ARKANSAS STATE PENITENTIARY JULY 14, 1939.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House and ordered to be printed Mr. KENNEDY, of Maryland, from the Committee on Claims, submitted the following REPORT [To accompany H. R. 6641] The Committee on Claims, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 6641), for the relief of the Arkansas State Penitentiary, having considered the same, report favorably thereon with amendments and recommend that the bill as amended do pass. The amendments are as follows: Line 3, strike out the word "is" and insert in lieu thereof "be, and he is hereby". Line 6, strike out the period and the wording "Such sum represents the" and insert in lieu thereof "in full settlement of all claims against the United States for". At the end of the bill add : Provided, That no part of the amount appropriated in this Act in excess of 10 per centum thereof shall be paid or delivered to or received by any agent or attorney on account of services rendered in connection with this claim, and the same shall be unlawful, any contract to the contrary notwithstanding. Any person violating the provisions of this Act shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be fined in any sum not exceeding $1,000. The purpose of the proposed legislation is to pay to the Arkansas State Penitentiary the sum of $11,414.17, in full settlement of all claims against the United States for expenses incurred by the said penitentiary as a result of furnishing 955 convicts for emergency work in maintaining the levees in the lower St. Francis levee district of Arkansas, during the flood emergency in January and February 1937 on the Mississippi River. STATEMENT OF FACTS On January 27, 1937, Gov. Carl E. Bailey of Arkansas, received a call from the United States District Engineer's Office in West Memphis, advising him that it was imperative that 1,000 men be sent immediately to the levees along the Arkansas side of the Mississippi River in the vicinity of Porters Lake and Pillars Mound if they were to be saved. The Governor was asked if he could furnish 1,000 convicts for this work, and upon the immediate cooperation of the Governor and the superintendent of the Arkansas State Penitentiary, 955 convicts were provided. As a consequence, these prisoners and 10 wardens arrived in Memphis, Tenn., via railroad at 11:55 p. m. on January 28, 1937, and they were immediately transported by Government boat to Porter Lake and Whitehall, Ark. The convicts were used on work consisting of of maintaining the existing levees along the Mississippi River in the lower St. Francis levee district of Arkansas, and the War Department has a tabulation of the approximate time, number, and location worked by the prisoners while engaged in this emergency. Unlike most penal institutions, the Arkansas State Penitentiary is a self-supporting institution, dependent solely upon the proceeds derived from the sale of its crops for its maintenance and operation. It does not receive any financial assistance from the general fund of the State of Arkansas, but it does pay taxes into the State treasury upon its plants and properties at the same rate as a private enterprise or corporation. As before stated, the Governor was requested on January 27 to provide the convicts immediately, if possible, and of course there was no time to make arrangements regarding the expenses, etc. The superintendent of the penitentiary responded to the emergency call by drawing upon the penitentiary funds for the purchase of food, clothing, and other necessary supplies, and he entrained his men at the earliest possible moment. The penitentiary had no equipment to take care of a force of men away from the institution proper, the foodstuff on hand at the institution not being of a character that could be prepared in the field without equipment. This necessitated the purchase of food that could be cooked over open fires or consumed without extensive preparation. In addition to this, sufficient clothing to equip the expedition was not available at this time and it was necessary to duplicate many articles of clothing and bedding that were at the time in process of manufacture in the penitentiary shops. The prices that were paid in the open market were naturally much higher than the cost of producing these articles in the penitentiary shops. Subsistence was furnished by the Federal Government during the time the men were actually placed and working in the areas designated by the Government engineer. Subsistence while en route to and from the places of employment and between the designated areas of danger was furnished by the penitentiary. The subsistence and transportation paid for by the penitentiary amounted to $11,414.17. This amount would never have been incurred except for this emer gency. The immediate action in sending these convicts to perform the work saved the threatened district untold