The Penn's Grove record., 1919-06-06
PRISON CONTRACT
SYSTEM A CURSE
Committee Warns Against Return
of Contractors, Asserting
There Is No Need.
RECOMMEND OUTDOOR WORK
Joint Committee on Labor and EN-
pIoyment Says Labor Is Behind
Move to Provide Work for In
mates of Institutions.

Trenton.-Pointing out that organ
lied labor is thoroughly ia sympGth!
with the state to find work for the I'm
employed inmates Of the prison, boys
and girls homes and the reformator!
the joint cOmtaittee ON labor and en-
ployment and on state use has tilei
report with the State Board of InS:
tutions and Agencies. The work c
the committee men covered a periot
of six months, including an investiga
ton looking toward a reorganization
of the administration of the prison anC
for the provision OF the proper kind OF
employment for the prisoners.
Among the more important recon
mendations made by the committee is
that the state should never return tC
the private contract system, 'as these
contracts were / curse in every way
TO the prisoners, to. the prison officers
and to the state" that outdoor WORK
must be found for at least 100 of The
present average population Of the plis
on and that it is unWiSe to provide
machine industry for more than 300 O..
the present average population of The
institution.
In its report the committee said:
ut is unWise to provide machine in
duStry for more than 300 of the pres
ent average population in the state
prison. 1t was found that at least It
per cent. of the present prisoners are
unSkiiled and incapable of becoming
sufficiently skiiifui to operate ma
chimes to advantage. More than one
third Of the prisoners are illHe4ate
and the time is too short to train then
sufficiently to warrant investment ir
expensive machinery for their use,
also, the market for many of the prod,
ucts of machine industry is highly com
petitive and is therefore closed to any
but the most skilIful prisoners.
Outdoor work must be found for at
least 100 of the present average pepu
lation of the state prison. Splendid
possibilities are offered for this worE
upon the state farm at Leeshurg, whiel
land is very rich and is capable of va
ried intensive development. This farm
should provide for five years sufficient
work In the winter to utilize all road
camp men during a time when roat
construction work is impossible. Fur
Their, it is recommended that the priS.
oners transferred to LeeSburg should
be given extra credits for faithful per
Torrance Of dUty, so that they car
earn their parole or pardon at an ear.
lier date than would be possible if they
remained inside the prison. The bet.
ter prisoners should also receive more
wage payment for work performed un.
der conditions Of less supervision.
The state never should return ia
the private contract system, as these
contracts were a curse in every way
to the prisoners, to the prison officers
and to the state. The shops when III.
der the control of Contractors were in
an into4erable condition and the dis.
cipline Of the prison was constantly
undermined as long as the private con.
tracts prevailed. Ia this connection II
is pointed out that there were hun.
dreds of idle men during the palmiest
days of the contract SYSTEM, so that
unemployment is no new problem ere.
ated by the abolition of private COZ
tracts"
Less Unrest in Prison.
The conditions of unrest in the state
prison in the judgment of the commit,
tee are very much better than they
were prior to the appointment of the
Prison Inquiry Commission. The prob
lens which remain, but to a lesser de-
gree, still to be solved are to be taken
up seriatim in the order of their seri-
BUSINESS. It was stated that:
1.-The continuance of the old state
prison system with its lack of pre-
cislon and lack Of coordination of a
proper administrative organization
with the parole system will be elimi-
mated by the application of the new
parole and credit marking system and
by the adoption of a modern book of
rules.
There is the reflection within the
prison of the worldwide unrest with
accompanying agitations of which GER
tain 'ego-centric personalities imagine
themselves to be leaders.
1.-THE fact that the chief disciplinary
officer in the prison makes all the as
signments Of prisoners under the gen
eral direction of the principal keeper
has made it possible for agitators
among the prisoners to construe every
assignment into a form of punishment
The chief disciplinary officer, under
the new plan, will not make assign
ments.
"It will not be possible until the new
parole, administrative and classiica-
ton system is placed in operation for
the principal keeper to settle com
plants promptly, thus eliminating an
other cause of unrest.
"The discipline facilities in the state
prison are inadequate. A continuous
bath, similar to that used in the state
hospitals, at Skillman Village mt at
the Vineland Institution for Feeble
Minded, should be installed in the
prison, so that excited or refractory
prisoners could be placed in a con-
tinuous bath until quoted by the
soothing effects Of the hydro-thera-
peutic process. A study of refractory
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