The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-01-07
PrOfessiOnnI Criminals.

The rapid increase of crime, the difficulty
OF bringing criminals to punishment, and the
facility with which they too often manage to
escape the full penalty Of the law even after
conviction, are matters that demand serious
attention from the law abiding portion of the
community; and 1t is of the first Importance to
consider whether some means cannot be de-
vised for the better protection of society. We
have before US the first number of The Probe,
which DR.. Joseph Parrish proposes to issue
quarterly from the Sanatarium at Media. A
variety Of interesting subjects relating to the
use and abuse OF stimulants are treated Of 10
manner to command general attention. An
article on professional criminals and their
relation to the State appears to us to contain
some ideas that are particularly worthy
of consideration. The same subject is also
discussed in a recent number of the Pail Mall
GGzette; but, while agreeing with DR.. Parrish
as to the main facts OF the case, the English
writer offers the least practical solution of the
difficulty; and he indeed confesses that he has
no idea that his suggestions will be adopted.
The article in the Pail Mall Gazette proposes
that every person shall be obliged, whenever
required by the police authorities, to give an
account of his or her occupation, and other
particulars, and that those who have no visi-
BILE means of support or local habitation shall
be considered as actual or prospective crimt-
mails: that they shall be obliged to labor on the
public works if they can find no other employ
ment; and those hardened criminals who
refuse to work and who cannot be expected to
reform, it is proposed to put out of the way by
sending them to the gallows, in the hope that
a few terrible examples will deter others from
initiating them. This is the gist of the entire
argument; but if the police surveillance which
it necessitates would be intolerable in Eng
land, it would be much more SO in the United
States, and with regard to the remedy which
is proposed for extreme cases, the ineficiency
Of hanging for crimes less than murder, at
least, has been amply proved by experience.
DR.. Parrish suggests that the punishment
for crime should be so severe that those who
are disposed to offend will be deferred by
dread of the consequences; and, above all,
that the punishment should be certain. 1t
ought not to be within the power OF the Dis
trict Attorney to decide whether persons
ishment or not. In this matter at least there
is room for decided reform. Dr.. Parrish
contends that our present prison system is
defective, that Imprisonment is too little of
hardship, and that in improving upon the
old system we have rather gone to the other
extreme, and Chat in the United States
to be a prisoner has become luxury,
and the career of a criminal has been rendered
by the Government safe, profitable, and even
agreeable to him. ga prisoners ration" he
says, 'tcosts from 81 to 40 cents per day,
which is considerably more than that of
soldier in the army His bed is better than
the soldiers; his tolls far less onerous; his
pay in some constructions is greater" We
doubt, however, whether this will hold true
except in the case of a few institutions like
our Eastern Penitentiary, and in the majority
of our prisons there is still ample room tor
improvement. The convicted criminal is enti-
tied to wholesome food and to accommodations
which will conduce to health and cleanliness.
The imprisonment, however, ought to be
something more than a seolusion from society;
and if it were well understood that real
hardships attended it, the results in prevent
ing the commission of crime would be much
more eficacious. With regard to the large
and increasing class of persons who prey upon
the community, we think that some strenuous
measures should be adopted; and we have
seen no better suggestion than that made by
DR.. Parrish, that every person convicted a
third time for inferior offenses and a second
time for any higher offense than larceny,
should be pronounced professional criminal,
and that he should thereupon be imprisoned
for life without faculty of pardon.
The Governor in his annual message gives
some idea of the difficulties under which he
labors with regard to the proper exercise OF
the pardenipg power, and we think the power
might with propriety be limited in the man
ner proposed. Let criminals understand that
Imprisonment is real punishment that they
have good reason to dread, and that after they
have so conducted themselves that there is no
reasonable hope of reformation, no plea for
mercy will prevail; aud it is possible that many
will be forced to come to the conclusion that
honesty is the best policy"
The FranIxinE Abuses.
STILL another abuse of the franking privilege