Evening Star Newspaper, August 2, 1925, Page 69

ILLUSTRATED FEATURES = Part 5—8 Pages World’s Best Penal 1 BY GEORGE H. DACY. ERCHED picturesquely amid the highlands of rolling Prince Willlam County, Va., a group of 29 new brick buildings is arising, and, when completed, otentially will constitute the new istrict of Columbia Reformatory or Penitentiary—the finest penal estab- lishment to be found anywhere over | the world's spacious map. Here is merely a tale of the vener- able golden rule, revised and modified to sulft prison practices. It is a tale of a house of Incarceration where the conduct and merit of each occupant are weighed in the balance, where the tice are modified by the @aily doings of the culprit during his sentence. Fifty per cent of the criminals in | the United States today, according to the experts, are such because of the abusive treatment they received during their first confinements under armed guards. Had they been prop- erly treated, it s declared, at least § out of 10 of these wrongdoers could Bave been reformed Neither the District of for the United countenances the i Couches « Columbia vernment mollycoddling of comfort, eight- conver soft jobs s a sort of haunts for But they have initiative an eve that no sciety until ere are two ners. One cla of real man- The other Is the case-hard- , who will offend against s long as the world new novel plan is trom the unfit. The ¢1t_system does exactly this. The od reforn:, and get another chan 3 The evil win maximum abode ang eight hours of honest work d v in prison: It ll not obey the prison rules, the old-time recipe of a_strong-walled ell. steel bars and solitary confine- 1t is meted out to them. he District Reformatory prison without walls, tention where the prisoners do not wear stripes, and where the inmates e kindly treated, well fed, pleasantly quartered, provided with amusements ——and made to worl @2y at manual and professional labor: It is a prison where an _entirel new quality of morale has been de- veloped among the occupants. There are none of the “hang-dog” expres sions, the grumpiness and grouchiness which are characteristic of the mill run of penitentiarfes is in absentia. The o shave is not tolerated. degradation sre banned. Yet every inmate is made to appreciate that, in the labor of his hands, the ache of his back, the sweat of his brow and his loss of personal liberty, he is paying for offenses against the rules of law, right and justice. & % % ¥ AT the very outset, let's get straight 4L about the District’s penal institu- tions. First of all, there comes the Jail in W gton, under the direc- tion of ' L. Peake. hen there is the miles south of the White House. is near the village of Lorton, on the main highw and Richmond. Usually the roster of inmates range from 200 to 250. It is under the su pervision of A. C. Ta & prison expert of many years' experience. The District Workhouse is down the Th; e the is a stomary scalp Insignia of in road about a mile or so and includes | , 1,700 acres within its borders. Usually 1t cares for about 450 men and: 50 women C. C. MacClaughry is the superintendent. M. M. arnard is the general“su. perintendent of all three of these penal establishments. He has been a place of de- | eight hours a | The “lock step” | reformatory 30 | Tt | between . Washington | Its area is 1,100 acres. | | | dere- | i | | | | | MAGAZINE SECTION he Sunday St WASHINGTON, D. C, SUNDAY FICTION AND HUMOR MORNING, AUGUST 9 1925. This Prison of a New Epoch Designed to Make Men Out of Criminals—By Honest Toil and Clean Living, According to the Honor System, Transgressors Aré Reformed—-They Make Bricks, Brooms and New Buildings. and Master the Science of New Trades—When They Serve Out Their Terms They Are Qualified to Take Their Places as Law-abiding Members of Organized Society. engaged in prison work for more than | years and has .g State penitentiaries in Indiana Michigan. He came to Washing- ton nine years ago, nd was superin- tendent of the District Reformator: until about 13 months ago, when he was mede general superintendent of the three institutions. The inmates at the District Reform- atory range upward from 18 years, and are under confinement for all kinds of crime from petty stealing to murder. The shortest term Inmate 1s a one-vear-and-one-day man. Others are in for life. Only Federal prison- ers sentenced in a sent to the Lorton Penitentiary. 