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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (April 4, 1985)
Page 16/The Battalion/Thursday, April 4, 1985 Hi ■ Hi Report: 5 TDC units still using ‘building tenders’ Associated Press HOUSTON — Five of the state’s 27 prisons are unsatisfactory or mar ginal in complying with a court or der barring the use of inmates as prison guards, according to a report filed in federal court. Meanwhile, Vincent Nathan, a special court master appointed to oversee prison reforms, has asked a federal judge to approve a plan to classify inmates in the Texas Depart ment of Corrections according to how violent they are. U.S. District Judge William Wayne justice of Tyler ordered widespread reforms in the state prison system. And in 1982 he ruled that TDC must eliminate the “build ing tender’’ system by this year. Un der this system, prison guards used favorite prisoners to run errands. Nathan’s quarterly report, filed Tuesday in justice’s court, said three Songs of railroads, hobos units’ compliance with the order was good, 1 1 were excellent and eight were outstanding. But the Coffield Unit in Tennes see Colony was found unsatisfactory. Fourteen special grievance inves tigations were being conducted at the Coffield Unit between last De cember and February, according to the report. Marginal compliance was found at four units — Beto I, in Tennessee Colony; Darrington, in Rosharon; Eastham, in Lovelady; and Fergu son, in Midway. The report cited inmates guard ing “primary security points,” disci plining fellow prisoners and allow ing some inmates access to “sensitive records” involving other prisoners. William Bennett Turner, an attor ney for the inmates in the prison re form suit, sgid the building tender system still exists “where there are too many prisoners and too few guards.” Turner said the Coffield Unit is “unmanageable” and houses about 3,500 inmates in a facility designed for 2,000. In another development, Nathan filed a report Tuesday approving TDC’s plan outlining the classifica tion of inmates and the care of men tally retarded prisoners. Prison spokesman Charles Brown said Wednesday he had not seen the plans and declined to comment on them. The plan “will help the Texas De partment of Corrections take its im portant initial steps toward progres sive management of inmates through appropriate classification,” Nathan wrote. The plan calls for the segregation of the state’s most violent inmates, and Nathan said it may reduce vio lence among prisoners. Folk singer recognized Associated Press TEMPLE —In 1896, 14-year-old Harry Kirby McClintock ran away from home, and the path he then followed changed folk-country mu sic for several decades, a Fern pie au thor says. Henry Young, says McClintock, was profoundly influenced by the hobos and out-of-work railroad men he traveled with. McClintock incor porated fairy tales they told him into a song he composed the following year. Young’s admiration for the man and his music prompted him to write McClintock’s biography. “Haywire Mac and the Big Rock Candy Moun tains” is Young’s account of McClin tock’s road to folk-music stardom. That song, “The Big Rock Candy Mountains” became popular over the next couple of decades, even though he did not actually record it until 1928. It was because of that de lay in recording and in copyrighting his song that he didn’t become as well known as his music, Young says. Young says McClintock entered country music on a dare from a friend. He auditioned for a radio show, which launched his singing and story-telling career. McClintock, or “Haywire Mac” as his fans knew him, eventually went to work for the railroad after a cou ple of trips around the world. Many of his songs are based on his experi ence with railroads as either a worker or a bum. In 1928, Young, then living in Al abama, heard Haywire Mac for the first time on the radio and became fascinated with his style of music. Even though Young never met the musician, he spent 45 years, begin ning in 1939, collecting and sorting McClintock’s life story. Young says he wrote the book be cause he thought Haywire Mac had not received the recognition he de served. Several letters of McClintock’s to friends are in the book, including Slouch By Jim Earle ‘‘Now mind you, this is just an offhand observation, but I think I can point out a few reasons for your low grades. ” Houston car winner rejects 'piece of trash 7 one of his last, in which Haywire Mac wrote; “I am glad I was a wandering shack (brakeman) and switchman, glad for the old days I used to know. Clad for the bag of tricks that made the world exciting — the phony serv ice letters, the sight of shining rails from a caboose door, and