Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1858-02-17
Reflections---Down with the Prisons

Refections---Down with the Prisons.
On this Gods holy Sabbath, as is
our custom, we have been holding up
John n. Brundage before our criticism,
and reviewed his peculiarities, charac-
ter, principles and opinions, and found
much, as usual, with which to complain.
Our thoughts have reverted to the evils
and practices Of Christendom in gene
raj, and Wisconsin in particular. We
have been searching for the cause of
arson, assassination, and kindred mis-
demeanors, with which the world-or,
at least, the Christian worlds Attic
ted. One chief cause we think we
have discovered.
The saying of Paul, to "spare the
rod and spoil the ehild,' has been, and
continues to be, productive of much
crime. The science of Phrenology
demonstrates that this precept is false
In philosophy, and the experience Of
the world proves that it is false in fact.
In every human Uranium, there are
chronological organs, commonly called
''bumps." By constantly exciting OF
exercising any one of these organs, it
developes to al undue size, and the
head becomes unbalanced. Thus, take
an infant and fog It for every trifling
offence, .aad the organ of destructive
ness Becomes excited and grows. Con-
-4nue this practice, and when the child
becomes a school-boy he is continually
quarreling and fighting with his mates,
and committing all sorts Of depreda-
tons in the neighborhood. For these
Observation-Disclosures because he
cannot do otherwise, on account of the
acquired overriding propensity,-the
parent, being afraid to "spoI the child"
by "sparing the rod" continues flag
COLLATION.. AS sure as Gods laws are
Interchangeable, that boy grows up des-
peradO-an assassin!
Now let us examine the manner pre-
scribed by our Christian laws for the
redemption of that unfortunate man.
He is examined by a Justice of the
Peace, and, without a decision as to
his guilt, lodged in cold, damp, un-
wholesome county Jail to await his trial.
He is convicted and sent for a term of
years to the State Prison, where he is
scorned by the keepers, visitors, and
even by his fellow criminals-where
charity and civil treatment are as rare
as mosquitoes in winter-and where
everything is admirably calculated to
increase his lamentable propensity to
destroy. These laws are enacted by a
protested Christian people, and to ad-
vocate the repeal of these monsters of
corruption and the tearing down OF
Prisons, will be likely to insure the
usual Christian epithets of ssmonoma-
MAC, "wild speculation" sintolerable
infdelity," and the like. But we are
prepared to jump into the breech, and
shall denounce the present systems of
Prisons as barbarous, demoralizinq,
DAMNABLE! To the precept of Paul
and to this system Of revenge, may
Justly be attributed much of the exist
ing crime.
s'Spare the rod and spoil the child, -
Is in conflict with Christ's golden rule {:
"Whatsoever we would that others
should do unto you, do we even so unto
Them" What! let the criminal 90
free, "unwhipt of JUSTICE" and thus af-
ford him chance to re-commit the
same crime? No; that's not exactly
our remedy. We propose to develope
that low, grovelling and selfish unfor-
tunate to high morality and spiritual
ity, by converting the prison houses in
to asylums of education-where mod
crate degree of manual labor will be
felt as pleasant diversion, instead of
an irksome punishment, thus engender-
ing love for activity-where the laws
of God as expressed in Nature are
taught-where he may learn that by
proper study and uprightness his phre-
biological organization may be changed
in seven or eight years, and he may vet
become one of the bright lights of the
age-where he will not feel that he is
forever lost to the affections of his fam
lily, friends and the Almighty, but where
ne will be taught to realize, and expe-
rlence the sweet sensation that we are
brothers all-children of the same Fa.
Their, and heirs to the same destiny
That criminal will then wake up to a
sense of his situation; he will perceive
that by strict attention to rectitude he
may yet wipe out the scars on his soul.
and become a reasonable unr;oht mo,