1 is to provide 1,000 inmates. Then all ners from the District— of whom are now sent to Fort Leavenworth and A —will be Bentenced to the Virginia wallless prison which is run on the honor Bystem. When a new prisoner yegistered, he changes his clothes, been in charge of | J | arrives he is|capturing criminals Whete 5,000,000 brick are made anwveatiy~ ] This man, with his dogs, has aided in trailing and cap- donning the regulation flannel shirt, |turing about 1,000 criminals in differ- denim trousers and work shoes, and | ent sections of Virginia and M: then he has a half-hour interview with Supt. Tawse. nd The bloodhounds are kept under leash. They live in model quarters, sleep, on | Mr. Tawse tells the man all about bunks provided with soft mattresses, | the rules and regulations of the in-|are bathed daily and exer stitution and ultimately gets his pledge | access to outdoor runs, that he will live up to the letter of )cornmeal The man is then |and meat. the merit system. shaved, photographed, his finger-print | records are made, he is examined by ised, have | and are fed | pone, wheat bread, bones Every other day the dogs are sent | over the trail for one to two hours, | & doctor, and then is assigned to some | to keep them in condition and prac-| line of productive work which he is qualified to perform. Each Inmate wor dail He arises at 6:30. eight Ms good and the meals are regular. Taps come | country as far as po: at 8 o'clock in the evening. The food | dogs overtake them. This Each man recelves a ration of three- | quarters of e three eggs daily, and as much of the egetables, frult, bread foods as he wishes. Ten men are seated at a table—family style. Col- ored men dressed In white serve as waiters. Supper is served at 4:30 in the after- noon. -Thereafter, until bedtime, the inmates can read, play talk or otherwise amuse themselves. There is a field for base ball, foot ball and other athletic contests. A recreation yoom is the center for dominoes, checkers and card games. Gambling 1n all forms is prohibited. Once a week there Is a motion-pic- ture show, just such an exhibition as might see at one of Washington' ling dheaters. The leading “‘movie rms of the District provide the films | the District prison farms are raising |new and permanent structures free of charge. One of the inmates is the operator. Religlous services by various pas- tors from Washington are held every | trade shops which is being built. Sund: The prisoners maintain an excellent choir and a fine orchestra. Certain of the inmates lead, and direct these musical organizations. * k% N how the inmates are prevented from escaping from this extraordinary prison. A crew of 42 officers, who work in three eight-hour shifts, keeps tab of the men night and'day. None of the inmatés are allowed out of the pight of the guards. A half-dozen bloodhounds are also ntafned, under the direction of an who hos deveted 15. years te o espert pound of meat, two or | any | ATURALLY, you are wondering | tice. Several “trusties” are sent out one hour ahead of the dogs and in- hours | Structed to travel through the wooded | ble until the | training for | the dogs keeps the animals on edge | so that they are ready for work at| time. - The attempts to escape are rare. In and other | all instances the runaways have been | | caught. It is even difficult for a man to get as far as the boundary of the four square miles of territory which | compose the reformatory and work- house grounds before the dogs catch up with him. Each inmate at Lorton is taught some manual trade. For example, | under free men" leaders, they work at carpentry, brickmaking, bricklaying, broom manufacturing, plumbing, printing. tailoring, farming, dairying, poultrying, hog raising, fruit produc- tion and gardening. The 29 new brick buildings are being constructed of bricks made at the workhouse and laid by the reformatory inmates. Thus at minimum expense. ‘Take the case of one of the new it this building had been constructed by contract labor and the bricks pur- chased it wbuld have cost about $25 400. As it was, it was built for $13,000. Similar saving has been made throughi- ut the building program. ‘The men are cheerful and contented to perform the work. They appreci- ate that they are helping to erect per- manent buildings which will be used in the future in aiding other prisoners to sain.a-new outlook and a lease on lite. During the last vear 4,000,000 