The daily morning journal and courier., 1899-06-24

AenuenCfeS.o
 At the meeting of the association of
 Congregational churches in New Haver
 on Wednesday, Judge Edgar M. Warner
 or Putnam, presented an exceedingly
 practical paper on "The Correction of
 Criminal Tendencies" in the course of
 which he said:
 My title would include the whole sci
 ence of penology, but in the short time
 at my disposal I can only briefly allude
 to certain facts and state certain princi-
 ples. For that large class who are on
 the verge of crime but have not yet
 gotten into jail or prison, there are many
 agencies at work for their education and
 training ill habits of industry, I think,
 however that trade schools or manual
 training in all our schools, and compul-
 sorry attendance of all children, would
 cut off one great source of supply of criminals. All honor to the noble work done in the mission schools and in the various Good Will clubs which are SO successfully carried on in our cities To all who are trying to work among the young, I must call attention to the alarming and many times fatal use of cigarettes. I note with great interest the published statement of the superin- tendent of the Illinois reformatory, MT. George Torrance, of Pontiac, that out of two hundred and seventy-eight boys, between the ages of ten and fifteen, eighty-five per cent, had become so ad- dicted to their use as to be classed at the time of their commitment as Cigarette fiends.'
 A FRUITFUL SOURCE OF CRIME.
 MT. Torrance feels that the cigarette habit does ten-fold more injury to boys under the age of fifteen than intoxica- ting liquor, because but small per cent. of them use liquor or can get it. but the cigarette starts them on the downward path before they or their friends are aware of it. But my own at tention has specifically been called in another direction, and I point you to one great source of crime and criminal ten dency, greater than all others combined, because it affects all present and future generations, more expensive to the indi- vidual and state, because it renders the individual useless as a worker and at the same time burdens the state with his support more dreadful, for it surely sends it's victim to hell and shuts the door of heaven. You will know that I refer to the crime of drunkenness. If you can in any way prevent drunken ness in the state of Connecticut, you will depopulate our jails, county homes and poor houses.
 What is the record of our state in this particular? From the best evidence I can get by correspondence and personal Knowledge, there are on an average more than two thousand trunks a month in the whole state There is thus ghastly procession of two thousand human be- ings, the wards of your church and mine Two thousand voters selling their birthright. Two thousand immor- tai souls bound to certain perdition, un- less something is done to save them This dreadful crowd enters each month ; the doors of the 3,264 licensed saloons in this state, leaves most of the money they have earned or stolen; proceeds to the police court, putrifies the air and sickens the judge and then enters the | jail and gets a monthly l wash, remains at the expense of the | state in ideness or is employed at unre- labor; goes out of the com fortable jail to a wretched home, and | soon again enters the ever open doors of the 3,264 licensed saloons to come again to the police court to putrify the air and scken the judge and again enter the comfortable jail, get free bath and again engage in unremunerative labor, a r-ending circle.
 One man in this great and glorious un- Iversity city of New Haven, with sixty eight churches and two hundred and twenty lawyers, has traveled this circle about two hundred times; several others have a record of between fifty and hundred times. Middlesex county, with mother university and numerous churches and lawyers furnishes a drunken pilgrim with a record of fifty fight times. New London county has nan who has been confined forty-five imes for this offense. Litchfield coun- y, one man nineteen times. a dozen oth- ITS, six to ten times Hartford County, with another university, one man thirty tight times. Wiudham county, twenty imeS.
 A CRIME AGAINST THE STATE.
 Is it not strange administration of rimina1 law to prosecute the same man
  r even twenty-five times, for the same ffense? It is perfectly apparent that he 5 not reformed or in any way benefited, nd the state Is burdened with great ex- ense for his prosecution and support. Thirty days in jail is regarded by the rfminal as a pleasant vacation at the xpense of the state Now. who do you think is to blame for his sort of procedure? We'll, while I hink all the people collectively should ave the burden, still I will admit right ere and HOW that I think the lawyers of he state are most to blame, for they 1ould know the most about criminal af- airs, and should find way to improve 1em. I hope when you go home you I ill stir up the lawyers to do their full uty, not only as lawyers, but as citi- snS also. 1 In what employment do the citizens of s IT state who are in jail engage if any? f Yell, in Hartford, New Haven and I itchfield counties the prisoners are en- I loved at the business of cane-seating | lairs all the time. This is immensely s stter than no occupation, but the man t ltside of the jail who can do nothing | SC but cane-seat chairs will invariably U considered a jail-bird and have diff E; llty in getting work on that account e Fairfield county prisoners have work 0 some kind; only about a quarter are s