County Jail Could Be New Country Club

Kingston, New York, 1916

STREET GOSSIP ABOUT TOWN

We see that it is now recommended that the county jail be supplied with hot water. We always labored under the impression that it was only those who "get into hot water" ever went to jail.

Our own report of an inspection of the Ulster county jail made after reading in The Freeman how the jail needed shower baths, hot water and other luxuries:

It was exceedingly gratifying to find all parts of the jail satisfactorily clean. In this connection we would say, however, that it works an unusual hardship on a prisoner confined in the jail as he is not used to such cleanliness, and it is liable to make him homesick. We would therefore recommend that the jail be kept not quite so clean.

We also noticed that the prisoners were forced to sleep in bunks. This inflicts untold privation on a prisoner, especially when he is confined in the jail for any length of time. We would recommend that brass beds be installed in each cell.

Prisoners are also forced to make up their own beds each morning. This should not be allowed to continue. The county should employ a chambermaid as it is not a man's work to make up his own bed.

Another bad feature of our present system in the handling of prisoners is the question of meals and the prisoner has absolutely no choice in the matter. He must eat whatever the jail authorities provide.

This is not right and the system should be abolished and arrangements made with the leading hotels to supply the meals.

We therefore recommend that each cell be equipped with a telephone so that the prisoner may have the privilege of calling up the hotel chef and ordering and selecting his own meals.

The idea that a man who commits crime is sent to jail as a punishment is no longer tolerated in the best society of long haired men and short haired women and is old-fashioned. We should remember that a jail is not intended for the punishment, but the uplift of the prisoner. Spell "uplift" in capital letters.

If you don't believe us we simply refer you to any report of an inspection of the jail made in the past few years.

As everyone knows the average jailbird is madly anxious to bathe himself. Usually when out of jail he bathes once each year, and that in July, but as soon as he is confined in jail the unnatural desire assails him to bathe every day.

"We recommend therefore that a large swimming pool be constructed on the first floor, and a shower bath be installed in each cell.

After our inspection of the jail we have reached the following conclusions which we group under the head of further recommendations:

The jail ceils are altogether too small and each prisoner should be furnished with a room at least 10 by 12 feet with hot and cold water, bath, gas and electricity, telephone. brass bed, and all the most modern improvements. He should also be given an electric fan for warm nights.

Each prisoner should be allowed two boxes of cigars a week, several packages of pipe and chewing tobacco at the expense of the county. He should also be given his favorite beverage in as large quantities as he may desire.

An elevator should be installed in the jail as it is too much to ask a prisoner to walk up to the third tier of cells.

We also recommend that the prisoners be furnished with Fords by the county so that they may enjoy some slight recreation in touring about the city and county when it is fair weather.

Another recommendation is that the rear of the jail yard should be excavated, a large pond built and stocked with fish and several rowboats placed thereon so that prisoners who do not care for automobiling may fish and boat to their heart's content.

In conclusion we rise to say that when our recommendations are carried out, as they should be, we expect to hit a policeman over the head with a club so that Recorder Lang will sentence us to at least sixty days in the new county clubhouse.

—The Kingston Daily Freeman, Kingston, New York, June 30, 1916, page 6.