Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1913-11-08
PROBE Of PRISON
WILL De ASKED
BY HOWARD
Georgia Congressman Makes 1t
Plain That There Shall Be
No "Whitewash."

There viii be no "whitewasn' Of
Warden Mover and his administration
Of the United States Penitentiary IN
Atlanta.
This was made plain Friday by
Congressman William Schley Howard.
The Atlanta Representative declared
that conditions at the prison were
going to be held up to the glare of a
most thorough investigation. He did
not care whom the disclosures hit,
he said.
To carry out his plan for a prison
probe. he will introduce on his return
to Washington resolution providing
for a Congressional committee of five
members to come to Atlanta and sit
until every feature of life in the pen
itentiary mas been minutely inspected.
Nothing will be overlooked.
The light viii be turned into eV-
cry obscure corner OF prison admin
istration." said the Congressman. "If
any of Movers friends had hoped for
a whitewash, they surely will be dis
appointed"
be made up of three Democratic and
two Republican Representatives They
will work entirely Independently Of
any inspector who may be appointed
by Attorney General McRevnolds.
Says Probe Is Needed
The committee will give Warden
Meyer a square deal; you may depend
on that" said Congressman Howard.
81 have no desire to find maladminis-
tration, lack of discipline, starving
prisoners and such horrible Condi-
tions, If they do not actually exist
But have seen enough with my own
eyes to know that there is a most
urgent need for an immediate inves-
tigatioi
The investigation / shall ask will
not be superficial. 1t will embrace
every phase of prison life and admin
istration. 1t will involve the question
ing of scores of prisoners and of
guards and eX-guards. Warden Moy-
er will be heard, but the other side
will be heard as well. If he and his
subordinates are guilty of the things
that have been charged against him,
there will be no escape. He will have
to suffer.
IF you should go out there and ask
Warden Meyer to have guard show
you the dungeon, the guard would
take you to the isolation building and
show you only the cells on the first
floor. He would say that there was
no such thing as a dungeon. But all
of the time it would be right beneath
your feet--a place where handouts
are fastened in the bars of the door.
One man that | know of was sent
down there not more than three
weeks ago.
Tells of Lack of Discipline.
We want to find out the deep-lying
cause for the lack of discipline out
there, Cor It is a patent fact that
there is little more than a semblanCe
of discipline. Some prisoners prob
ably have been inhumanely punished
Others, I know, have been let go scot
free when they have reviled and
abused the guards and attaches The
prisoners have been reported to the
warden and deputy warden, and moth
ing has been done about the matter.
This is ineXplicable We want to find
the reason.
There have been charges that the
prisoners were starved for the sake of
a so -called economy I don't want
TO pass judgment before the investi-
CATION has been made, but have seen
for myself what the men have to eat,
and | should say that it was entirely
inadequate for a person doing any
sort of manual labor. | was there
when they were given what was sup
posed to be the heaviest meal of the
day. Even If the other two meals are
as substantial as this one, which l I'M
derstand they are not there would not
be enough food to keep the men in
health and vigor.
There are countless other details
of administration that will be taken
up. l have received hundreds of let
tiers containing accusations against
the warden and his subordinates
Some of them may have basis in fact;
others probably have not