Evening journal., 1920-03-15


castle Farm, is a combination Of three
farms. aggregating 326 acres In one body
OF land. There are three sets Of farm
buildings Of which two are in good
condition and available for your use.
/ congratulate you upon the excellent
development, which you are making OF
this property, and upon what you have
accomplished with the smallest possible
expenditure. Leaving out the value Of
the labor Of cOnyicts, the Delcastle Farm
represents the following expenditure:
1926 acres OF land, at about 800 per
Dairy barn, with stalls for 45 cows.
an equal space for calves and for
cows when calying, storage for
$50 tons Of hay, with feed ma -
chinery, etc. .....ss..s.s.sss inf,po
Bunk house ana dairy ............ 5000
Farm machinery ......... 5000
Live stock .................... $1,000
This makes total for land and a,o
For macbinery and live stock... 10000
Totoi - ......... S77,sGg
The buildings, which represent a casn
outlay of S2i, 800, are well constructed.
The first story and the floors Of the
barn are OF concrete. The upper story
is of wood. The bunk houses and dairy
are excellent buildings Of reinforced
concrete. The lumber for the barn was
cut and sawed on the place estimate
that these three buildings if erected on
contract AT present prices would cost at
least $4,000.
You have a splendid herd OF Guernsey
COWS. which | understand, is one OF tno
hest herds in the Stale. You are selling
milk at the farm for iG cents per gai-
Ion. understand that you are ABOUT
10 nut in additional dairy machinery
expection 10 produce a certified mix
which will sell for y cents per gallon
al the farm. You have fine lot OF cows
and a splendid lot Of blooded pigs.
The Delcastle Farm represents to my
mind the ideal Of prison organization
Your farmer is taking the outcast meil-
hers of society and Is inspiring theh'
with the ambition TO do just as good a
niece OF farming as can be done any 70
where in Delaware. II Is an AMBITIOUS
undertaking TO produce certified hiilA
which will pass the tests OF lne
inspector and the chemist. AZ hrsl
Thought. Il would seem impossible To
get from these prisoners the conscleii-
tious and intelligent work Wlilch -
necessary. Reform school Doys az
Lincolndale, New York. have Deeh pro-
ducing a high quality OF milk ior uso
IN New York institutions. In the Ali-
hama Reform School for Juvenile negro
law Breakers. Negro boys VINO come
from the most ignorant and degraaeu
class are producing high grade mia
Sou have already demonstrated Wi'el
can he done with prisoners al the Del
castle Farm. .,.,,
l hone that your present farmer VIII
have an opportunity to work tll.s pla,
o,it and make a demonstration OF VIA.
can he accomplished. II has not yer
anneared whether dairy farm can DC
made prontable on this basis, but De-
lleve that It can. -,
In order TO work a large nuHioer VI
prisoners on the land II would De nsogs- ','
sary 10 develop Intensive farming III W VI,
form OF truck gardening, on Ials.
scale not not know whether you 'SN'
. sufilcient amount Of land suitable lol
truck farming; IL not, ! should adVls'
renfIng or purchasing suitable lana u
n can be found in the vicinity. BY inc
use Of automobile trucks for trans
narration. Il is possible to WORK PITS
oners 10 advantage at any distance VIII
In six or eight miles, as mas Deeu
demonstrated by your road WORK ano
nv vour plan Of hiring out prisoners u
neighboring farmers
one difficulty with the farming pt0-
position Is that It Is dlfncult TO furnish
steady and profitable employment lot
large number Of prisoners unless you
have large farm. Mr.. Cullen tells me
that he can work the Delcastle Farm 0l
s26 acres with about 20 prisoners l"'
Florida prison farm at Raiford' ehplUy'
ing something like 500 prisoners has -
600 acres OF land. The MISSISSIPPI
penitentiary employs about i2'UO men
raising cotton and fodder crops on To-
600 acres Of land; but neither one OF
these Institutions carries on intensive
/ farming. .-- .,.,-
A second difficulty in employing pris
oners on the farm is that OF proVldihs
vvinter work. During the past winter
there have been two or three monlhs II
which little work could be done on YOU
farms except dalrying and the care o
The stock. This difficulty has been over
coma In Massachusetts, and New Jerse!
Inv undertaking 10 reclaim waste lah'
! which could be purchased at very loV
nrIce and improved so as greatly TO IN
rrease ifs value. This difficulty has beer
met in part by your Workhouse' tu
Philadelphia House Of Correction an
the Chicago House Of Correcuon y,
operating quarries In the winter Wilicl
lemploy a considerable number OF men
In Chicago. winter employment hai
been provided by the use OF the prison
ers 10 reclaim waste products.
I see no reason why your men shoul'
NOT he profltably and benetlcially EN-
Moved in road making and repairing
lboth for the county and for the city o
Wilmington. You have long sine
demonstrated that you could build goo'
roads. understand that there nav
been negotiations between the trustees
and the county authorities with refer
enca 10 a plan for keeping to count
highways in repair within a radius o
i've or six miles from the Workhouse
BY using automobile trucks Tor trans
iporting your men this radius coul
easily be extended TO ten miles, nclud
ing the city Of Wilmington, If Desirable
The Workhouse Is a county instltu
ton and the interests Of the county roa
department and the Workhouse oush
10 be common. Let the county make a
appropriation for road construction an
repairs, an amount somewhat less ina
n would cost to do the work with fire
labor: then let the work be done by IN
Workhouse. on exactly the same stand
ards as to quality which would be re
oulred from an ordinary contractor. IL
the Workhouse be paid for the work q