The prison mirror. [volume] (Stillwater, Minn.) 1887-1894, 1890-02-27
Five Gents.

Wnlle now can reaQ almost any music at
sight 1t has been, and still is an inexhaust-
IDLE source OF amusement to me; and in
stead of my hours of solitude weighing
heavily upon me. my only regret has been
that they were not twice as long. l have
faint idea that if were released. it would
prove no loss to lie. | love to think of the
evenings l would spend at home letting my
cello out as l cannot do here l could
never lose my interest in it: and l believe it
would exert a powerful influence toward
leading me to better course of life than l
have formerly pursued.
All prisoners cannot interest themselves
in music; but, happily there are numerous
arts and sciences that can be more quietly
pursued, and every man can find some one
suited to his tastes and inclinatiOns if he
will only search it out. How can he do
that? Electricity is becoming a very prom
inent science. and every young man ought
to investigate it; but every man might not
succeed ia becoming very deeply interested
in it; yet he may soon satisfy himself on
that point by reading it up little. He will
gain valuable information, at least, that
may be of use TO him sometime; and then
let him read up another and another until he
finds one that is specially interesting to him,
and that last will be the one for him to con-
centrate his energies upon, and if he finds
his interest is constantly increasing he is on
the road to usefulness. He will soon
learn that the best pleasures in the world do
not cluster in the fields where he may have
CLEANED in the past, and that have Welded
more thOrns than flowers. But the best of
it is. that when ones interest has become
fixed upon something really good and use
full, it will lead from one to another, and
soon he will realize that his tastes have un-
dergOne wonderful transformation. The
prisoner has an abundance of time for study
and self improvements; and he has some ad-
vantageS that he would not have even in the
world at large: and think it becomes us to
improve the opportunities we have. The
man who will spend three. five or ten years
in prison without making an etfOIt to i'm
prove himself, in any way, will not make a
desirable member in SOciety-SOciety has
no use for him.
There are none of us who desire to ter
inmate our existence in prison as criminals;
and we must get our minds out of the GRIM
inal ruts. The bitter and sad miscarriages
of so many of our comrades who only 60
from prison to return to criminal practices
should be warning to us who are hoping
for our release. Only last December a man
who was under long sentence to this
prison was pardOned. and i'm eight weeks
was arrested and is now held. charged with
NEST horrible murder, and his victim his
own brother: and in view of it can we Won
der or complain that society is not very
charitably disposed toward eX cOnvcts? At
this time. in Massachusetts. the voice of
public sentiment would seem to demand the
total abolition of the pardOning power.
There are fifty or more men in this prison
now, who can never be released except
through executive clemency; but the crime
of that one pardoned man has cast dark
shadow over our hopes that promises no
good. We must cease our complaints
against the unfrendlinesS of public opinion
towards us, and assume that we are our own
worst enemies until we have directed our
minds into channels that will make our
former paths seem lOathsOme to us, and
that will lead us to higher and better as
prations that are the only source of true
happiness. A..
Charleston Mass. Feb. 20, 1890.