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Show : PUW TO WORK WAR PRISONERS ON ROADS Senate Bill Provides That Interned Enemies Shall Earn Their Board. Prisoners in the United States army and navy prisons can be employed in the construction of military ' roads and highways upon the passage in congress of legislation introduced at this session bv Senator Hoke Smith of Georgia. "The purposo of Senator Smith's bill is to provide for the employment of .prison labor for the productiou of war supplies, the details of which the war bureau of the national committee on prisons and prison labor and the officers offi-cers of the American Federation of Labor La-bor have been preparing since the United States entered the war. The bill authorizes the secretary of war and the secretary of the navy to employ military prisoners in the manufacture of war supplies and in the construction construc-tion of military roads to make agreements agree-ments for the use of the necessary machinery ma-chinery and the finding of available material, and to supervise, the work of county and state highway officials who may be charged with the development of the proposed roads. Armv prisoners already are employed on road work within the cantonments of the national army. The bill will make possible their employment on roads leading to the cantonments. Jn many instances the cantonments are without good road connections with the railroads and main highways, making the transportation of food and sun-plies sun-plies a matter of considerable difficulty diffi-culty in bad weather. Employment of army and navy prisoners pris-oners is not to be confused with the employment of German prisoners of war interned in the United states. This mat f or requires no legislation, and is receiving careful con si deration by the departments concerned. Switzerland 's experience in the employment on road building of German ami allied prisoners prison-ers of war is bei ng reviewed in this connection. Prisoners of war in' erned in Switzerland work for their own welfare wel-fare and for a wage, and Switzerland has benefited by the continued development devel-opment of her excellent system of highways. |