The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1919-02-20
VARY AS TO LANDLORD
Witnesses i'll Cut Hearing Offer
Conflicting Testimony Former
Guard Takes Stand.

House OF Correction, which is beln!
conducted by the Board of Prison
Control. John J. Brannan, 1882 Riv
erside avenue, who said he had beef
employed as guard at the institu
ton for a short time, testified that ;
prisoner had been allowed to die il
a cell, after having suffered for fiv'
days. Others called to the stand de
clared that the treatment accorded
prisoners by Warden Landlord wa:
just and that conditions at the Cut
were satisfactory.
Frank Metzerott, member of the
Board of Prison Control, sprang {
surprise at the afternoon session
when, disregarding his judicial atti
tude and interrupting a witness, he
took the floor and said that some
persons had held him responsible fol
the investigation.
although some people think
have brought about this investiga.
tion," he said, las a matter-of- fact
L tried to avoid it at this time fol
good reasons"
Charles T. Crane, president of the
| board, asked Mr.. Metzerott whether
any member of the board had ever
made such ali insinuation. Mr.. Met
zerott replied that he did not wish to
give the impression that board mem
bers had made the allegation, but
said that 'on the outside" the charge
had been made.
The statement of Brannan prob
ably was the most damaging testi-
| mony offered against the conduct of
the Cut" When asked about the
man who, he said, was allowed to
die in his cell, he said:
Il went several nights to look at
him, but could learn nothing from
him, as he was moaning and groan-
ing too much"
J. Enos Ray, State Auditor, testi-
fed that the audit of the books of
the House Of Correction was made
last September and turned over to
Governor Harrington. Raylr ond Will
liams. counsel fer the Prisoners Aid
Society, asked that the report be
read, but Chairman Crane refused on
the grounds that the Governor did
not wish the report made public I'M
til the board had passed On it. Mr..
Williams also sought to show that
there was material discrepancy be-
tween Warden .Crawford's accounts
and the audit. The discrepancy, it
was pointed out by Mr.. Crane, was
only $37.
H. C. Johnson, who told the board
that he lived at Green and Saratoga
streets, and had just been released
from the House of Correction two
weeks ago, after serving a sentence
of eight months for non-support,s said
that he had always been treated well
by Warden Landlord, and that, so
far as he had observed, kind treat
ment was accorded all inmates Of the
institution. He said that he had not
been summoned as witness, but
thought that it was his duty to APP
pear at the hearing and tell the truth
about conditions at the Cut"
The Rev. Joseph A. Meyer, pastor
of ST. Mary's Catholic Church, Lau-
rel, and of St. Lawrence's Church.
Jessup, testified that he had visited
the House of Correction frequently
and that he had been favorably i'm
pressed with the cleanliness of the
institution. DR.. r. A. Hammond,
who had been charge of the hos
pital at the House of Correction in
1895, and again from 1903 to 1907,
said that he had inspected the insti-
tuition thoroughly on many occasions
during the superintendency of War
den Landlord and had found condi-
lions satisfactory.
Nathaniel H. Bortner was called to
testify concerning certain letters
which he and Warden Landlord were
alleged, to have written to Judge
Robert F. Stanton, Of the Supreme
Bench of Baltimore city, in the mat
ter of reducing the term of a prison
er at the Cut" Bortner said he
had written no such letters, and
Judge Stanton testified that although
he had received the letters he paid
no attention to that signed with the
name "Bortner," but did reply to
that signed supposedly by Warden
Landlord. He admitted, however,
that he was unable to find carbon
copy of the letter which he wrote in
reply, and denial was made by War
den Landlord that he had ever re-
ceived a letter from Judge Stanton.
E. H. Brinkley, who SAID that he
was employed by the Government as
a farm specialist, and Theodore
Wells Pietsch, architect, who, with
Warden Landlord, had been prepar-
| ing plans for the enlargement of the
women's section of the House of Cor
! rection, testified that the institution
| was being efficiently managed. They
said that they had never seen prison
ers treated brutally.
Other witnesses were Mrs. Eliza
beth Hammond, Solomon Mendels, F.
R. Brinkley, Robert Steele, Joseph
Maynard. Raleigh Lilly, Harry Lowe
kamp, Harry L. Hay, William A. Gil
! lespie, deputy State auditor; Robert
E. Case, secretary of the board; Will.
liam H Coulbourn and Frank S
Kemp. The latter testified that L.
H. Kenly, financial agent of the in
stitution, is incompetent.
| Hospital Notice.
The dupont Maternity Hospital
has been turned over to the Board OF
Directors of the Cambridge-Mary