Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1901-04-05
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LEPERs, MORAL, AND OTHERS.

SOMEBODY has conceived the idea
Of making The leper settlement Molokai,
on the Hawaiian islands. a self govern
ing community, There are about 900
persons Of both sexes In this terrible
abode q disease and death. They are
under the supervision of a board OF
health, and the proposition now is TO
give The epsrs themselves the power
10 elect mayor, aldermen justice Of
the peace and other officers necessa-
~ to a weIngulated community They
would still be under the direction OF
the board o, health, but this body
would Under that arrangement, be re-
lleyed Of some duties and responsible
ties that may be performed just as well
by the representatives. OF the people.
II Is also hoped that giving the af-
dctei colony self-government will per-
haps result In more thorough absorp-
ton Of The lepers in the Islands. and
thereby hasten the final extinction Of
the disease there. II all those suffer
Ing from that malady are brought TO-
gether IN one place, and marriages pro.
hlbted the disease should die out with
the victims, provided there is no sup
ply from the outside,
And this suggests to an eastern con-
temporary the question whether II
would not be possible to adopt the same
plan 70 the treatment OF moral lepers,
those afflicted with incurable crime or
vice Mlght these be segregated upon
Islands BY themselves and allowed the
boon Of Unrestricted home rule? The
suggestion a thrown out for soclologi-
cal experts to work upon, and It Is not
much more far-fetched than some that
they have been following with pre-
ternatural seriousness.
Why not? II Ia a matter Of record
that some Of the respectable people Of
former penal colonies are the descend
ants Of criminals once deported from
the countries OF their birth. The APP
pie sometimes falls quite long way
OF from he tree, and children do not
always Inherit the traits of their
fathers It is not impossible that an
Isolation system under humane regula-
tons would work moral wonders,
Certain L Is that the system now in
vogue Is detective somewhere. Under
II crime not only does not decrease,
but Il Is steadily increasing. 1t does
not have he effect aimed at. Statl-
stlcians tell Us that during two years,
10000 murders were committed in the
United States. That Is nearly twice
as many lives sacrificed at home, by
knife, gun or poison, as In the long
military Cperations IN the Philippines,
And among The Victims were governor
of "a State state attorney general
many officers Of the law, and a number
Of women and children. Besides, lynch
lngs are Booming terribly numerous.
Thctts and acts OF dishonesty are
multiplying on every hand, and even
the sense Of right and wrong is becom-
ing blunted With oil these facts be-
fore u.s. It is impossible to say that the
administration OF justice needs no i'm
proyement Possibly new methods are
needed, Some are calling out for more
severity IN punlshments. They are
Regarding with loving glances the In
strumens Of torture which more gen
lie generation laid away as utterly use
less Possibly they are looking in the
wrong direction. Deportation and iso-
lauon. under human regulations may
DE the remedies yet to be applied to
terrible moral disease Of the nations Of
the earth. Al least, 1t would not be a
bad idea 70 make some experiments for
The guidanoe OF those who are making
crime and he treatment a subject Of
earnest study