of the best building bricks ever delivered in ‘Washington have been unloaded at the Ninth strest wharves. They were Blooclhounds that serve as policemen { made by the workhouse and reforma- tary prisoners near Lorton and were ferried on the Potomac River in in- | stitution barges by an institution tug. These bricks were used in building new schoolhouses and other publie buildings throughout the District. The shale supply for brickmaking is un- limited, and the whole plant is- well ecuipped. The comiiercial value of these bricks ranged from $18 to $25 a thousand. They did not cost the| District a single penny. Six hundred dozen. brooms, which are used each year in District sehool- houses and other municipal buildings. also are made in the bfoom factory near Lorton. The broomcorn from which these brooms are manufactured comes from Illinois and Oklahoma, being purchased on the Baltimore market under a system of competitive bidding. The inmates do all the hand and ma- *hine work connected with the manu- facture of these brooms. * o ok ok HE farming activities are diverse and extensive. A half-dozen years ago the entire reservation was re- plete. in timber, pine slashing and scrub growth. Gradually an ax- armed army is taming this wilder- ness. After the trees are felled -and the stumps remdved, the reclaimed field$ are introduced to the civilizing influences of the plow. Great quanti- ties of vegetables are grown. Green crops, hay and enmsilage enough for the dairy cows are raised. A fine fruit orchard of 8,000 trees is rounding into maturity. Apples, peaches, pears, plums, cherries and the mill run of fruit tree produce is raised. Last Fall, for instance, 800 bushels of pears were harvested, MM Batnard, General Su of bistriet Pris perentenoent ns. he reformailory operates a four-mile raifroad. as well as substantial peach and ap- /ple crops. The fruit is consumed at the workhouse and reformatory, in_either the fresh or canned state. Seventy-five grade and purebred Holstein cows are kept., and produce between 150 and 200 gallons of milk dafly. This milk is served to the prisoners and used in the commis- sary kitchens. There are 250 Poland China and Duroc Jersey hogs being raised at the reformatory direction of one of the 20-year-term inmates. This man was a glass- blower. Fate's shuffle has converted him into a hog farmer at Lorton. He has become deeply interested in pork production, and accords as much care and attention to the porkers as a big circus gives to its educated horses. Without question, when this man leaves the reformatory he will ob- tain a responsible position on some under the | pure-bred hog farm. ! The workhouse also maintains 500 additional pure-bred porkers. These two groups are fattened for the butcher’s block at a minimum outlay for commercial feed. During the Summer the animals are- fed the clean-garbage from the two District institutions and are also allowed ac- cess to native grazing. Grain is fed only during the topping off period, in order to harden the pork. All the fresh pork consumed at the tweo estab- nstitution Will Soon Serve Washington shments during the Winter is duced in this manner. None of | meat is smoked or cured. | Tor the last six vears the reforma tory has provided all the other Dis trict penal institutions with 2,500 | pounds of fresh pork for Christmas | and Thanksgiving dinners. A flock | of 2,000 White Leghorn and Plymouth Rock hens and pullets is the source | of the egg supply. The inmates | feed and care for these and maste | the complexities of this branch of | agriculture. More than hor | and mules are work the tw son farms. These anfmals are all | pensioners which were sent from the | bistrict fire departmen: stations and | other_transportation stables in 2 pave | mentsore condition | Al the animals have | kindly to work on the s | farm” conditions. The: possess average good market value, whereas when they first came to the farms | they were so crippled in most that they would sold for a few dollars ar More than tables are raised in efther a fresh tion at the two eading crops h weet potatos matoes. beans About every vield of waterme | also is harvested | A livestoc 1i { will be a flock of the on respondec sof no ! green vege Yy and eaten nned prison farms, condi The potatoes., radishes, to. nd sweet cor | provide muttc { in cleaning up efficient Distric i'rm:m: is a | printing i which is ‘h does all the