The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1916-12-22

kitchen employees, who have a dormi-
tory to themselves; the confinement
cases, which have a small room, and
all the rest in the general call room;
but by day all associate freely.
No Provision for Sick.
1.-The absence Of provisions for the
sick-There is no hospital; the sick
lie in their cells. There is, as has
been stated, no proper ward for ly-
ing-in patients. There is no separa-
ton for tuberculosis patients who
suffer for lack of care and expose
their neighbors to infection. There
is no provision whatever for isola-
ton of infectious diseases.
1.-THE doctor has no Office, he uses
part OF the officers barber shop,
room 9x13 feet. He keeps part of
his medicines in the barber shop, and
part in an unlocked cupboard behind
the turkeys desk, in the outside lob
by. He has no operating room, no
examining table, no provision what
ever for aseptic surgery. He has no
place for the examination Of incom-
ing prisoners. Of his 80 prisoners at
tention, and he draws a salary of
$500 per. year. t,'
Treat Insane Like Criminals.
''It is the custom, as in many other
places, to keep insane persons and
feeble-minded persons in the county
Jail, pending their trial, and while
they are awaiting commitment to the
state hospital. Female patients, as
has been stated, disturbed and noisy,
are turned loose with other women,
but insane men are taken to the
punishment department where there
are six cells in an isolated room, in
tended for the punishment Of incor-
rigible prisoners. These cells are
they can be darkened We are in
provided with iron shutters by which
formed that it is the practice to put
a quantity of straw into the cell, per-
haps a foot deep, and there the pa
tient is 'bedded down like an animal
in his stall, and is subjected to the
treatment which is accorded to the
worst offenders.
County Commission Blamed.
! 1.-The responsibility for the contin-
uance of the frightful hazard rests
directly upon the board of county
w IO Cd1liIOL DC az
quilted of criminal negligence if the
natural and probable result of their
neglect should be realized. They can
remedy this condition within the
next six hours, if they WILL
County Commissioner Walter adj
mitted after the meeting that the
county needed a new Jail, but there's
no money for it He said the COM
mission has no authority to buy a
farm as suggested, because there is
no money:
Mr.. Lewis Talk.
The talk of %. F. Lewis, general
secretary of the, Prison Association Of
aspects of the county Jail system. It's
faults, he said, are that:
AT least half of it's population
are repeaters.
2-The treatment is not reforma-
tory.
3-Commingling of prisoners is
customary
4-Poor and even miserable condi-
tons are common @
'-Idleness prevails in most coun-
ty jails.
6-Many ja.ils are characterized by
unintelhgent administration
Political domination or inf1u-
ences are frequent.
Referring particularly to the New
Haven county Jail he called attention
to the fact. that Vhe. Jail is under only
the scrutiny of the country, of per-
sons chosen to administer county af-
fairs, who have other duties, or I'M
der persons in administrative @capac-
ity who receive tooflittle pay for. their
labors.
The sheriff, elected by the people,
has too much to do, and hands the
administration over to others, who
have only local standards to follow.
F'ederation's Report.
The committee of the Civic FEEDER
alton, consisting of DR.. John E. Lane,
Mrs. c., J. Bartlett, Clarence W. Bron-
son, Mrs. Robert A. Crosby and John
scented at this session, sums up its
recommendations as follows,
''First-That any enlargement of
the present New, Haven Jail be dis
couraged.
"Second-That the New Haven Jail
be condemned for it's present pur-
pose, and vacated at the first possible
opportunity.
'Third-That the governor be au-
thorized to appoint a commission to
study the penal institutions Of the
state. This commission, from the
data thus collected, to formulate a
plan along modern lines, placing re-
form above punishment"