The Portland daily press., 1882-02-10
A Rogues' Congress.
a Sketch from Reality by a Novelist.

George w. Gable, the Louisiana novelist
in his latest essay on prison reform, in the New
Orleans Times-Democrat, writes:
"In one of our large cities there is now In
session general assembly of rogues from all
parts OF the country, and from many foreign
lands. In this body may be seen representa-
tives of every vicious class: counterfeiters,
tramps, sneak thieves, house burners, stage
shoppers, town vagrants, murderers, poisoners,
common drunks, pickpockets, burglars, default
eTs, rayishers, embezzlers, wharf-rats, bandits
what you will
The excuse for the existence of this body is
the reduction of crimel Its meetings are held
daily from sunrise to sunset, in large pavef
court, shut out Fl ON the public eye ON every
side by a Gordon of lofty buildings. The total
of its delegates, in the three or four groups in
to which it is divided, often exceeds 300. The
order is only what might be expected. There
is no little congeniality among its members,
and their deliberations are, characterized by
some mirth and noise, which at certain inter-
walls rise into concerted howlings as signals for
the introduction of this or that business OF the
day. There are no desks, chairs or benches.
The members attend en- costume, and the dis
play of rags and tatters, and much noticeable
nakedness, is prominent feature. The stencil
of the place is another.
Without that show of method which deliber-
atiVe bodies commonly display, they yet ac-
complish all the ends of executive sessions,
committees, conferences, debates, personalities
and contests for the f1oor-or pavement The
head of this body is one of its own number,
chosen for his superlative strength and ferocity,
which qualities he uses to enforce his enlight-
ened ideas of decency and order. The gradu-
ates of this school, after years of training, vary
ing in length from five days all the way up to
numerous months, are sent out with their dip
Tomas written on their hearts and foreheads,
and are scattered broadcast in the streets and
hiding places of the city, among the towns and
a,F g. IL H.
highways and bypaths of other States, and in
to the darkest retreats OF vice in other cities
What business is concocted here is unknown to
law-abiding folk only inferentially, and each
present reader must be left to his individual
guessing powers; but it would be shorter work,
no doubt, to name the crimes not devised here,
provided there be at least one with which to
begin the enumeration. Like many other col
lective bodies its members come and go singly
or by installments, the whole number never
being all old or all new, and the analogy Is
continued in the fact that some of its members
go and come again repeatedly.
1t will be seen, then, that this institution
must be also school; public school sustained
at the expense of the city and State, boarded
and lodged by the one, and officered and guard
ed by the other. AS an establishment for the
acquisition of certain accomplishments, its ef-
fciency is very near perfection But what
State or city is it that can afford to allow itself
this hideous luxury?
1t is our own city of New Orleans, which, in
its parish prison, combines in one logues'
congress and a high school Of vice. If our par
ish prison were well-ordered house of deten-
ton, no prisoner would ever see the face of an
other. Our rogues' congress would be pro-
rogued sine die.
"Where is your prison yard?' said the pres
ent writer to the jailer in the central prison Of
a distant city.
"Prison yard?' The man coHld not under
stand. "Prison yard? What? A place for
prisoners to roam round and talk to each other
in, to concoct new villanies in, which will be
put into effect directly they are out to plan es-
capes, to stimulate each other with vicious
braggadocio, to communicate each others vices
and vicious arts each to all, to make a larger
gathering of law breakers than they would
dare attempt to make in state OF freedom-a
fouler den of vice than any that our police has
ever broken up? No, we have no prison
yard"
The visitor from New Orleans was tempted
but that was not the time and place to speak,
and for the honor of his town he remsined 81
lent-was tempted to say to the jailer:
Monsieur Jailer, you don't know every
thing. You've never seen the rogues' house OF
congress, down yonder. We have it divided
like this jail-into departments. You have
one wing for females, another for petty male
offenders, third for men under grayer
charges. We have four divisions. These have
nothing to do with the question Of the degree
of criminality involved in the charges. First,
we divide males and females, making two d.
visions; then we separate whites and blacks;
we are very particular about that, and that
makes four Each class has its gallery of cells
and its common yard. The cells stand open
all day. All ages, sometimes even down to
childhood, and all degrees of viciousness and
depravity and brutality-from a lad who has
stolen five dollars from carelessly kept till to
Bwarn ana cUmprf1dn tcgvrfrcr.- IN
yards, men strip naked in the open air at Will
and sonse themselves into a huge tank Of wa
ter. A captain of the yard, chosen for his
transcendent brutality, often the principal In
some horrible murder, holds sway over the
rest Prisoners are taken out every day,
brought into court, and acquitted of slf charges
against them, whose every moments expert
ence within its walls is brutal punishment TO
any but an utter beast"