The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1880-03-17
A NEW RHYME ron TROPHY.

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Aworkingman on Prison Labor.
From the Philadelphia Weekly Notes. s..5 I..I
We ask attention to the following state
ment Of a workingman's view Of the sub
Iject. II is written by a working printer,
James Beale, OF Boston. He writes in
acknowledging the receipt Of apamphlet
advocating trade education for theinmates
Of the House Of Refugee: 81 have no sym
pathy with anything tending to formally
establish guilds and classes in society:
hence any so.called workingmens move
ments view with great suspicion. Sun.
dry apothegms, such as all toll is honor
able ETC., are freely granted; everybody
Ia some way works, but some classes are
not absolutely dependent on their labor
for an income, or have more and great
or opportunities for realizing profit. To
this class II matters little whether the
criminal classes learn trades or not;
there is no competition for them to fear,
Butte Us who are dependent on what We
can earn for the means OF living, It makes
a vast difference. l will illustrate by
cases OF my personal knowledge. Here in
Boston our juvenile offenders are sent to
Deer Island during their minority. There,
among other things, they learn the print
ing business, which is oyer.supplied al.
ready. Every little while a delegation
from Deer Island return tothe city, their
time having expired. They seek work,
are willing to accept q reduced ratio Of
wagee; down come ours to correspond.
This Is unfair to us. AT Concord, in the
State prison, the hat, boot and shoe and
gilder's trades have been taught with
the same damaging effect. know q
firm Of gilders who contracted for
prison labor, and then gave their opera
tiyes the alternative, either TO work at
this greatly reduced rate or not work
at all. Now the criminal has just asmuch
right to live as we honest men have; but
he has no right, Just because he has sin
ned, to ask US to help him pay hepenaIty.
Think OF the moral Of the workshop where
these birds OF evil are admitted. While
I admit all the percentage tables that ever
were drafted, fully appreciate the kindly
shirt that actuates the philanthropist, and
say God speed to anything that will
HlIeVilLB buueIlub hhu PlVNoho "l"St
cannot afford to have 1t done at my ex-
pense. On general principles, believe
that once criminal, always 80; such men
work at the trades they have learned,
only long enough to damage the
business for honest people. There
are two sides to everything. The
other side OF this is that ii the
prisons are not -self-supporting, 1t means
increased prison expenditure; and that
means increased taxation, and that even
tually comes out OF the workingman IN
the way Of added cost TO all his purchases:
But then It is more widely distributed and q
| is not so great alburden. My, Ideals, Sc:
lect some hard, laborious calling, lbrand!
that as infamous; and make prisoners work
at it; but we do not bring prison, lebori In;
| to competition-with,the labor OF the pe.oor
pie who try to keep outside prison walls.
Even il thislis a. one-sided view OF: the
question, stiilitneeds looking alter. The
boot and shoe makers are just hanging on
| to lie solely because they are compelled
| to compete with this kind Of labor: II Is
not fair and ohehtto be remedied," y