Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1915-04-02

of some system for the employment of convicts
on state and county roads.
In speaking of what can be accomplished in the
way of road building by the use of convict labor.
Thomas ]. lyman, warden of the state penitentiary
under whose supervision the work the last three
years has been done, recently said:
The benefits in this or any other state from
broad and scientific system of convict road build
Ing can scarcely be estimated. Basing our figures
on actual experience we are confident that we can
construct In the next ten years more than fve
thousand miles Of the very finest roadways for
less than 100000 and this without adding any
thing whatever to the burden of the taxpayers.
During the period Of ten years the internal
revenue fund Of Colorado should amount to 81, 2,000.
000 After deducting 100000 for road construc-
tion. the remaining amount should be wisely ex-
pended in bridge building, road repairing and for
similar uses. Add to this the financial assistance
from the different countless and It would enable us
to construct not less than 10000 miles, 1t can be
done In Colorado. Why should not the same con-
dtions apply to other states under more favorable
conditions where the roads are naturally better
and where cost of construction would not neces-
sarily be so high as in our mountainous sections?
ITO illustrate better the great saving to the tax
payers this class of work and its possibilities
let me quote a few figures from one of our roae
camps. During one month we worked 35 men on
the road not including the camp help The num-
ber of days employed was 24%. Each of these IS
men rendered to the state labor equivalent in
value to 81 and 50 day. The labor for each man
cost the state exactly Is cents per day. Had this
number of men been employed at the regular
standard Of wages of say $500 per day per man,
the cost Of wages alone would have been 81 632 So
Each days work thus represented a net saving of
at least $1.75 per man. The total cost of all the
work for the month, including salaries, care of
stock feed for teams and cost of equipment was
$51515. or AN cents per day per man. When
these figures are considered one can doubt for
moment the economy of building roads with con-
vict labor. The roads carefully and thoroughly
inspected by competent engineers who testify to
the completeness and high character of the work.
What is the incentive for the men to create such
great work. Is a question often asked Colorado
ans It is just this: the man who is allowed to
leave the prison for the road camp has practically
seen the last of prison life II he conducts himself
properly: his food is better his clothing is BETTER
his selfrespect is preserved and he is taught SELF
reliance and sustained application. He earns an
additional ten days a month during the time he
works, which very materially reduces his SEN
tence. Eliminating the policy of armed guards,
the men have been placed under skilled and com.
petent overseers and guarded only by their word
of honor not to run away. They remain faithful and
loyal to their pledges. The success of such an
honor system was instantaneous; the plan has
worked out better than its originators expected.
During the last three years we have had more
than one thousand individual prisoners in the con-
vict camps. These men without guards-some 800
miles away from the prison-have created q ma
tional reputation for loyalty. Less than one per
cent have violated their pledges and made sue