the brass rings I grabbed at and missed but sometimes caught.” Young says Haywire Mac’s songs stirred his imagination, and Young eventually headed into railroads himself, retiring as an engineer in California in 1974 after 40 years in the business. Young now has a short radio pro gram on a Cameron station. He plays country music from the 1920s to the 1950s. It was in the 1950s, he says, that country music began to drift away from songs that told sto ries to a melody, to songs centered on rhythm. Associated Press HOUSTON — When Sandra Torres went to pick up the “late model car” she won in a department store drawing, she found the prize was a 1979 Ford station wagon with 89,000 miles on the odometer, the dashboard cracked, and the back seat and all the hubcaps missing. When shown the “prize,” Torres said she turned it down, telling of fi cials of Leonard’s Department Store: “That car is a piece of trash. I’ll just keep the one I’ve got, thank you.” Torres said that a door of the car wouldn’t open and the headlights couldn’t be turned on because a knob was missing. “When somebody calls you and says you won our car, you expect it to have all the parts.” she told the Houston Post. Larry McShaffry, vice president of Finance for the Leonard's Depart ment Store chain, said that the com pany did not specify the precise age of the cars being offered. He said they are ail company vehicles that have been replaced by newer cars. “We did not claim that they (the prizes) would be new or spectacular models,” he said. Rookie cop kills brothe in accident Associated Press HOUS TON —A rookieHiJ police of ficer accidentally sin killed his brother while denwj ing a holster the evening beta officer was to start duty, auib said 'Tuesday. But Houston Police Cliitfl Brow n denied some officers’c lions that a new policeholsterJ blame for the accident. Of ficer Juan Garza, 19, s brother, Rogelio Garza, 27, the stomach about 11 p.m.Mj police spokesman J.C. Mosieru The of ficer unloaded his:l strapped on the holster and! his brother to try to removetk Juan “had heard at theac was easy for a citizen lotaketl out of the holster,” Mosiersaidl Rogelio was unable to retM weapon, and Juan reloaded!] set it aside. But later, Rogelio strapped ] holster and asked Juan tos how the gun could bereiuovedj it. “The officer, apparently# his brother had unloaded# like he had earlier, pullediio it accidentally discharged, said. Mark Clark, president J Houston Police Officers Assoc said the new holsters makeiif ble to remove the gun ‘whli)) fort at all.” But Brown said in a >1 statement that the holster wj blame. "In fact, the holsters we j rently changing to wereselec cause thev are the safest acj he said. Beaumont residents raise $6,000 city kii Associated Press BEAUMONT — A group of Beaumont residents has raised al most $6,000 in an effort to reduce the $20 million loss the city suffered when an investment fund went broke. Former Mayor Maury Meyers says the group established a “Kitty for the City” to show the country Beau mont is not a “hick town.” The city invested the $20 million in January and February with the Florida-based ESM Government Se curities. The federal government shut ESM down on March 4 after learning the company was $300 mil lion in debt. On Tuesday, smiling residents and businessmen filed into the City Council chamber, where a month ago citizens outraged over the lost money called for resignations I investigations. Meyers said national newsn have portrayed Beaumont! town stuck out in the middles where," and “a poor little town I He said the idea began “wit few phone calls,” ahcl quickhtj into a community effort tot country how Beaumont respon trouble. PARADISE FOUND. Your search for a new apartment can now end, happily. At Treehouse Village, you’ll discover another world in apart ment living — one that's perfect for a student’s way of life. Treehouse Village is ideally located just blocks from campus. These efficiencies and one- and two-bedroom furnished and unfurnished floor plans are full of ex tras that — before now — you could only dream of. Some two-bedroom plans also feature fireplaces and washer/dryer connections, and handicap units are available.too. Residents also en joy use of Treehouse Village’s two pools and hot tubs, jogging trail and tennis, basketball and volleyball courts. Find out how great apartment living was meant to be. Discover Treehouse Village. Your haven in the apartment jungle. A TREEHOUSE VILLAGE- APARTMENTS LEASE NOW FOR FALL 1985, Treehouse Village Apartments. From $295. For information, visit the Treehouse Village Apartments Leasing Office at 800 Marion Pugh Blvd. College Station, Texas 77840 409/764-8892 Professionally managed by Callaway Properties.