The Blackfoot optimist. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1907-1918, 1912-05-23
held under civil process, or under an
order imposing punishment for con-

Ie1QpL ~ Et.:
4. Males separately from females.
Section 1927 of the revised statutes
says Persons committed on criminal
process and detained for trial, persons
convicted and under sentence, and per-
sons committed upon civil process,
must not be kept or put in the same
room, nor shall male and female pris-
oners be kept or put in the same"
And yet we find but one general cell
room for all classes Of prisoners, with
the exception that a small toilet room,
9x5h feet, leading off the sheriffs
room, Is used for female prisoners.
Even then, when cot is put in this
small compartment the open toilet is
but a few inches away from the bed,
rendering such sleeping room not
only insanitary, but indecent and
vile, and detrimental to the health Of
the unfortunate woman who may be
imprisoned there You have no &C.
commodations at all for insane people,
and would. without doubt, be under
necessity to incarcerating such in one
Of the cells, although you have already
had one prisoner murdered by an in
sane person who was compelled to be
imprisoned in the Jail for lack Of bet
ter quarters. understand also. that
you recently had confined a female
prisoner accused Of murder, and that
you was compelled to imprison with
her boy who had been arrested for
Juvenile delinquency or scme other
miner offense. Such conditions are de-
plorable, and it will be to the shame
Of those responsible II they longer ex-
made to remedy them.
list without some heroic effort being
The Jail proper occupies the north.
east part Of the court house. The floor
constituted pit, about four or five
feet below the ground. and incapable
Of being properly ventilated. as it is
underneath all openings In this pit
are three steel cages, in each Of which
are two cots occupied by prisoners.
Inside this steel Enclosure, and exposed
to the entire room, Is one open water
closet, fer the use of all men confined
there. At night, slop buckets are used
by the men,, the stencil from which
renders more foul the atmosphere be-
Ing breathed over and ever again. We
found nine men incarcerated under
these conditi ms and yet ii was but
recently there were IA prisoners there
Here the men cook their own food, on
range which is also used by them
for washing their clothes, as we'll rs
y heating th" DOM. A rickety wood
en- ladder is used by some of the men
~ gain acce;: to the TOP Cf ne cages,
where some have their beds. The
bedding is dirty and filthy, and white
some Of the blankets haze lately oeen
replaced with new ones, yet t is m
possible to give the bedding any air
ing, with the result that it i Eabla to
breed disease There is neither bath
room nor bath, and the pris opers clean
themselves as best they may Wher
it is considered that under these con-
ditiOns a dozen or more me1 have
been compelled to cook and eat their
meals, wash their clothes, live day and
night without proper ventilation and
bathing facilities, breathing the focal
doors from exposed toilet and slop
pals, and sleeping in dirty bedding, it
is criminal and disgusting and dis
grace to those responsible. It seems
incredulous that such conditions could
exist in civilized community. when
so much is being said and done for the
preservation of health. The farmers
CT Latah county would not permit
their stock to be kept under such dis
gushing conditions, let alone human
beings. There is net a restaurant in
the state of Idaho where the keeper is
permitted to cook food to be served t
his patrons, in the same room in
which he sleeps. His Place of business
would be closed until he remedies the
condition, and his food stuffs would be
destroyed
"HoIe Of Calcutta"
But this is not all; the stencil from
this modern Hole of Calcutta per-
meates the whole building, and when
district court is in session (the court
room being Immediately over the jaiD
the odors have been such that
Judge Steele, so l am reliably inform
ed, has been under the necessity of
admonishing the sheriff against the
cooking of food, the smell of which
only aggravates the situation. In in
terviews with the county officials,
am informed that the odors in the cor
rider of the court house in different
offices. should the transoms be left
down, are so foul, the first thing in the
morning, as to be almost unbearable.
Section 8543. of our laws makes it