New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-05-10
TOWARD PRISON REFORM.
THE rAssErT BILL PASSED BY THE STATE
SENATE BY 20 TO o.
IMPORTANT AMENDMENTS. ApDED-AR PAs
SETS ABLE sPEEcH-PoINTs OF
THE MEAsuRE.

IMPORTANT AMENDMENTS ApDED-MR BAS
SETS ABLE sPEEcH-PoINTs OF
THE MEASURE
fFaos THE REouLLR CORRESPONDENT OF TEE TKlsuNh .
Albany, May s.--The bill drawn by senator FasseH
,han,tnc ,ha nr,son system OF the state from the
present plan TO q moro humane and mtoihssht sno
oasaad r.e Senate this morning. The Dill was 0Hsr
haly introduced in the Senate by Mr. fasseVh Huue
the discussion Of the amendments to the ia'cs law ~
the Assembly Asscmblym&n Bush snnsuto1o Sens.or
Fasaetps BIZ, for that Of Judge Yates. The peeuhE
sr,.oes ., the provisions in the Fassett bill over
the Yates law were quickly seen BY large majority
Of TIA members or the Assembly, and, with iew
amendments 10 passed that house when came oVer
IA tho senste It was substituted for Senator taSeVs
original bpL then the order OF third reading, ana
was made special order for this mornings session
Tbe snIy objections TO the bill, Senator Fassete
sought 10 amend It, eamo from few Democrats
0.h.-. ~ the Senate who care more for the sppro-
aton of proes siona labor leaders than for the best
tpterests OF the great laborng public Senator crazy
early In the reading Of the bill, took exception TO inc
manner In which the clerks OF tho prisons arc 70 10
controlled He would prefer leaving them absolutely
free from all regulation or rule IN fact, allowing
them to do about as they pleased. His excuse Tor ms
was that under any other condition the eierks would
be more or less under tho control Of what he was
pleased TO term the Prison Ring He even went so
far as 10 charge Senator Fassett with trying 10 Nss
lato In the interests OF a Prison Ring. In 'ow
words Senator Fassett showed how utterly weak was
Senator Grady's position, and added that uo en1lso
was an Infamous one. Grady also wanted the olerS
anpclnted solely on the recommendation OF the war
dons of the prisons Senator Linson, who had takon
some mart In the discussion Of the BILL thought tha'
This came from Senator Fassett He started Oh ID an
extremely ferocious manner 10 show mat tnS aenu
msnt was unconstitutional and continued unui NO
was Informed that Senator Fassett was not the Auhor
-
The section was amended so that the CLERK OF can
prssn s 10 reside regularly within one nils OF saa
prison. ana 10 perform his duties AZ ProscriO"u W '
Controller, IN accordance with law
Tn. important amendment which Senator Fassee
made was In the regulation OF the number OF prsouels
20 be employed at time III any particular orAhen
OF marutaSt1tre As the bill came from the Assembly
srIsons roformatories, and penal institutions "erO
nnited 10 100 which number not to be moro than
ran er cent Of the number employed In each particular
branch "a manufacture in the STATE This was changed
| 30 TINT only Eve per cent OF the tots nuhoef Vi
persons employed elsewhere In the stae can DC pu'
10 work at prison labor. There are no" oVoi NV
men confined in the prisons refornstortes ana penal
| institutions of the State Tkhs yppdft1 Ne assembly
hin would mean that at least ketSnt Kinds
| a. ann.oyment would have 30 DO used TO Asep INC
or,sopers at work II would also compel branching
out into over ATTY branches OF manufacture Win WhSh
| the state prisons have never been in eompohaon
when the real workingmen understand this' they VIII
| annreoIate tho value OF senator Fassetrs IDEAS
| Tho roll was being called on the nhs' passage VI
| tho hin before tbero was any Opposition 70 u'S
| chance By this time, however, number Oh Pio-
sss,ona labor strikers grouped aio'Sd the uoO
AZ the senate Chamber, shaking their hands hre''"n
| ipgly at some Of the Senators, a tew Oh "nO'n ,
thus induced to change their votes The oniy hePu'
| Bean negative vote was that OF senator hu'seh,
| : e.,.,or s,n., offered an amendment, which was
