Penology for profit : a history of the Texas prison system, 1867-1912 /

Walker examines the Texas prison system between the end of the Civil War and the beginning of WW I, the period in which the "hiring out" of prisoners to private businessmen and corporations dominated the state's penal system. Walker's thesis is that during the late 19th century, Texas penal practices were driven by economic concerns--especially the effort to generate state revenue through the prison system--while efforts at inmate rehabilitation and even consideration for the well-being of prisoners received lower priorities. Walker also describes the management of the penal system, and attempts to depict the daily regimen of prison life from the point of view of the inmates. His discussion of the origins of the Texas prison system and the relationship of early concepts of penology in Texas both to general theories of penology in the US and to the economic and political realities arising from the limited resources of post-Civil War Texas are focused, clear, and enlightening. On the other hand, his efforts to analyze early 20th-century reforms, which ended the convict leasing system, are unfocused, and fail to relate clearly Texas penal reforms to changes in national theories of penology. Nevertheless, a valuable contribution to the understanding of the evolution of the US penal system and of contemporary prison reform efforts. College and university libraries. -C. D. Wintz, Texas Southern University