Evening journal., 1893-10-17
WHERE ECHRIS STIANSLACK
Neglect of Reform Work in
the Delaware Jails.
PRISONERS FEEL HUMILIATION.

wi u AhcAf AhNs-but Ihey Are
Left Simply to BE Turned Out Upon
Community, Despised and Despising.
From composition on 'Jail Work"
read at the recent state convention of
the w. c. T. U. held at Dover, by Mrs.
N. B. Smithers. the appended para
graphs are taken.
The unprogressive, uniustlfable, un-
christian attitude of the people in regard
to prison reform causes me to have to
hold up to your gaze again the same dark
picture have hung out to you at every
convention for decade of years. 1t is
the sad, sombre picture Of common Jail,
with its unfortunate inmates, of both
sexes, Of all ages, and OF every degree Of
crime mixed up indiscriminately
The hardened criminal aud the impress.
sionable youth Of FIRST offence are boon
companions; the misguided youth, who.
under proper conditions, might become a
respectable member of society, eagerly
listening to the story Of crime and ad-
venture as 1t falls from the polluted lips
of the blackened and DETAINED The
thought is stamped upon his very soul
more indelibly every day, that he, too. is
an outcast The woman drifts lower
and lower every day, amid such surround
ings, until the last faint spark Of woman
hood goes out in the darkness Of hopeless
degradation.
Huddled together in id,eness. ne
elected by the world, despised and
Stunned by decent people, there they
curse and plot and scheme against the
society they regard as their enemy
This is the picture / hold up to you Of
what actually exists in your midst, and
which you must gaze upon, and shudder
at, for know not how long.
What is Jail workS Is it Jail work for
the superintendent to visit the iails
every month"; Is it jail work for the W.
Z. T. u women TO visit the jsils on June
!, carrying flowers to the prisoners,
singing, praying and then never seeing
them again until the next year2 Is il
jail work to talk with them, and pity
their condition on these periodical visits.
and then fold our hands, while this BLOT
| on our escutcheon grows blaeker and
blacker, viewed by comparison with pro
gressive states?
When these thoughts force themselves
upon me, thoughts OF how little has been
accomplished in our jails, ! have been
almost ready to argue myself to the
point Of laying down my weapons; but
for the voice of duty / read of i'm.
proved methods being introduced in
other states, but do l know of anything
we could call reform in our prisons IN
Delaware2 The years 20 by, leaving
their changes upon everything; manners.
l customs and laws change with time. but
the jails Of Delaware remain the same.
In Dover and Georgetown jails there
are no books except those carried by
| friends. New Castle jail is better in
this respect, having small library.
But books only serve to relieve the mo-
notony Of very few in our iails. Our
prisoners, as class are not readers of
books. For them jail life is nothing
but an existence of absolute idleness.
sometimes for ten years. Work would
be moral, as well as physical benefit to
them, for, indeed, prison life in Delaware
Is certain destroyer Of both morals aud
health.
One man in Dover Jail who has borne
the enforced idleness for eight years.
once made his escape, but upon being
captured and brought back, told me that
he was coming back anyhow as his feet
were in such condition that he could not
walk far, nor could he use his hands at
labor. Employment is what they need.
Employment that will keep them
I physically strong, make them morally
better, by dispelling gloomy thoughts;
that will ineuloate in them habits of
industry, which would be powerful
factor in the reformation of even the
worst man, besides furnishing with
trades with which TO begin life anew.
All this argument is met with a sneer
and frown of disspproval. Punishment
and nothing but punishment, is the
popular notion in Delaware But the
chief object Of it all should be, to re
form and reclaim the fallen on, whose
miserable environment is responsible for
his unfortunate position. Our prisons
are pointed at with scorn and derision
| by those living outside the state
Not long ago the manager of an excur-
sion made New Castle Jail a special
feature in his program of attractions.
advertising that the boat would stop AZ
| New Castle on certain days, when the
excursionists could visit the Jail. view
the prisoners, witness the whippings aud
other puuishments in season. Sheriff
Gould soon put stop to this, but
1t only shows the light in which we are
viewed by outsiders
was very much entertained aud as
tonished little while ago. in DIVER jail,
when one Of the prisoners told me now
heavily the fact Of his being in Jail
weighed upon him, apart from being de
prived Of his liberty. he spoke Of being
away from his family and how hard il
was to bear. and said he. iii / live to get
out, who will ever notice me again2 l
feel ruined already"
That was the point with him as it is
with all of them, not lost to ali sense Of
proper manhood They know discharged
/. prisoners have hard road to travel. and
that they get the least sympathy Of any
class of unfortunate people Discharged
without character. without credit. with.
out cash. can imagine no darker life
than that the man has to face, who has
served his time in one of our iails.
In New Castle jail there sie 1875 Of Just
this kind of pitisble humanity; in Dover
jail. twenty-five, and in Geors etown
eleven. There they are, simply waiting
behind the bars until the day when they
shall be turned out again upon the com.
munity, despised and despsing. With
| NOT one staD takeu IN refornl then, sba.