The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-07-17
BIRMINGHAM COAL
 OPERATORS PROTEST AGAINST ABOLITION 0F CONVICT SYSTEM
Necessity of Filling Orders for Future Delivery Sole Reason for Wanting Con- victs in Mines, They Tell Committee
Ny HUGH W. ROBERTS

Montgomery. July 16.- tSpeeial) The sole reason why certain operators of coal mines desire the continuation of the convict lease system is the ne cessity confronting them of filling or ders in accordance with contracts for future delivery.
 The above was a statement made by George B. Mccormack, president of the Pratt Consolidated Coal company. to the house committee which Is eonsid- ering the recommendation of the probe committee that the convict lease sys- tenn be abolished. MT Mccormack added that convict labor was not as remuneratiVe as free labor and that the only argument in its favor was the fact that it produced regularly and uniformly.
 The operators deeply impressed the committee and tonight it was the re- port that the members might vote to adverse the bills prepared by the re cess committee on nvestigation. 1t is certain that the committee Is now more thoroughly convinced than ever be- fore that the convict problem is one of such serious import that 1t should he solved only after constant and sys- tematic study.
 H. L. Badham. another Birmingham operator followed Mr. Mccormack on the stand and he urged the commit Q tee that in the event it determined to abolish the lease system to give the operators the right to turn back conyicts prior to the expiration of con tractual dates. Unonicially the com mitteemen agreed to extend that cour- tesy.
 Testimony Sensational
 MT. Mccormack testimony was in measure sensational He declared that had the members of the committee been aware of the actual conditions under which convicts were working the roads of Jefferson county they would not have recommended that con vcts be employed on the road. He charged that the convcts who did not escape were heavily chained, that they had no doctor or preacher to attend them: that they had no bathing facil- ities, and that they were costing the county a large and unnecessary sum of money.
 "The cost of a days labor in Jeffer- son county" he said. "is $2.3i Free labor could be employed for s1,25 and were the convicts elsewhere leased they would produce revenue Tor the county.
 Tn the event that you abolish the lease system. do not make the eco homie blunder of putting the men to work on the roads. Let the state go into the mining business and in its own mines and under conditions as favor able as possible, put some of the con viets to work Put others to making brick Put others on the farms. But build roads with other than convict labor. The men themselves do notscare to work on the roads"
 At this juncture someone asked MT. Mccormack regarding a report that recently a large number of convicts conspired to escape from Flat Top be- cause they had heard that they would be put to road building.
 Only Hearsay Evidence
 "I can only give hearsay evidence he replied. Nevertheless, that such was true Is common gossip in BirminR- ham,"
 Regarding the alleged brutality practiced in coal mines, MT. McCor- mack declared that he knew noth- ing of such.
 "There Is none practiced In the
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