The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1888-08-08
American Prisoners.

American Prisoners.
At the convention of the National
Prison Association, held in Boston,
Rev. Fred II. Wines, the secretary of
the association, who was special agent
in charge of the collection of statistics
of the dependent, delinquent and de-
fective classes for the tenth census,
presents valuable draught of his work
in that direction so far as it could be
done from defective records. He urged
that better criminal records were, for
this country, a governmental necessity.
From the figures it appears that, for
the year ending June |, 1880, the num-
Der of prisoners was $500, not includ-
ing inmates of reformatory institutions
for juvenile delinquents, whose num-
Der was II ,46S, making a total of 70, III.
OF the $500 prisoners, properly So
called, the number in penitentiaries
was 30,659; in warehouses; and houses
of correction, 1866; in county jails,
1861; in city prisons, $3.50; in military
prisons, 400; in hospitals for the insane,
$50; leased out to private parties, $40.
The population of the United States
is divided in the census into what
are technically known as "the six ele-
ments" of population, namely: The
native whites, male and female; the
foreign born whites, male and female;
and the colored Gncluding Chinese,
Japanese and civilized Indians), male
and female. Following this analysis
the number of native white male pris-
oners was % ,04S: female, los; foreign
born white, male, 10 ,056; female, 2 ,049;
colored, male, $500; female, 1,24S.
BY combining these figures the num-
Der of male prisoners is SO COG; female,
5,005; native, As, S02; foreign born, 12,-
S07; white, Al SCI; colored, 16,74S.
The ratio of prisoners to the total
population of the country is one to every
S55 inhabitants, 1859 to the million
cool 1867. Other ratios in order, from
highest to lowest, are: Colored prison
ers to colored population, to 4O3, or
.002 ,4S0; male, l to 476, or .002 ,101;
tive, to $40, or .001 ,054; white, to
l ,036, or ZOO, 1854; female, to 4, 1922, or
900, 2O3.
During the ten years ending 1880,
there was a great increase in the num-
Der of prisoners relatively to the popu-
lation. In 1870 the ratio of prisoners
to the population was only ZOO, S53.
But much of it is due to improved
methods and greater care in taking the
census. Still it represents real in
crease, either in the amount of crime
committed or in the amount of punish
ment inflicted, for the prison popula-
ton has been progressive since the
year 1850 when the census showed a
percentage of 900, 200; but, in 1860,
.000,607. The percentage of foreign
born prisoners, as compared with that
of natives, is now a little less than
double, but in 1850 it was more than
five times that of native prisoners.
The emigrants now coming in may av-
erage even better than thirty years ago.
The truism that cities attract GRIM
inals and breed crime derives additional
confirmation from the fact that the
thirty-two cities of this country whose
inhabitants number over $4,000 have
: 19,413 prisoners in an aggregate popu-
lation of 7 ,l5S, S27, a ratio of to 1913,
or .002, G77-two and one-fourth times
as great as in the country at large.
The crimes charged against native
prisoners number AZ 1876; against for
eigners, II ,034. The ratio of foreign
born prisoners to the foreign born pop
ulation is very nearly double that of
native prisoners to the native pOpula-
ton. About one-fifth of all the crime
punishable by Imprisonment is charge
able to the foreign born. The foreign
population is to the native white popu-
lation as 2 to II; but foreign crime
/ is to that committed by native whites
as to 8. But the crimes against the
, person committed by foreigners, when
compared with those committed by ma
) tive whites, are very nearly as to 8
: OF crimes against property the ratio is
: about 2 to T. But in the matter of of
- fences against society mOst of which
. are only quasi-criminal in their char
acter), the ratio is little more than
to 81. In other words, foreign disre
3 gard for law shows itself far more il
immortality and disorder than it does in
dishonesty or violence. Nevertheless
the fact remains that the foreign-borr
do commit more than their share o.
crimes.
: The number of long-term prisoners
s who belong to the negro race is more
a than double that of the foreigners
s although the number of foreigners anC
: of negroes in the United States is very
= nearly equal The two together furnish
very nearly as many prisoners of thi
e grade as the total native white popula
t ton. The number of juvenile delin
s quents returned in the census is II ,46S
C of whom {, 1858 are boys and 2,2l0 arr
n girls; 0,46l are natives and / ,007 arr
e foreign born; 10,220 are white ant
= l PAS are colored. The leasing o
e prisoners to private parties for pc
a cuniary consideration, as is done chief,
|, with negro convicts in the southern
states, is strongly disapproved as al
g abdication of responsibility by the gov
|. eminent. Their condition, for thu
\ greater part, is deplorable, especially il
n the county chain gangs. 1t is urged il
o eXtenuation of the practice that thes,