The prison mirror. [volume] (Stillwater, Minn.) 1887-1894, 1892-11-03

These opinions have gained very little foothold
in our country although fantastic English writ
err who probably understands the prison prob
lem in his own country better than ours, has al
legged recently that it is the prevalence of these
Italian theories and a relaxed prison discipline
resulting from them which are responsible for
the prevalence of homicide in the United States.
1t seems to be the American experience, rather,
that it is not Italian theory but Italian practice,
especially with the knife, which increases the
murder rate in our country.
The problem, however, is more general in it's
geographical distribution than might be inferred
from the paper of DR.. White or the crude utter
ances of Mr.. William Tallack. Crimes of viO-
ence have increased of late years not only in this
country, but in France in Italy. and in Greece,
and no doubt i'm other countries. when compared
with the criminaty of ten years ago or perhaps
twenty years ago. Yet even now in several of
these countries there are perhaps scarcely more
deliberate murders than there were executions
by judicial or military authority in the last GEN.
fury, as compared with the whole population of
each country. Patrick COlquhOun, London
magistrate, who wrote painfully interesting
book on the crimes of London hundred years,
ago, declared that in 1876 there were in England
$50 different offences punishable with death. add
ing that in 1893 in London alone. then containing
less than million people there were ifty-eght
capital punishments, a ratio which if extended
to the present population, would exhibit more
than go of these solemn public murders in a
year. | suppose the whole number of wilfull
murders annually scarcely reaches 100 at present,
and doubtless appears to be much less than this
Where the London system of 1893 now carried
out in the United States. with our 65.OOO.OOO in
habitants. we should exhibit the extraordinary
spectacle of more than 1000 capital punishments
in a year. | hardly think that the most severe
DracOnian advocate of terrifying penalties would
wish to see that number of our fellow creatures
hanged or guillotined. or. as the newspapers
say. electrocuted in a single year. In nothing
has the progress of civilization in the nineteenth
century been more marked than in the ameliOra-
ton of penalties for crime nor did this humane
change in laws have the effect to increase
crime but. on the contrary, seemed to diminish
it. Perhaps we have carried this mildnesS to-
ward criminals too far yet am inclined to think
that this is not the occasion of the increasing
blood guiltiness of mankind. Rather should /
ascribe it to certain eXaggerating and exasperat-
ing tendencies of our recent civilization. cOmbin-
ing with those remarkable influences which have
brought the least enlightened and most barbar-.
Gus of mankind within range of a civilization for
which they are not fitted. and which they cannot
understand. Add to this that lOOsening of all
the bands of authority which our century has
witnessed and produced, and the temptations
arising from the highly complicated structure of
society and we have general causes enough to
account for condition which everybody must
deplore. but which certainly is not restricted to a
single country or single hemisphere.
A similar course of reasoning might be used
with regard to insanity. which has close a
connection with crime. and especially with
crimes of violence. 1t has long been observed
that insanity is feature of developing cviliZa-
ton: and although this statement should not be
pressed too far since the whole lives of barba-
rOus people are little better than prolonged in
sanity. yet it must needs happen that the pres
sure of mental and moral forces, as population
grows more dense and civilization more complex,
will increase the tendency to insanity and I'M
balanced natures. In the treatment of this grave
malady-One of the most distressing and least
remedable of the ills that flesh is heir tO--the
nineteenth century distinguishes itself not only
above any other, but beyond any other age in the
worlds history. For until the year 1900 except
by very few enlightened and observing per-
sons insanity was everywhere misunderstood
and shockingly ill-treated. Like the science of
chemistry and of electro-physics. psycopathic
science of intelligent for the insane is almost
wholly the growth of this century, and few per-
sons in this country or elsewhere have studied it
more carefully. or been of greater practical SER
vice in regard to it, than our late associate, DR..
Earle. whose death has been mentioned in the
lately published number of our Journal
These officers of the association were elected:
President. H. l.. Wayland of Philadelphia: First
Vice President. Andrew ID. White of Ithaca;
General Secretary, F. B. SanbOrn of Concord,
Mass, Treasurer, Arson Phelps Stokes of New
YOrk-NeW York San.