Department of Justice,
Office of the Superintendent of Prisons and Prisoners,
January 8, 1910
Mr. R. W. McClaughry,
Warden, United States Penitentiary,
Leavenworth, Kansas.
Dear Sir:
In your list of prisoners discharged during the month of December 1909 appears the name of William B. Schwartz, Register No. 5476. Your entry shows that he was discharged on December 25th ‘by expiration of sentence.” The Department’s records show that Schwartz was convicted at Indianapolis of counterfeiting and sentenced December 11, 1906, to imprisonment for four years and fined $10. That he was received in your institution December 14, 1906, and that his term began December 11. The original record card furnished by you shows his “short term” to expire January 9, 1910, which I figure now to be correct. This does not take into consideration his fine. If he did not pay his fine and his commitment required that he be held for non-payment, he would of course be held thirty days additional.
I should be glad to learn how you came to discharge Schwartz on December 25th instead of January 9th or later.
Respectfully,
R. V. LaDow
Superintendent of Prisons.
Referred to Record Clerk U.S.P.
R. W. McClaughry
Warden
________________________________________
For more information on Robert W. McClaughry and R. V. LaDow, there are papers and books available online:
This book has information on Robert W. McClaughry and his methods while he was Warden at Leavenworth.
R. V. LaDow was the first Superintendent of Prisons. He served from 1908-1915. Letters and correspondence between LaDow and McClaughry can be found at the National Archives.
Source:
Letter from Prison Superintendent R. V. LaDow to Warden Robert W. McClaughry, 8 January 1910, William B. Schwartz, Prisoner no. 5476; Inmate Case Files, U. S. Penitentiary, Leavenworth, Kansas, 1895-1931, Record Group 129; National Archives at Kansas City, Missouri
Wow, talk about being TOUGH!