The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1897-05-07
uILTERACY AND BRAINS.

The general idea that illiteracy and
crime are usually twins meets n rude
shock in the published statistics regard
ing the inmates of the penitentiary at
Toilet III. Out of 1919 convicts, only
S6 are illiterates, and, while % could
read. 296 could both read and write, SO
had common school education, and 30
had a high-school or collegiate educa-
tion. The statistics in the North Carolina
penitentiary show that one half Of the in
mates are illiterates, GIG being unable to
read or write out of a total number of
LAG 81 can read, 525 read and write,
have a common education, IL have a
good English education, and 3 have
collegiate education The difference be-
tween the illiterates in Illinois and North
Carolina may be largely accounted for by
the fact that Of the 1,246 convicts in the
North Carolina penitentiary, 1913 are
negroes, whereas there are very few
negroes in the Joliet prison.
The statistics with reference to intern
perance is also surprising in the Illinois
prison. In the use Of intoxicating liquors
only 271 were incorporate, 162 used
intoxicants moderately, and 2S6 were to-
tai abstainers. From these figures it
would seem that it was neither illiteracy
nor intemperance that brought these con-
victs to the Joliet penitentiary. The re
port of the superintendent of the North
Carolina penitentiary does not contain
statistics of this character. 1t would be
we'll if the new superintendent would col
lect it for publication in the next re-
port.
There is an idea that it is the foreign
born of our population who fill our peni-
tentiaries. In the Joliet prison the num-
Der credited to the United States is $50,
and next in order come the Germans, 115;
Ireland ranks next with 81. The German
population in Illinois is little over three
times as large as the Irish. Italy, with a
population N that State of a little over
5000, has % convicts at Joliet, while
Sweden and Norway, with a population
of about III 900, have only 20 inmates of
the prison. France, with about the same
number Of people in the State as Italy
has, has only convicts at Joliet. Eng
land and Wales, with 9O975 of their
people in the State, have 30 prisoners.
The showing, while not determining what
people are possessed of the strongest
criminal tendency, indicates which have
contributed most largely to the popula-
ton Of that institution at Joliet.
The statistics of the North Carolina
penitentiary show that almost all the
convicts are natives of this State, 1,Ol2
out of / 246 having been born here. Only
six are foreigners-one born in Cuba,
3 in England, l in Poland, and 1 in
Sweden. OF those born outside of North
Carolina, there is one each from Arkan-
sas, Connecticut, California, Iowa, In
diana, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, New
Jersey, and Ohio; two each from Massa
chusetts and Texas; three each from the
District Of Columbia, and Mississippi;
four each from Florida, Missouri and
Pennsylvania; five from New York; thir-
teen from Georgia; fifty-six from Vir-
ginia; and ninety-eight from South Caro-
lima.
The North Carolina authorities do not
give the religious views Of the inmates
of our penitentiary. The Chicago Re
cord, from which we take the statistics of
the Joliet prison, says that it does not
appear that the want of some sort Of
religious belief was the cause of their be-
coming inmates of the prison, for of the
entire number only PIG, or 16.41 per cent.
were without religious preferences or
connections. The following table is given
by the warden as showing the religious
belief of the prisoners in October last
No church. ......2l6 Lutheran. SO
Oh q