The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1895-02-21

to arrest the criminal, and while met
ing out to him the full measure of pun
which justice to himself and to
the individuals and the community
which he has wronged may rightly de-
mand, to do it in such manner as shall
be most likely to restrain him and dis
courage others from like crimes, and
eventually, by wise and reformatory IN
huences, not inconsistent with the
measure of punishment which the law
demands. to stimulate, encourage and
aid him to integrity of purpose in his
future life and restoration to useful,
intelligent and honorable citizenship.
That this is practicable, is abundantly
demonstrated and proved in the states
where the effort has been made, and
the results of the personal efforts OF a
few in our own state, who, during the
last four years have done something in
this line among the convicts in our state
penitentiary, are such as to give promise
of much larger success in the future if
only the people of the state can be
awakened to an interest in the matter,
and proper legislation be had to place
the work in proper hands and under
regulations suited to the Importance,
peculiarities and gravity of the interests
at stake.
1t is not unlikely that the first
thought of the average man who is
asked to consider prison reform, is
that it has it's origin in senseless SYM
pathy with criminals, an idea that they
are harshly or unjustly treated while
in prison. disposition to pet, coddle
and perhaps release them, allowing
sympathy for their hard lot to take
precedence of any sense Of justice for
the punishment of crimes committed
, or of security for the public from
crimes which the same men unre
strained of their liberty, or unpunlshed
for past crimes might be liable to com
: NIT at any time and in any community
and declining to be identified with it
he asserts his belief that "once Grim
inal always criminal" that those fel
t lows deserve all the punishment the!
get or generally more, too; that he ha
q no faith in all this reformatory move
r ment. no disposition to discuss it, AM
# no time to waste upon it.
The chances are that such man no
d only does not know what he is. talking
k about. but is entirely Indifferent to tn
interests or welfare of his fellow-mal
n in fact. is utterly lacking in what w
le are wont to term public spirit or any
thing akin to the spirit of the golde
a. rule.
Sc As to Just what proportion of tn
lg community is made up of this class
is people it is not needful to remark, bl
w the fact is plainly to be seen that tf
to most difficult part of the work of OF
ed association is, at present. not with tt
he prisons and prisoners, but with tt
ng public, to disabuse them OF foolish al
er- erroneous ideas, and get them to cor
in prehend and seriously to consider tt
ci facts in the case as they are.
A prison association does not nece
ro- sarily believe that the prisons OF t
,n- state are Improperly built. organized
en- managed 1t does not necessarily nc
or any extreme or unsound views conce1
er- ing the possibility of reforming erin
for nails, and of all men in the world,
on members will be least likely to ma
for pets of those persons in whom the cri
i, to inal character, instincts and hab
led have become so grounded by inhel
to ance, environment and association
to be practically ineradicable.
be- A prison society is a group OF m
will and women whose purpose is to max
and study of prisons and prisoners, to KIN
and what prisons are and what they sho
han be, how to care for and manage tn
of, who are incarcerated in them, to kn
,pu- what prisoners are, how they came
be such and whether or not there
and any possibility of saving them fl
re- themselves, and of reclaiming then
uire manhood and citizenship; and if
eful how?
We want to be so we'll and thoroue