The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1873-01-17
Prisons and Prisoners.
How TO TREAT OUR INDIANS.


in the Unitrd States We have not all
the facts as to their nativity; large per
centage arr of foreign birth hut a still
larger are of incorporate haiiis More
than SEVENTY five per cert Of the old and
Young are or were habitual users of to-
bacco About thirty per cent. cannot
read or write We have not statistics
showing the number of imhecilcs or Of
the insane 1t NAV he something less
than that of the criminal asses. II we
add the auper clement to the criminal
Dhpcile and insane, the number would,
DO do ht reach half a million or more
Til. n there are the wild wards" of the
nat or. the Indians, to be sustained or
pruvid d for by public charity Alta'
gether, this makes large annual draft
on the exchequrr of the lawns, counties,
>ir:.trs and the nation 1t behouves u to
inquire INTO the management of these in
trTests.
| What are the causes OF crime?
/ 2 What is being done for It's prrven>
ton
3 What is being done for the i'm
/ yrovcment of prisoners ?
C - safe to state that intemperance Is
! the cause. directly ur Indirectly, of most
! cri ses which are committed DI,sipa-
}
! lesves him an easy prey to t"mFtltion
/ IL brings bin to want. His children
! grow u, in ignorance, poyerty ani wee.
/ Being wi5ht ut the restraints of the clyli
,r moral Law, an outciist for whom no.
! hrdv cares the demands for food, c.O
! hing and shelter g"ad the poor creature
on unfi his Immediate necessities, kunW
lBg no law, lead to criminal actions.
/ some IntempeTate mrn, naturally kind,
amIable and well di>p sed, being cheated,
iuSuired, pushed or imposed upon, lose
/ their remnant ct spt-cUutTOl, and, wIth>
uut Thought Of { uSrqIruc CuWiult It
/ rash act, such "a striking blow, which
cansIgns them t. The T0mts a"s faces
teen among hartIeEed maleiactOrs
/ Th-uceinrth the stigma criminal ~
taches 10 their record Ihrre are utn"r
causes which could be 'amed, one OF
which Is a weak vill, morbid desire 20
possess that hich Is not ttede1, or Il
kind # Insane Impulse 10 aitrast atien>
ton by some TauLr act.
m0ng ireverti4-s If crime may be
ramaJ heaithy -eHeragioi, through nOr-
mai and wells rds ID Iareu5age, right
training in chiidhood, t-mp crate aud IN
duerTIp'!s habI-. eISiuus Influences.
DAILY drvo.ious, useful ,ur-dIt- and right
Hving iHo~e w.n would Improve them-
selves should stop the use Of alcoholic
liquors, tobacco, gambIin4, wild sPrcu!a
ton, etc, or whatever impr"pTlety they
may practice When a man learns mis-
natural T. ndencies to excess in any one
direction, whether il be through apr elite,
avariUe, usefulness or p Ide, he viii, Il
sensible, set about correcting them. Let
him examine himself ~ phreustoglcai
a t.rr-
tn l"ose screws ia hIs Oh .racter e and
how TO tighten them.
How TO TREAT PRI-oNE
The general method is to 'pur ish, "
keeping in view tile old ducfrine, "A "A
eye for al, eve, and tooth for toOtl,
which has in itmuch OF the elem mt of
revenge This is unphiosopnical IN
scientific uacHri~tian, unsuccessful, and
even bi,rbarous. Restraint is one thing
revenge is quite another. According e
present modes of treatment in most Of
tie prisons of tins country, no though,
is given to the imprOs emcnt, f C.e Grim
inal. He Is TO he subdued, broken d,Sr
in spirit, ign minIousiy punished. Thar
is tie uenaifv iur his al me tGe Object
of his mprisrnm-n A lew y-ar's in
carcer4uOa in me dismal dungeon, with
Il limited supply Of air, f,ud au1 Ii ght
and ii cherries, hop less era "a un ,Un
day, witn plenty Of hard wurk curing
the week, with occasional HO2gin@s Oh
ether punishment, constitute the experls
, ence of most convicts \ few musty old
books may be available, so, also, a fey
religious tracts tre ating on the exceeding
siufuinesS OF SIT, and, In some Cases, Z
few religious children's papers may be
Z
papers, educational journals, and cur. nj
scientific, and soand religious hteratur
are not supplied. The outside orld-
intelligent and ylrtunu men aud women
who need these agencies for personal IN
prov ment much less than the poor prs
> oners-Is literally supplied with them
In many instances our prison keepers are
low, brutal creatures, witbout sympathy
without friendship, aud without those
high moral qua7iEies 50 necessary to iu-
spIre higher aims In prisoners
W'at Is wanted, and what is imrera.
lively demanded. l. Il complete change
IN the vhuie ~ stem. The aim of tn;
! authorities should be, fist, to place
, restraint ;ui such persons a abase thail
liberty and rru der themselves unwIrth y
? of it Then to put such p r~ou~ Uudel
sucF Il course OF training discipline an
education as Will b. best calculated Il
cal out latent faculties and to restrain
those excessively developed 10 .earf
HIM Sc t control >hnui be- the true rhi-c
, Of dI~ci,.iine Iii services Shuuii 60 to-
ward detrayln- the *. eusrs Of hIs keep,
4 ing, teaching, ard training The ide;
OF punishment 81, uld MT inter- into th-
calculation. The am should he rn ma k,
good citizens of thos who are. sooner Oh
later, to he thrown into society t. ran"a
Fhe crimes or to live U~efu', virtunu
lives
Unless our hristian religion b., al F.,
mistake, man NAV repent, be forgive n
and b. saved SupIu-iu. Is tour u
rhoriti~~) =, "uli act upon this prinripi,
iowa our prisoners ami at east gtlvI
them Il Chance 10 repent. and hen iuunt
WORTHY F@-tor~ them to ciyilizlr..u aut
2 citizen ship W would have all prIs ms
ia'Is, ami .sviam~ converted intn school
and reform tories Prisoners Should b.
formed into classes and instructed rs Il
common -choo's hey shorld have
dairy lectures % useful aud int-resrin.
; subjects At least tYp hours or ,0re
day sIio It'd b= given to "du,.l-ionaI inter,
e~ts Under such Influences even tn
supposed incnrri.lbls- wnu becuin sub
Uissive, and begin 70 improve
" - d" not uhierJ to the e~tabiiSh,u -rf
of penal coloui-s say in 4 las<a, for ~uci
a. NAV not WELD t. kindly influences, ara,
there be required To work out their so.
: fences
OUR INDIANS
We have maize cit zens of negroes
> why not o. Indians? Brought nnda
) civil law. t.suahs agriculture asd the in
dustrlal arts, they would, in time, bacom,
: seiISuppurting Nav, more tha8 tai-
~ mid a a.. III