loss of life and property. In addition to this it saved the Government considerable expense, as it is estimated that the cost of the labor performed by the convicts would have amounted to $21,084. No compensation is being asked for the labor performed by the convicts. The amount of the bill provides only for reimbursement of the actual expenses and an itemized list will be hereafter appended. The War Department is without authority to pay the claims, but recommends that the bill under consideration be acted upon favorably, and agrees that the amount asked for is reasonable. Appended hereto is the report of the War Department, together with other pertinent evidence. Hon. AMBROSE J. KENNEDY, Chairman, Committee on Claims, WAR DEPARTMENT, Washington, June 19, 1939. House of Representatives, Washington, D. C. DEAR MR. KENNEDY: Reference is made to your letter of June 8, 1939, transmitting for report a copy of H. R. 6641, Seventy-Sixth Congress, first session, a bill for the relief of the Arkansas State Penitentiary. The measure proposes to authorize payment to the Arkansas State Penitentiary in the amount of $11,414.17 in settlement of expenses incurred by the Arkansas State Penitentiary in furnishing 955 convicts for emergency work in maintaining the levees in the lower St. Francis levee district during the flood emergency in January and February 1937, on the Mississippi River. The Arkansas convict labor was obtained for flood-emergency work in the Memphis district as a result of a conference with Arkansas State officials on January 27, 1937. A contingent consisting of 955 prisoners and 10 wardens arrived in Memphis, Tenn., via railroad at 11:55 p. m., January 28, 1937, and was immediately transported by Government boat to Porter Lake and Whitehall, Ark. The convicts were used on work consisting of maintaining the existing levees along the Mississippi River in the lower St. Francis levee district of Arkansas. The following tabulation shows the approximate time, number, and location worked by the prisoners while engaged on emergency flood work in the Memphis engineer district: Inclusive dates worked Worked in vicinity Remarks Number of From- To Porter Lake, Ark... 211 prisoners were sent back to prison farm on 330 Whitehall, Ark. Feb 5, 1937, via Government boat to Arkansas These prisoners were sent to Mellwood, Ark., on Do. Do.... After considering the time lost while in transit and on account of sickness, etc., it is believed that 14,058 man-days is a fair and equitable estimate as to the amount of work performed by the prison labor. The attached itemized statement of cash expenditures submitted by the Arkansas State authorities appears to be the payments made for subsistence supplies, clothing, and transportation while the prisoners were engaged on emergency flood work in the Memphis district. It is understood that the Arkansas State officials furnished a week's ration supply along with the contingent of convicts. Several days after the arrival of convicts, the superintendent requested that a complete additional set of clothing be furnished the prisoners, by the Memphis engineer district. The superintendent was immediately advised that the Corps of Engineers was without authority to fill a requisition for clothing, and he thereupon arranged for securing a supply of clothing direct with State of Arkansas officials. With the exception of the week's ration supply referred to above, immediately to the levees along the Arkansas side of the Mississippi River in the vicinity of Porters Lake and Pillars Mound if they were to be saved. The Governor was asked if he could furnish 1,000 convicts for this work, and upon the immediate cooperation of the Governor and the superintendent of the Arkansas State Penitentiary, 955 convicts were provided. As a consequence, these prisoners and 10 wardens arrived in Memphis, Tenn., via railroad at 11:55 p. m. on January 28, 1937, and they were immediately transported by Government boat to Porter Lake and Whitehall, Ark. The convicts were used on work consisting of of maintaining the existing levees along the Mississippi River in the lower St. Francis levee district of Arkansas, and the War Department has a tabulation of the approximate time, number, and location worked by the prisoners while engaged in this emergency. Unlike most penal institutions, the Arkansas State Penitentiary is a self-supporting institution, dependent solely upon the proceeds derived from the sale of its crops for its maintenance and operation. It does not receive any financial assistance from the general fund of the State of Arkansas, but it does pay taxes into the State treasury upon its plants and properties at the same rate as a private enterprise or corporation. As before stated, the Governor was requested on January 27 to provide the convicts immediately, if possible, and of course there was no time to make arrangements regarding