Morning journal and courier., 1884-01-16
.RREAKINa sroNE.n

The proposed meeting in reference to ming at the Town Agents office. It seems to have been agreed on all hands that the pfes- ent method of dealing with drunkards has been an entire failure. Judge Deming said that during the three years of his connection with the City court there had been two thousand cases of conviction for this offence per annum and there was no reform. And yet, singularly enough, the workhouse seems to have been advocated because the present punishment is not severe enough, or, rather, is no punishment at all. Judge Deming is reported as saying, "As for myself I would put these persons upon East Rock. for in- stance, and have them break stone enough to macadamize all the roads leading out of the city. would have them work so hard that they would remain away from court. Judge Wayland said that the present short sentence dealt to the drunkard was no pun ishment and was worse than no punishment. He thought the suggestions that the druAkard be put to stone breaking and road building were good. And Mir. Sargent complained that the jail-birds in the city had been given plenty of music, flowers, and Christmas and Thanksgiving dinners, and characterized these acts of Christian charity and pity as ''too much gush.' This is certainly rather pecu- liar language for gentlemen who have met to
 gether to discuss the establishment not of Q prison, but of a reformatory ins' tuition. And we are not a little surprised to find, on further reading the published reports of the aIo EI,.k the idler or the vagabond was criminal, but that on the other hand the drunkard was not . criminal, as drunkenness was disease, and that the greater number of drunkards were men who worked through the week and then spent their wages for rum, and that in the higher walks Of life men got drunk deliber- ately; and that Judge Wayland seemed to have agreed that drunkenness was either 8 disease or 8 misdsmeanor. Now if drunkenness is a disease we should like to ask these gentlemen how 1t is going to be cured by punishment, or how it is a pro. per subject for punishment at all. The ar Rumsnt seems to be, punishment has utterly failed so far, therefore let us have more pun ishment. It is of no use to send drunkards to jail, SO let us set them to breaking stone, let as compel them to break stone enough to macAdamize all the roads that lead out of New Haven The drunkard is not criminal, but let us deal with him as if he were felon. Breaking stone is one of the old-fashioned employments of the worst sort of felons. The quarries and the mines, these are trus Siberian methods of reformation. In prisons and penal colonies all over the world "hard labor'' is the lot not of those who have been found guilty of petty ofsnses and misdemean- ors, but of those who have bsen convicted of high crimes This will perhaps be considered as eush, but there is certainly no gush about
 breaking stone. No one is likely to be ac- cused of an overflow of pity who recommends that gentle mode of reform.
 Judge Deming is quite right in saying that drunkards are not criminals as rule. Drunk enness is often the result of an inherited ten deucy. and most often of all, of vicious sur roundings in early life, and generally of keep ing bad company. The great hope of reforming a drunkard lies in what little sslf-respeet he has left. Keep him out of the reach of rum, set him to work by all means, but at work which is fit for man who is not 8 criminal. and not ct that kind of work which is in it self the badge of the lowest sort of viilainy. It is certainly not likely to reform him. tc issarp out the last spark of self respect that q left him, to make him feel that he is treat ed as if he were Q felon- Suppose. for in stance. a, bank clerk, young physfeian, 8 bookkeeper or an in teslioent mechanic becomes drunkard,
 is forcing him to break, stone likely method of making him a man again2 The
 workhouse will fail just as the jail has failed,
 if iG is to be organized on the breaking stone theory. It wonld be quite as we'll to send the drunkard to the State prison at once. Ii shs workheuse is to succeed it will not be ] a prison but as reformatoEy institution,