Carson City daily appeal. [volume] (Carson City, Nev.) 1907-1930, 1913-01-20

correspondence dating back to No
vember, 1910, shortly after my cleo
ton and before | had taken Office.
with Colorado, and also with the
Territorial Good Roads Commission
o New Mexico. where the system was
first introduced and from which It
spread with satisfactory results to an
increasing number of other States.
The bill which became a law was
drawn by my secretary, submitted to
my approval before its introduction.
and was amended by the Legislature
only in the one particular-that con-
victs delegated to road work were to
remain under the control and super
vision of the Warden. instead of the
State Police. as the original bill pro
vided. | refer to this history (Which
is easily s~ubstantiated by reference
to my inaugural message and to GER
tain letters and documents on file in
my Office merely to correct some 't-
accuracies of statement which have
been made in respect to the origin
OF convict work in Nevada. and not
for the purpose o assuming any spec
ial credit for the same.
There is no question but that the
| passage o this law has had a whole
some effect on our prison system.
| and been the means o giving a new
start in life 10 a large proportion ot
| the discharged and paroled men.
| ABOUT 40 per cent OF the total mum
| Der of ~convicts have been perorm-
| ing good service under the honor
| system on the prison arm and at the
| road camp. This system was inaug-
| urate by farmer Warden Maxwell. i'll
1910, as will appear from his Bien-
NAL Report for l909-l9l0, page ).
wherein. discussing the employment
| of prisoners on the prison farm he
says:
''They (the %convicts detailed TO
| the farm are dressed il citizens
clothing and are given substantial
| food. Before being placed on
| the farm the conditions imposed are
explained to them and they are then
informed that they are to be placed
on their honor, the duty OF the fore
man and assistant being only to su-
pervise their work and see that al!
conditions are observed.
During the past two years there
have been eight escapes from the
road-work and six from the prison
farm, a total of IA: eight OF these
have been recaptured, leaving SIX
still at large. but almost cetrain or
apprehension through the operations
O the Bertillon system OF ldentltca-
ton. The detail OF prisoner i'll such
I beneficial work has relieved the con
g~estion in the prison and obviated
the necessity OF constructing a new
p~eniteutiary. a saving to the State OF
several hundred thousand dollars.
| The splendid highway now III course
| OF construction between Reno and
| Carson is a testimonial of the good
| and faithful work OF these prisoners.
The Prison Board requires the coun-
ty in which road-work is done to
pay one dollar per diem per convict
employed. and under which Washoc
county has contributed SlI .920.oo.
While even with this contribution
the cost o maintenance OF road-camI'
prisoners is about l2H cent per
diem greater than when confined,
the value OF such permanent i'm
provcmentS to the State must be
taken into consideration and, as well.
the act that the unwholesomeness
and ~degenerating effects OF prison
| confinement on those who are not OF
criminal nature is obviated.
Your attention is specifically called
to the recommendation OF the War
| den that the provision OF the act with
respect to time-off and compensation.
! now applying to the road work eX-
| clusively, be also made applicable to
those employed on the prison farm.
which will tend to improve the serv-
ice on the latter. Also, to further
suggestions i'll his report with respect
to improvements. the stocking OF
the farm. and that receipts from the
sale o its product and livestock may
be in vested in new stock and i'll
provements instead of reverting to
I the general fund.