Licking Valley courier., 1915-11-04

Under our present system in Ken
lucky the State receives the magnif,
cent sum of 75c per day per man en-
ployed under contract, and the State
is required to feed and clothe the pris-
oners and great many of the pris-
oners are let at lower figure than
that stated above.
Kentucky could possibly save from
twenty to thirty per cent of the money
expended for road work under the
State aid plan, If the convicts could
be used on the public highways, and
in the preparation of the materials
which 60 into the highways. 1t would
be possible to establish semi-perma-
nent camps in the various counties
where limestone is available In large
quantities and prepare this material
for road building, ready to be deliv-
cred by rail or motor truck to roads
under construction, and these camps
could be maintained practically the
entire season.
"In Edmonson County, Kentucky,
there exists an unlimitable deposit Of
rock asphalt, which is hard sand
stone-the finest road making mater
lal known-containing from seven to
nine per cent of bitumen or asphalt
base. This material has an overbur-
den of from ten to twenty feet of soil,
sand or rock, and lies in a horizontal
strata of from six to twenty feet in
thickness. Would 1t not be a fine
thing to establish here a permanent
convict camp, where they could be
used in the stripping of this material,
quarrying and pulverizing and loading
1t ready for shipment to the counties
of the Commonwealth? The actual
cost of production, or even a reason
able per cent of profit could be
charged by the State for the material,
and at the same time very materially
reduce the cost for use in road con.
struction, and insuring to the counties
for their limestone, macadam, or 9TH
er hard surfaced roads, a splendid,
long lifed surfacing material, that is
dustless, noiseless, durable and at the
same time waterproof. Other camps
might be established for the purpose
of preparing limestone as stated
above, and still others for the manu-
facture Of brick to be used in the sur.
facing of roads, and very efficient
organization might be had for the
! placing of concrete roads as Is now
I being used In Illinois, Georgia, and
other States where that type of road
Is being constructed.
THE men become skilled In the per-
| formance of their duties, and this,
while preparing them for better ex-
istence when they have completed
their term, also reduces the possibility
of breaking up the organization by
men quitting. Another important fac
, tor to be considered is the reduction
of the cost, the reducing OF the cost
making II possible for all the counties
in the state-not merely the rich coun.
ties-but practically all of them, to
construct permanent roads. When one
stops to consider that there are one
hundred and twenty counties In Ken
lucky, most OF them having road
fund ranging from $500 to $4,000, while
less than ten have road fund Of more
than $4,000, 1t is quite an easy matter
to understand the advantage that con
vict labor would furnish these coun
ties, where funds are limited, in the
securing OF permanent types Of road
"The convict labor would not come
In competition with free labor, fol
without It the counties would be com
PEELED to build q cheaper type of road
and In many instances would not be
able to build at all, while, with the
convict labor, better and more durable
types Of road could be constructed, as
we'll as a more durable type OF bridges
Even In the fabrication of steel mate
rial for the longer span bridges these
could be obtained at much cheaper
figure, with the convict labor, thar
they could be done by contract
In summing up the advantages t
the counties and to the state, one
should not overlook the big advantag,
to the convict himself-the wholesom,
out-of'door labor-bettering him, men
tally, morally and physically-a mucl
more healthy occupation than tina
which he would find inside the prisol
walls"