New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-07-05
SING SING DRAFT
ON FORGED LIST
CAUSED BREAK
Osborne Sees Covert Blow
in Methods Used to
Shift Prisoners.
AT ODDS WITH
RILEY OVER DEAL
Names Given as Volunteers
Taken Without Sanction of
Convicts, II Is Said,

A mysterious forging Of sixteen
names on the list OF prisoners trans
ferred from Sing Sing to Auburn last
February has occupied the attention Of
Warden Osborne and his staff for sew
eral months and it is said, the in
vestigation that has been under way
was responsible for the now serious
break between Osborne and John b.
Riley, Superintendent Of Prisons.
Until carry this year, when the
Superintendent Of Prisons ordered a
draft of prisoners from one institution
to another to eliminate crowding. it
was the custom of the warden Of the
overcrowded prison 20 submit a list Of
men 20 the superintendent. holding
from the list efficient and good con-
duct men who were valuable in the
shops or whose relatives lived within
such easy access of the prison that
transfer 20 remote part of the state
would be unreasonable. Practically
every time the list was approved at
Albany.
When a draft order came to Sing
Sing last February Warden Osborne
changed the method slightly. He called
on volunteers. Delegates Of the Nut
ual Welfare League in each shop sub
mitted the names of the volunteers 10
the principal keepers Office, where the
list was compiled by convict laborers.
After that il was surveyed by the fore
men Of the shops, o KID and passed on
in the usual way.
A second draft was ordered fer Au-
burn few days after the first group
of fit, men had been transferred from
/ Sing Sing. Again volunteers were
asked for In a short time the complete
lis. of siXty-four names was sent 20
Albany, and following its approval
there state detective went to Sing
Sing to take the men to Auburn.
The state detective. when the pro-
posed draft men were assembled. read
of their names from the list. Every
now and then a protest would follow.
to the effect that the man whose name
/ had been called was opposed to trans
fer.
For some reason the situation didn'.
MAKE itself evident then, but when Mr.
Osborne went to Auburn a short time
later ono Of the men who had been
transferred sought out the Sing Sing
. warden.
81 don't see why they picked me out
70 come up here" the prisoner said.
- liked it down there and was doing
my work right. My conduct record
was perfect, and so can't understand
why I'm here.'
You're here because you volun-
teered to come said Mr.. Osborne.
man.
"You did when you gave your name
az the time volunteers were asked" Mr..
Osborne replied.
Out ! didn't give my name the
man returned. 81 DIDN'T volunteer
Mr. Osborne began an investigation
right there in Auburn. He found that
sixteen Of the most efficient workers
in the Sing Sing knitting and shoe
shops had been DRAFTED agains. their
wishes Each Of them said ne had
never expressed in any way desire
to be transferred.
Returning to Sing Sing, the warden
dug into the matter further, buc could
make no substantial! Roadway He
suspected that an official enemy,
through convict tools N the p:lncipal
keeper office, was 'etpOnsibie the
purpose being to SO destroy tie eff
cheney Of the shop nen that the re
port would show a great falling of
in produ"tivenesS. That thia was ac-
compished was asserted at sing Sing
yesterday 1t was said also that in a
later graft a good worker VINO had
invented loom which produced five
times as much material as nc ma
chine now i'm use IT Sing Sing was
taken sway from that prison.
Warden Osborne, IN his several pub
lie talks on his prison work, has de-
voted considerable part of his speech
TO the high productiveness Of his shops.
Now he feels that he is the victim of
plan to humilate and ombarraSs him.
Furthermore, il is said, the fact that
Osborne seems to be iess powerful than
he was is breeding disorganization in
the Sing Sing ranks. lie discharged the
I foreman Of one Of the shops for pass
3 ing the forged" list.
Mr.. Osborne contends that II he were
let alone he could bring Sing sing to
one-man-to-a-ce basis. In addition to
/ the POO cells, 200 men are sheltered in
the dormitory. Recently the warden de-
cidcd 10 set aside accommodations for
200 men over the carpenter shop. mat
would permit the decent handling Of
500 prisoners. At no time has the
roster shown more than 1,5S1 inmates.
But Superintendent Riley has re-
fused 20 permit the housing OF men
over the carpenter shop and Mr.. OS-
borne is trying 10 plan out some otner
method OF taking care OF the doubled
up men.