institutions and wou fied to handle much if some such were available chinery shortly that all the ove: d underwear used | penal establishm plant | pen,” inmates 14 also Distric e made c come this >robably p | prisons throu; This goal will establishment B8 to accomn transient all of Uncle s: force at the District reformatc simply means tl prisoner who has made 2 mo 1 for good be | havior duri one-third his sentence a spectal “parole man term. In the ¢ thi€ period of p may begin when and two-thirds y fitted with a given $5 in secured for 1 once a month to tells how much mo; how he spends it 4 his spare tme. A liable to check up « 1y_reports. Tsuully there : hood of 50 to 75 § Lorton #eformator ington. Prac | engazed in trades v while they lived in has neithe Is windows and doors. Many of these nen beginning _lite w in the capacity of bricklayer lumbers carpenters, gardeners and waiters. One of leading florists tells abo gardener in his employ—a man who served five years at the re- formatory and while there mastered the secrets of 1 nd flower ral A half-dozen of best buker the District served their apprentice | ship in the D keshop down Lorton way. Not of these mer knew anything abou aking busi ness when sentenced (o the District “pen.” They served their terms and were liberated better o far as a specialized education was concerned to earn their living than before their ipcarceration The bake is an outstanding feature. It has one of the finest ovens ‘}nv this country and is capacitated to | turn out ounds of bread to a | charge. The furnace for this hug oven is in the next room, so that chances of dust and dirt penetrating to the bake e minimized. The in sulation is so perfect that a fire can be’ kindled on Monday to heat the oven; the fire can then be quenched: notwithstanding. batch of bread | can be baked in the oven the following | Thursday, without the need for s | ing another fire A large electric mixer. dles three barrels of flour | another feature of the culinar: | ment. Ginger bread Jjohnny cake are served to the inmates | about once a week. | e HE prisoners daily 360 eggs, 1T from 75 to 125 pounds of sall or fresh meat, three bushels of pota toes, 100 pounds of navy beans, 50 | pounds of macaroni, 25 pounds of | cheese, an allowance of vegetable or bean soup, and bread ad libitum. You can gain a good idea of the fare by the following menus, which were serv ed during the week ending July Breakfast—Rice. fried eggs, gravy and coffee. Dinner—Boiled corn bread, coffee. Supper—Béan soup tea and stewed apples. The men now: eat in a_temporary bullding, the dining room being quite similar to the mess hall in an army cantonment during the war. Each man has a cot, mattress, sheets. blankets, a pillow and a locker in the well ventilated dormitory. The health records of the inmates are most as. tonishing. Tt is indeed rare to find two men in the hospital at the same time. During the last nine years four men have died, one from dropsy. an other fell off an exercising bar and | broke his neck, while the two others | died from ordinary diseases. { About one-half of the new buildings are under construction and will be completed this Summer. They include | a dozen new dormitories as well as { commodious dining hall, wkicn v accommodate 1,000 inmates. A quar tet of new shops is also almost fin- ished. Four disciplinary dormitories are also being constr=.ted. They are sub. divided into (R typical prison cells found in the average penitentia where the prisoners are confined be hind bolts and bars and walls, under the surveillunce of heavily armed guards. The men who do not obey the rules or who violate the ethics of the merit system are punished by be- ing sent to the disciplinary dormi- tory, where they are kept until they lmend their ways. i _The bullding campaign also features the installation of modern cold stor- age, an ice manufacturing machine and other labor-saving devices. The buildings are being linked together by protected arcades, while spacious courtyards for recreation and amuse- ment purposes are being built. may rated a inder of h 2(-year man sbationary release =, of clothes position i ccupies g officer is all upon him at any time to the veracity of his month the neighbor en from the ng in Wash hem are h they learned the prison, which fences mnor barred ashington’s the colored bes: ti which han eat bread shoulder. green beans, potatoes, gravy and bread, sirup