CONVICT LABOE FOR EOAD WORK. 21 



The only other important economic advantage of convict labor over 

 free hibor is that the force is absolutely dependable so far as numbers 

 are concerned. Plans for work can be made in advance with a sure 

 knowledge that the anticipated number of laborers will be on hand 

 to execute them. There can be no tardiness in the convict camp 

 such as is frequently the fault of free labor, and, furthermore, the 

 regularity of the force enbles a competent overseer to develop the 

 maximum efficiency of each man to an extent which is not possible 

 with shifting free labor. 



But this latter quahty which, in one respect is an advantage, in 

 another is one of the most serious defects of convict labor. The 

 constancy which makes the force dependable in attendance and 

 which permits the overseer to provide each man with the work best 

 suited to him, prevents altering the size of the force with changes 

 in the requirements of the work. The force is constant and must be 

 constantly maintained, whether the work justifies it or not. Dirring 

 the delays incident to the failure of road or quarry machinery, the 

 belated arrival of road material, difficulties in acquiring right of way, 

 the opening of new sources of road surfacing material, high water 

 in quarries or gravel pits, and other unavoidable causes too numerous 

 to mention, the whole or a part of the force must be maintained in 

 relative idleness. On Sundays and hoUdays and during bad weather 

 the continuous expense of the convict camp goes on. In addition to 

 these losses the sick must be maintained though they are entirely 

 unproductive, and this loss amounts to from one to five per cent. 



The above concerns the losses in the time of the productive 

 labor of the camp, but part of the squad employed in preparing 

 food and maintaining the camp is necessarily always unproductive 

 in units of road work. The proportion of the force so employed 

 varies from 7 to 17 per cent, and the average is about 10 per cent. 



Thus taking into account only the losses which can be anticipated 

 with reasonable accuracy and omitting from consideration those 

 which are incident to unavoidable failures in the work, the cost of 

 maintaining one productive road laborer one working day will be 

 found to be from 40 to 50 per cent greater than the maintenance 

 cost per convict per calendar day. Table 4 contains data secured 

 by representatives of this office relative to the itemized cost of main- 

 tenance and the time lost for the above mentioned reasons. In a 

 number of instances the figures given are necessarily estimates 

 because accurate records were not at hand, but it is believed that 

 they are the best estimates obtainable. The effect of the lost time 

 upon the maintenance cost will be apparent at once by comparison 

 of columns 9 and 1 6. 



Aside from tlie large loss through enforced idleness there are a 

 number of other causes of inefficiency duo to the very fact that the 