the expenses, etc. The superintendent of the penitentiary responded to the emergency call by drawing upon the penitentiary funds for the purchase of food, clothing, and other necessary supplies, and he entrained his men at the earliest possible moment. The penitentiary had no equipment to take care of a force of men away from the institution proper, the foodstuff on hand at the institution not being of a character that could be prepared in the field without equipment. This necessitated the purchase of food that could be cooked over open fires or consumed without extensive preparation. In addition to this, sufficient clothing to equip the expedition was not available at this time and it was necessary to duplicate many articles of clothing and bedding that were at the time in process of manufacture in the penitentiary shops. The prices that were paid in the open market were naturally much higher than the cost of producing these articles in the penitentiary shops. Subsistence was furnished by the Federal Government during the time the men were actually placed and working in the areas designated by the Government engineer. Subsistence while en route to and from the places of employment and between the designated areas of danger was furnished by the penitentiary. The subsistence and transportation paid for by the penitentiary amounted to $11,414.17. This amount would never have been incurred except for this emergency. The immediate action in sending these convicts to perform the work saved the threatened district untold loss of life and property. In addition to this it saved the Government considerable expense, as it is estimated that the cost of the labor performed by the convicts would have amounted to $21,084. No compensation is being asked for the labor performed by the convicts. The amount of the bill provides only for reimbursement of the actual expenses and an itemized list will be hereafter appended. The War Department is without authority to pay the claims, but recommends that the bill under consideration be acted upon favorably, and agrees that the amount asked for is reasonable. Appended hereto is the report of the War Department, together with other pertinent evidence. Hon. AMBROSE J. KENNEDY, Chairman, Committee on Claims, WAR DEPARTMENT, Washington, June 19, 1989. House of Representatives, Washington, D. C. DEAR MR. KENNEDY: Reference is made to your letter of June 8, 1939, transmitting for report a copy of H. R. 6641, Seventy-Sixth Congress, first session, a bill for the relief of the Arkansas State Penitentiary. The measure proposes to authorize payment to the Arkansas State Penitentiary in the amount of $11,414.17 in settlement of expenses incurred by the Arkansas State Penitentiary in furnishing 955 convicts for emergency work in maintaining the levees in the lower St. Francis levee district during the flood emergency in January and February 1937, on the Mississippi River. The Arkansas convict labor was obtained for flood-emergency work in the Memphis district as a result of a conference with Arkansas State officials on January 27, 1937. A contingent consisting of 955 prisoners and 10 wardens arrived in Memphis, Tenn., via railroad at 11:55 p. m., January 28, 1937, and was immediately transported by Government boat to Porter Lake and Whitehall, Ark. The convicts were used on work consisting of maintaining the existing levees along the Mississippi River in the lower St. Francis levee district of Arkansas. The following tabulation shows the approximate time, number, and location worked by the prisoners while engaged on emergency flood work in the Memphis engineer district: Inclusive dates worked Worked in vicinity Remarks Number of From- To Whitehall, Ark. Porter Lake, Ark... 211 prisoners were sent back to prison farm on These prisoners were sent to Mellwood, Ark., on Do. After considering the time lost while in transit and on account of sickness, etc., it is believed that 14,058 man-days is a fair and equitable estimate as to the amount of work performed by the prison labor. The attached itemized statement of cash expenditures submitted by the Arkansas State authorities appears to be the payments made for subsistence supplies, clothing, and transportation while the prisoners were engaged on emergency flood work in the Memphis district. It is understood that the Arkansas State officials furnished a week's ration supply along with the contingent of convicts. Several days after the arrival of convicts, the superintendent requested that a complete additional set of clothing be furnished the prisoners, by the Memphis engineer district. The superintendent was immediately advised that the Corps of Engineers was without authority to fill a requisition for clothing, and he thereupon arranged for securing a supply of clothing direct with State of Arkansas officials. With the exception of the week's ration supply referred to above, |