St. Paul daily globe., 1890-01-30
THE STATE PRISON.
Those Behind Its Wall Not All
Criminals.


Criminals.
To the Editor of the Globe.
Now that the consideration of how
best to reform the criminal is occupying
he minds of some of the leading citi-
zens of this state, take the liberty of
offering through the medium of your in
fluential and widely circulated paper
one or two suggestions on this important
subject, which, trust, may be taken
up and acted upon by those whose duty
1t is to carry into effect the means by
which the convict can be made de-
serving member Of society. Many peo-
pie in the outside world look upon the
inmates of a criminal institution as e
class of individuals utterly beyond the
reach of every Christian influence. aban.
dOned as it were to their own animal
passions, possessed of no thought but
the destruction physically and finan-
cially of their fellow man. and who but
await, like the chained CANNES, the
scent of liberty to run down and destroy
every element of well-organiZed society
that may come within their track.
They would sooner think of death
without preparation than going within
sight of the prison walls, without a
cooked revolver at easy grasp, and
stand amazed when they look upon a
man dressed in conyict's garb and be-
hold him in possession of the features
and form of human being. There
never existed such mistaken idea, and
it seems more than passing strange that
such an idea should be so prevalent i'm
our midst. Convicts, as rule, are not
bad men. Taking the inmates of tho
state prison at Saltwater for illustration,
L say, with full knowledge of the facts
OF which L write, that fully 40 per cent
of them are not criminals by nature, but
have been carried away by some sad
and unfortunate circumstance that fell
across their pathway to impede their
onward honorable and honest course of
life.
To treat such men, then, in an inhu
man or brutal manner is not only un-
fair, but has a strong tendency to de-
velop anything and everything bad
within them, and to make them what
they have no inclination to be-hard-
hearted and unworthy members of So
ciety; for it is human nature to rebel
against Injustice. OF course. I admib
that there are large number of the In
mates of the state prison whose course
of life has been anything but an honest
one, and would again, if they but got
the chance, stray away into their old
pathways of sin and vice; but will strict
discipline, carried TO the verge of bru.
tality, reform them? I answer en-
phatically, Never. 1t has been tried to
an alarming extent in the institution Of
which L write, and found to be miserable
failure. Men have been hung up by the
wrists for days for the most trivial
breaches of so-called discipline; have
been flung into pestilential dungeons.
through whose walls not one ray of
Gods sunlight ever strays; have been
fed, or rather starved, on food unfit to
be presented to the dogs that proWl our
highways: in word, have been subject
to treatment that would bring the blush
OF shame to every man of thought or hu.
manity in the state.
But. happily, not only for the poor,un-
fortunate convict. but also for the well
being OF society, new era has dawned
upon the administration of our state
criminal institution. The present war;
den, Hon. j. j. Randall, has inaugu-
rated system of management that will
result, in my opinion, in an incalcu-
liable amount of good. He mas closed up
the dungeon doors, pulled down the
hanging rack, furnished food and
knowledge that will largely tend to
the physical and moral advancement of
the unfortuuateS under his care. and
has given them to understand that there
yet remains large streak of Christian
sympathy in the minds and hearts of
the people of Minnesota, and that he is
there to verify it. Go amongst them
to-day on any of their holidays. when the
freedom of the building is given them,
and what a change does person
witneSs-instead of the Indian whoop
sufficient to frighten the life out of one,
when the doors would be thrown open
In past strict discipline days, citizens of
both sexes cOmmingle and converse
with men whose gentlemanly bearing
and many eDnObliDg virtues would bring
the blush of shame to many of our
most advanced members of society.
Thus say that kindness and kind treat
ment will do more to trample under foot
crime in our midst than all the stringent
measures of state legislatures, all the
harsh treatment of hard-hearted and
cruel men, and all the unworthy, mis-
leading and unfair criticisms of fitless
state aid officers of statistical notorietv.
from whom one would expect better,
could possibly do from now until the
crack of doom.
For the further advancement of the
good cause OF the convicts' future, and
for the purpose of giving the hardened
ones among them an opportunity to
present, develop and maintain anything
good within them, l would respectfully
suggest to the states board of prison
managers and the present excellent
warden the adyiSability of bringing into
effect that system of grading which
some time ago was fathered by that ex-
cellent member of the board, Hon. John
f. Norrish. Let there be two classes
three, in my opinion, are un-
necessary, first and second; have
the first those whose good conduct
requires no supervision (and am glad
to say of these there are many dressed
in grey, and the second, or the ir1epres,
sible ones, in stripes or red, the dietary
to be arranged correspondingly. Let
newcomers be dressed in grey, on the
principle that man is innocent until
he is proved guilty. Place the tempting
bunch of grapes high up in the tree and
give all to understand that it can only
be touched by the ladder of good con-
duct. Thus healthy rivalry will be
created which will largely rebound to
the unfortunate conyict's future bene-
fit. He will learn the advantages of
avoiding evil and doing good; will pre-
pare him to successfully combat the
trials and temptations of the world out
side when next he enters the battlefield
OF life. and AID him to accomplish the
only end and aim of mana prosperous
here and happy hereafter.
A