
In order to prevent the prisoners
body from moving or giving at any
point thereby weakening the force of
the blows. In short, the mans body
is by this means so placed anatom-
ically, that every blow of the execu-
tiener will yield its maximum result
in human suffering.
Then follows revolving list of the
use of this instrument of torture.
Kansas and Kate Barnard
have set down the facts relating
to Marquette prison plainly and with
)ut that comment which its obvious
lesson makes superfuous. | shall
merely emphasize the fact that this
prison is no verse than a hundred
others that might be named. 1t is
not an exception. 1t is type,
BY that time some of its people had
begl TO suspect that all was not
well with the Oklahoma prisoners in
the Kansas penitentiary Discharged
convicts drifted to their homes with
terrible stories Of maltreatment. But
the people as a whole We're too busy
to listen; and even had they stopped
to heed there were no means of con
firming the convicts' stories.
Iut one day in the summer of
1909 there appeared on the streets of
Lansing a little, dark haired woman
who was destined to make a stir in
The two states before she had fin
shed her work. She found her way
to the prison, paid her admission fee,
and Joined the visitors line in the
old castle, The well-trained guide
conducted the party through the usu-
al show-places, which every prison
carefully stages for the curious Wis.
itor-the spotless kitchen, the library
the short corridor upon which face
the comfortable cells of the favored
inmates, and perhaps the Bertillon
room. When the trip was over, the
little woman retraced her steps to the
warden's office. To the trusty at
the door she presented her card. 1t
read, Kate Barnard, Commissioner of
Charities and corrections, Oklahoma
City, Oklahoma" Never did so small
woman and so simple "A card create
such CONSERVATION. The warden met
hor with scant civility.
What is it you want?' he asked.
Il should like to go through the
prison. she answered, in order to
see how the Oklahoma prisoners are
being treated"
well, | shall have to consult the
board of control about that"
The board happened to be in SEES
sion at that moment. The members
We're furious.
WHO commissioned You to come
here and spy upon us?' one of them
cried out.
"A million and half citizens of |
Oklahoma, she answered, with all
the dignity that a sma'! person can
muster.
You may either show me through |
or show me out, just as You please"
She crept and crawled, she says,