| .dnn,o8 eompslling the Controller TO send ahAu~iS
:, The isa,sIature detailed statement OF the money
| oxpenaed and received by the prisons
! whtle explaining his vote, Senator Fasset msao
an excellent speech in support OF his measure no
| said in part:
~, p,asasnt: It fl probably impossible foI The Wis
Sr.n ,n,aIlects to devise methods OF dealing win
~ ,D,raI and the unfortunate elssses that shall De-
nnbar tina conditions Of modern society. aosoiu'sS ~
factory 70 all glasses. but OF this We may W Nr
| sured that my system which does wrong ' -
| n,u,, which iniures society at large is IN
| '.io,,s IN avery class IN sOeleyi ana the sou'
! rou Of the prson problem can never hope y
| be solved by adopting measures which nave ue .~'s
the mas, and look back the time when prisons "0'o
| conducted upon the theories Of inc AoS"' Law -
| for m ere and q tooth for tooth , -
From the old doctrine Of retaliation ana personal p"
shsnt we have advanced the doctrine Of the protsC
,on Of society through the reformation Of the cfnna
ana his detenton within solid walls where he cannon "'A
| injury upon society case he viii not reform
This till proposes TO impress npoh inc priS, y 80
n, the state some reform features Whieh hA'9 Vo
tried for ten years the Reformatofy in Efs' ~''
:, ,,a ,eatnres that have been tried In other reform
institutions Of this county and Europe and THIS tae
Itsef Is more eloquent THIN all oatons that eouu "
incurred out upon subject. that OF the OOJh
from custody at Elmra IS per cent 90 noS resume cr
Ho,,eve that tho great body OF conservative inteih
cent aborlng men-not the professional LABOR 'e'otu'
nut laboring who are studying INC greN' p'o'',
Of social life. perhaps more carefully ana "Vsk"'
than We are oursevesI believe that su n men Recognize
,he merit O, the measure proposed by this bill Fro
thai fact and 20 that fact attribute the singular iae
| that sweeping up and down the lines OF Journalism
| thfa State embracing all shsdes OF political beel AM
social doctrine from every quarter almost wteou' eA
| .n,,or have come cries Of approval Of the yariou
methods now initiated and placed upon the eRre pfso
system as proposed by this bill Most OF the opposluO
70 the bill been based upon the idea that man one
convicted Of felony has forfeited the right 70
| rogsr.ed by his fellow men 4 moral SOUL clothed VIII
Hesh.
rear ago was criticised for forgetting the tgsne
and the struggles. and the desires and the ambitious
the great working Of The STATE in my sympatb!
for the prisoner. desire repudiste such con
trolling force You misuse abouSe tho humbes
or the yRess prisoner without having the reaction felt
| all the different tamieessons Of society
what have donef We have arranged prisoner
into three classes grades have eonceded 10 III
aeorins people far such things shail kee
them busy they shall supply the staple articles for tn
oeeupants Of the institutions OF the State We hay
provided for On ndoterminae sehtcpce that man sba
be released only when he has given some evidence tina
he Is ny 70 released We have established dineren
system Of keeping accounts and requiring repoftsi an
above al we have Given the prisOners something to do
we have guarded st every against injustice
too extended a competition with free labor on The ou
side-aiways remembering that wherever man lssof'
insids or outside his labor In competition wit
every other m4d who ia lsbOrng in the sams direoto
II End upon the same material
!, THIS was tina vote by which tho bin was passed
:, Yezs-Msssrs Arnold. Coggeshall, Desne, Erwin
fassett, HAWKINS, Hendricks, Ives, Kellogg Lewis
!, Iaughln, 1icEanghton o'Connor, Robertson, sloar
tst.aIar aweet, yedder walker, Ward and Worth-2l
, Nays-Messrs Cantor, Collins, Foley, Grady, Lana
tain Ifpsor Murphy, Pierce and Russen-p =,
r. conference committee Of the Senate and Assemol
viii be appointed 10 settle the points apon which N
0 two bodies arc at variance
;.,...,,,,,.,.e, fr anTII tJoFIeES At Albany