St. Paul daily globe., 1885-12-11
PRISON REFORM.
DIR. Dana's Discussion of the Ques'
ton Before knights of Labor.

DR. Dnua,s Discussion of the QueS-
ton Before knights of Labor.
Addresses on the subject of prison re-
form were delivered before the Knights OF
Labor last evening by the Rev. DR.. Dana
and Secretary Hart of the state board OF
corrections and charities. Secretary Harris
paper was substantially the same as the one
read before labor assembly in Minneapo-
. lis short time ago. DR.. Dana spoke first,
giving many valuable facts and figures on
the subject of the evening. He said sub
stantially:
( No class should have q deeper interest in
! prison reform than the one you belong to.
j On the score of humanity you are bound to
! compassionate the man who through stress OF
! temptation has gone wrong, and as brethren
! interested in securing for every man fair
/ chance in life and in befriending him when
in need, you ought to be interested in reform
ling him if he may have committed criminal
/ ofense. The increase of crime IS what IN
! vests the subject with such grave import
J ance. Every criminal that preys on society
; disorders and impoverishes it, and augments
the burdens of the honest and industrious.
I'm 1850 there were in the United States 6,I3T
Iprisone1s, or one out of every 3,442 OF the
population. This proportion 20 rapidly sla
increased until in 1880 there were 59,25S, or
tone out of every S37 of the population.
THE proportion of criminals was thus more
than ouadrupled. This is an alarming state
of affairs, and one for which our prison
methods and criminal laws are mainly respon-
sible. There are now in the country 10,595
prisoners and over 100000 discharged GRIM
inals. 1t is only with the former thatwe can
deal. These prisoners are confined at an an
nual cost of S452, 900, which is direct
criminal tax on the people, and every labor
ing man pays his share to keep behind the
bars his erring brother. An analysis of these
Of
hopeful and dscouraging features in their
career and the basis for
AN IMPROVED METHOD
of dealing with them. We find 10 per cent.
to be professionals and 25 per cent. habituals,
leaving 65 per cent. who, if properly
years. could be reclaimed or saved.
Put majority of these back into society;
honest men with homes and children, lovingly
cared for, with their productive industry
augmenting the community wealth, who will
not say that it is something worth striving
for and something OF immense economic and
moral Importance.
We are thirty years behind England and
ireland in our prison system, and besides, are
Handicapped by the short terms of prison
tofficials political interference and the con-
tract system with the prison rings, all of
(which tends to prevent the adoption in its en-
tirety of the Crofton or Irish system, the re-
sults of which have been so astonishing in
Great Britain. There are 4,726 fewer crimi-
mails sentenced annually in Great Britain
than would be under our system.
There are 1886 men and women
In England and Wales, supporting
themselves by honest industry in conse-
Quence of prison reform, who would other
wise be incarcerated under sentence for
crime. In England all prisoners awaiting
trial are confined in separate cells and kept
from contact with convicted criminals. In
this country this separation is not main
tanned and our county jails are little more
than compulsory schools of crime. This is a
reproach to our Christian civilization. And
right here, where we have a conspicuous in
stance of such school in our county JAIL
the interviewing of citizens failed to bring
out any sentiment favorable to the erection
of new jail or the ending of a system that
simply perpetuates and augmentS the stream
of crime iu our community.
When the labor associations Of the country
understand the matter and unite in demand
ing, in the interests of humanity and econ
Omy, better prison system, there will be
initiated the reform so imperative. The poll
tician whose idea of a jail is money making
Institution, or a tool for political ring to
Use will be then shorn of his influence man.
hood-making will then be made the para
mount end, and the antagonism with free
! labor be absolutely avoided.
A REFoRMAToRY FOR MINNESOTA.
The practical question for you to help set
tie is. whether the projected second prison
for this state shall be of the regulation pat
tern, situated on stone quarry for the bene-
tit of some locality and to be run for the
emolument of some ring of contractors,
shall it be reformatory en-
bodyiug the tested and fruitful
( features of the country's model institution at
/ Elmira, N. Y. Here instead of so per cent.
/, going out confirmed criminals, so to 81 per
i cent. are sent forth reformed men. 1t ap-
peals to hope the last instinct to die out of
! the human heart, and its main purpose is
Misunderstanding. 1t adopts the main feat
ures of the Crofton system-grading of pris-
oners masks, conditional release and inde-
terminate sentence. To this reformatory are
sentenced only first offenders from the ages
of Is to 81. Now is Minnesota's opportunity
to take great step in advance.