332 1 HE IRR1 GA1ION A GE. 



to the plans of Senator Dietrich, greatly shorten the length of the- 

 original sentence. Besides, the prisoners will be allowed a fair month- 

 ly sum for their services and the total amount will be given them 

 when they are discharged. In this way the task of redeeming the 

 barren lands in the Western states could be cheaply and economically 

 done by men who are now pining in confinement. A vast increase in 

 wealth would result, contends the senator. The convict would be 

 greatly benefited because the pure air, wholesome food and interest- 

 ing labor would make his surroundings more cheerful. The demoral- 

 izing atmosphere of the prison would be counteracted. Short term 

 men and those whose criminal instincts are not prominently developed 

 could labor together and the worst feature of prison life, the dissemi- 

 nation of evil desires, would be eliminated. 



HOW HE WOULD EMPLOY SOLDIERS. 



"To guard the prisoners, the idle troops and cavalry squads could 

 be pressed into service. The district in which the convicts labor, ac- 

 cording to the plan of Senator Dietrich, could be guarded by a strong 

 picket line of soldiers. The latter would rarely come in contact with 

 the convicts and would, he says, receive valuable training 'in scouting. 

 In camp a detailed record of the delinquencies of the convicts could be 

 kept. For pardons, good prison records would be absolutely indis- 

 pensable. Senator Dietrich is confident that by this method insurrec- 

 tion would be unheard of and attempts to escape would be made 

 rarely. 



"Civil engineers and government experts are relied on by the sen- 

 ator to outline and direct the work. By careful selection the convicts 

 would be sufficiently skilled to perform all of the labor required. He 

 has devised no method for determining in what section of the country 

 the work would be done, intrusting that feature to the government's 

 civil engineering department. 



"Senator Deitrich was first prompted to devise the scheme on hu- 

 manitarian grounds. Twenty- five years ago he was working as a day 

 laborer in the swamps of Arkansas and Mississippi. At that time the 

 convict camp, with all its terrors, was in vogue. The prisoners were 

 compelled to do the most exhausting labor on a diet of bacon, corn- 

 bread and river water, with only a few hours devoted to sleep and 

 rest. Nearly all the convicts wore the ball and chain. The inhuman 

 treatment and loss of energy, as well as the unsanitary conditions, 

 vividly impressed the future senator. Prom that time until the pres- 

 ent he has never ceased to meditate on a plan for improving prison 

 conditions. 



HE'S AGAINST PRISON WALLS. 



' According to his theory, confinement within prison walls detract 



