Evening star., 1928-12-02
WORKHOUSE FUND
INCREASE SOUGHT
Congress Will Be Asked to
Authorize Improvements and
Expansion at LOrton.
RY WILL p KENNEDY.


laundry and brass foundry at the
District Reformatory at Lorton in ex-
pansion of the industrialization of this
institution. with an increase in the
working capital fund for operating
these and other industrial enterprises
at the workhouse and reformatory, Will
be urged upon Congress by Chairman
Gibson of the special committee Wnlcn
has been making an economy-efnclency
study of the municipal administration.
and Herbert D. Brown, chief OF the
Bureau of Efficiency
They will make a survey OF the IN
dustries now in operation early this
week to see how previous recommended
tions are working out in regard to IN
creased production at the brick plant
at OccoQuan the iron foundry, canning
factory and the manufacture OF auto
license tags.
Need for a laundry is stressed as an
outstanding improvement that must be
made. The brass foundry is TO be
transferred from the War Department.
At the suggestion of the Gibson sub
committee and the Bureau Of Efficiency
a provision for a working capital fund
for prison industries was included IN
the District appropriation bill for the
current fiscal year.
Chairman Gibson says that "a rotat-
ing capital fund in connection with the
production of commodities at penal in
StitutionS and their sale under the
State-use principle to various depart
mentS of the Government has many ad
vantages" He pointed out that with an
adequate fund it will be possible Ito
lift the present limitation on production
and secure a more equitable distribution
of the products of these institutions, and
finally it will provide an incentive for
the inmates and officers of these inSti-
tutions."
RefOrmatOry Covers 500 Acres.
This experiment in operation of
penal institutions without walls and
bars covers 800 acres. 1t has been in
operation for IL years.
When Chairman Gibson and Director
Brown visit the plant this week they
will find it entering upon the second
stage Of its existence, with prisoners
being transferred from the temporary
wooden structure built out of the trees
felled on the place into modern and
model brick structure in community
settlement style, built out OF bricks
made from a. shale hill on the place
and erected by prison labor.
The housing plan calls for 80 large
brick buildings, 20 of which are COM
pleted. These include dining hall
connected with which is model kitchen
and bakery An assembly hail. an ad-
miniStration building to take care of
population of l,200 and other units are
being erected. There are II brick
dormitorieS, four disciplinary dorrni-
tories, one large bath house.
Among the industries which Mr..
Gibson and Mr.. Brown will find in
operation under the $4,000 revolving
fund are the auto tag plant, the iron
foundry, the canning factory, cloth
ing factory making oversllS, jumpers.
shc-a% etc, carpenter shop, plumb
ing shop. commissary. a broom and
basket factory. an electric shop print
ing shop and a garage. Some of these
industries are doing much work for
other branches of the Government
The outdoor activities include build
ing and bricklaying, grading, farm
ing. pig raising and brick-making Be-
sides the brick used in the permanent
housing work at Lorton and Occoquan,
from 100000 to 100000 brick per
year are delivered on the wharf in
Washington with no cost for sewer.
school and other construction work of
the District government.
Seek to Double Capacity.
The Gibson subcommittee has rec
commended legislation to double the
production of the brick plant, and
funds for this purpose were included in
the current appropriation bill
The canning factory preserves for
Winter use in many other institutions
operated under the District government
the produce from the 500 acres under
cultivation. Last year 10000 cans of
fruits and vegetables were preserved.
xx.fl1 h. h.
and $4,000 cans, including tomatoes.
apples, beets, peaches, string beans.
butter beans, succotash. sweet potatoes.
pumpkin and about so barrels of kraut.
An industrial railroad four and
half miles long is in operation oyer
which the institution hauls its own coal
and ships its castings from the foundry
through a connection with the R. F.
and p. Railroad
The foundry turns out manhole covers
for the water and sewer departments
and other needs for heavy iron castings
at the rate of 10000 pounds a day.
Expansion of work of the foundry
through the casting of brass and alumni
mum VIII be urged by Mr.. Gibson and
Mr.. Brown during hearings on the ap-
propriation bill.
Brooms and baskets are being sup
n piled to the District schools and the
Police and Fire Departments from the
small plant at Lorton while the cloth
ing factory supplies uniforms. sheets,
underwear and other garments to a
number of District institutions.
Shop Pays for Its~''
The Gibson srb,or~, i end the
Gurcau of Eftic.crc'. cor -n'ended to
tn C~-77nitt~2 c a'0'--,''' '~ls two
yc2rS h"7 1liiy eypend-
ed fof DIST 'i"t "'-' mobile license tags
b" made ave b. for purchase of ma
cl'Ncry and material for the manufac-
t"e Of tags at the District reformatory.
7 his legislation was included in the
District appropriation act for 1928.
The reformatory auto tag shop with
this years output has practically paid
tcr itself and from now on a substantial
Manual saving to the District will be
NshCwn.
The hog farm is an important branch
OF tie farming work at the reformatory.
Only one hog was bought for $50, and
1t now weighs more than 900 pounds
"A dozen shoats were sent over from the
workhouSe at OccoQuan. The pig family
has increased so rapidly that each wear
the reformatory is killing enough pics
to provide all the fresh and salt pork
that is needed.
Permanent construction work on the
plant is expected to be completed in
three or four years. There are now
more than 400 inmates at the Lorton
Reformatory, more than 700 in the
workhouse at Occoquan and about 60
women in a separate home at Occo-
guam.
While Capt M M Barnard is in
general charge of all the penal institu-
tions and is personally supervising all
of the industrialiZation plans. the de-
tailed work is carried on by his as
sistant, A. c. Tawse. an experienced
industrial plant manager cost ac-
counting system on the industrial plants