The Washington times., 1922-09-25
DEN|ESTORTURE
.0F FPR|SONERS|N
VIRGINIA JA|LS
Gov. TrimbIe Says budding Is
Seeking Notoriety-lat-
ter to Present Data.

Ang"rcd by the action Of DR.. Earl
+. budding. president OF the Prlso-
ners' Relief Society. in giving to the
press copies of the charges he has
made against the prison system OF
Virginia. Governor +. Lee Trtnkle
has written to budding charging him
with seeking nO,Oriety
While budding has been busily en-.
gagged in furnishing Washington and
Virginia newspapers copies or
charges Of mismanagement, the Nir-
ginla State Bureau of Publicity, with
offices in the State Capitol at Rich
mond, has been sending out news
stories carrying a vigorous defense.
Answering Dudding's charges that
Germ infected beef has been fed 10
the ConviCts at the State Farm, the
State Administration press agent
has sent out a news story.
Declares Diet Balanced.
This story says "a balanced diet
for the prisoners has been worked
out by the Medical College of Nir-
ginia, and the prisoners are better
fed today than ever before"
When budding charged that the
warden. Capt. r. r. Penn, and all
his guards got drunk and locked
the prisoners in their cells all day
and refused them recreation, the
States press agent came back with
this:
Schools are being established, and
recreation introduced. At the state
Farm, for instance, there is one OF
the best moving picture equipments
in the State. while the board has
authorized the installation this fall
of a powerful radio outfit for the
pleasure OF the prisoners.
Charges by budding.
budding charged that seventeen
of the thirty-sX patients at the
State Farm Hospital died in twelve
months. The State publicity hureHu
comes back with: THE hospital
and medical facilities and s'TViCcs
have been completely renrganiZed
both at the State Farm and at the
pcnitcntiary during this time with
the advice and assistance Of the
State board of health and a special
committee of physicians from both
the Medical College of Virginia and
the Medical Society of Virginia"
The tuberCular hospital, budding
was III d IlillllNl
that means almost certain death for
those confined there. He cites cases
where patients, burning with fever
are forced to sleep on cots covered
with two inches of snow. He fur
ther charges that they are improp.
erly clothed and fed.
Tells OF improvements.
Answering this charge. the ad.
ministratiOn says:
"Impro' emCnt in the housing and
care OF the prisoners has been so
noticeable at the State farm in tn"
past few years that il is now a mat.
| ter of general public comment, and
| the charges which have been made
against the management have come
somewhat as n surprise, certainly
to the members of the prison board,
who have assured the governor that
no effort will be spared 10 correct
all abuses that may be found to
exist"
In his last letter to DR.. budding,
Governor Trinkle made il plain that
he did not relish outside interference
in handling the affairs of the State.
When budding refused to furnish n
score of affidavits he has and the
names Of forty witnesses who are
eager to testify as to conditions, the
governor wrote:
you must further realize that you
are not a resident Of the State of
Virginia, and that, therefore, / must
have something substantial on which
to base an investigation"
The governor added:
Naturally, your letters show you