The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1901-03-27

IN STATE PRISON
CONTINUED from First Fagc)

II must be deterrent for the protection
OF society. II should be ''refofma tory.
n the wisdom OF. the law be reduced TO
practical application in dealing with the
criminal behind the bars of such an
institution.
have no hesitation in saving that these
objects cannot be satisfactorily or Ee,leI-
ally reached in the Virginia Fcnitentiary
:SoifldneSS of mind and SoundneSS Oh bod:,
are themselves intimately associated ana
inf1ucnce directly the actions of men. On
this presumption. therefore. which VIII
certainly apply in large number OF
cases. there should he AN endeaHor 10 re-
s;or. to normal action the mind and BODY
of The man who committed the crime oV
reason of their arrangement The punt
tive idea helps this out. am assured, but
il must be furnanely punitive.
IT is surely punishment enough 10 DC
isolated from society, from home, from
friends: TO he ground down by hard labor
on a contract system. to suffer the loss
OF all the rights of citizenship: to have no
will of ones own in aIiNfhinE-ln inc. 10
be at the beck and nod OF men who. too
Frequently. assert their authority through
Rilfrn or caprice
To SO place men as t. compel the COM
mission OF new crimes. for which q bar
barous punishment is inflicted, is not the
idea that should prevail in our State
prison.
PACKED LIKE SARDINES.
Men OF dangerous mental tendencies are
packed into cells like so many sardines
with men OF better mind. and it is d
dozen 10 ore that it is the better man
tina; suffers The good man is forced into
committing an apparent crime. frequently
by way Of self-defence, and he must I'M
derso all the pains and penalties which
an infraction OF the rules imposes. Thus
the State. if not directly the cause of
the crime. furnishes certainly the occasion
for it. the results Of which neither the
Immediate authorities, The directors nor
The surgeon arc powerful to prevent.
1t is SO with juveniles. The conGreEatc
plan in vogue in tie penitcntiary throws
together men hardened in crime with
youths who hardly know its meaning,
save that they have been convicted for it
For these juveniles the l''enitentiarye be-
comes a school Of vice. and OF a form of
vice. TOO frequently, that ] shrink from
referring to. much more of declaring
openly-a vice upon which tradition sets
the seal of The vengeance OF Heaven itself
when it records the story Of the twin
cities that for centuries have lain silent
beneath the foamiHS Of the Dead Sea
waves.
If there be q crime that calls for pun
iSfmeat TO-DAY this is the one: but i'm
munity from The crime can better be Sc
cured by prevention than by punishment.
in the penitentiary, equipped WITH Its
present complement of cells. it can never
be moro than partially prevented and a
Thousand blundeTS and crueltieS and de-
ccptions and inhumanities must take
place 10 secure even a partial triumph
over this revolving vice
THEIRS A LIVING DEATH
Nor is this the only trouble OF tie over
crowded cells. ] am safe in saying that
every man consigned TO them is daily sui
ferinE a species of enforced lingering life,
which might be moro properly termed a
living death. If it be taken that o.6 Of
cubic foot The average amount OF car
homie acid gas rcSpired by human being
per hour, and o.: cubic feet of that gas
he tho maximum amount o. i1npufiiE ad-
nlS.ibie in t,0O0 cubic feet Of air, then
each person ought TO have 1000 cubic
-, at, -pglsi l.,fi nF>
be changed. say twice per hour IN the
apartment. this would demand for the
individual 600 cubic feet of space. As a
matter of fact this amount of sleeping
space is very seldom attained by the
poorer class Of persons. but most of them
have. al least. more than half that
amount Let US see the amount afforded
in the cells Of the penitentiary:
Total number ca cells N the male
prison, 49,
Average number Of ccnvicts in these
cells, ZOO nearly
some cells.