Evening star., 1933-02-21
OFFICIALS DEPL0RE
$4,000 W0RKHOUSE
FUND ELIMINATION
Restoration of Item Is Hoped
for When D. C. Supply Bill
Reaches Senate.
SYSTEM OF HANDLING
PRISONERS IMPERILED
! Omission of Working Capital for
Prisons Is Held Public Calam-
ity" by Welfare Director.

District officials today were deeply
concerned over the fate of the $4,000
working capital fund for the Lorton
and Occoquan reformatory and work
house, knocked out of the District sup
ply bill Saturday on point of order
by Representative Smith, Democrat, of
Virginia.
Hope is held that the Senate will
restore this item during its considera-
ton Of the measure, at hearings begin
ming tomorrow before the Appropria-
tions Subcommittee headed by Senator
Bingham of Connecticut.
To leave this item out of the final
supply bill for the next fiscal year. it
is declared at the District Building
would serve to demora1ize all the in
dustrial activities at the two penal in
Stitutions, resulting in a great amount
of difficulties for District administra-
tion, and also serve to upset a form of
treatment of prisoners, established here
in 1910 as a precedent for the whole
country.
"Open" System Used.
This is the "open" system of handling
prisoners, ungnarded by high and heavy
prison walls, who rather are kept In
good department by educational indus
trial work.
The point is made also, with en-
phasis, that the appropriation of this
working capital fund means no loss to
the District taxpayers, since more than
this sum is saved through use in the
District operations of the products OF
the industrial enterprises.
caorro yxyi1eov, of fy,@ Tic
trict Board of Public Welfare, in charge
of the penal institutions. said today
he felt the omission of this $4,000 ap-
preparation item would be a public
calamity
"It would entirely disrupt the In
dustries of the penal institutions and
require that hundreds of prisoners
would be maintained in idleness. This
appropriation is not an item of expense
to the Government because it is used
only for operating the industries and
comes back to the Government in earn
ings with a surplus more than the ap-
preparation.
Earnings Incidental.
1.-THE amount of earnings, however, .
he added, lis only an incidental mat
ter. The importance of the appropria-
ton and authorization to produce goods
for the use of the Government is that
1t provides wholesome educative en-
ployment for the prisoners.
1T would be impossible to maintain
proper discipline in the prisons with
out suitable employment. It would be
especially bad in those institutions
which are operated as open institutions
without use Of enclosing prison walls
Failure of this item would practically
disrupt the prison system of operation
and render 1t impossible to properly
conduct the institutions.
1T should be borne in mind that
the utmost care has been exercised In
operating industries and producins
goods for the services Of the Govern
ment, to avoid competition with private
industry. No goods are ever sold or
the market. The principal industries
are the production of common brick
for use on public buildings, heavy cast
1ngs for sewer and water departments
laundry service for the departments OF
the Federal and District governments
clothing for the prisoners and other
District institutions and also automo-
bile tags and street signs for the Traf-
fic Department"
For these reasons. it is said at the
District Building, it is hoped the SEN
ate Will give priority to consideration
OF the restoring of this item.
1t recalled the difficulties encoun-
tered several years ago when the auto
mobile tags for Washington were manu-
1actured by private firm in Baltimore,
AT that time the contractor was unable
70 deliver the tags anywhere near on
time, causing confusion in the admin
lstration In the tag law operation here.
Subject to Weather Wear.
At other times, it Is explained, the
tags made by private firms located out
OF town have been found I'd be of a
type subject to the wear of the weather.
SO that before the year was out the
surface OF the tags pealed off.
Inere Is no District firm which Is
equipped, or desires, to manufacture
the automobile tags. it is said SO that
unless they are allowed to be manu-
factured at Lorton it appears the Dis
trict next Fall will be forced to call
for bids from out-of-town firms.
The open" form of handling prison.
ers at the two institutions, as developed
first here, has met with high commen-
dat1on from prison and social work lead
ers from many sections of the country.
District officials are at loss to know
what form of sufficient employment
could be found for the prisoners should
the working capital item be left per-
manently out OF the supply measure.