The Washington times., 1901-07-28
GETTING A "LAGGING.n
Sing Sing Convicts state Tint the
Experfence Is n Terrible One


Experience Is Terrible One.
The amelioration of prison discipline in
the last twenty years has been so marked
that even those persons who rarely OBJ
serve anything have noted the change.
The abolition of the contract system, al
though not general in the United States
Is practically in all the Northern
States and no longer exists in any Euro
pean country. Its abuses were so varied
and incurabIe that it was necessary to
root it out entirely, and this has been
done except in few States in the South
where the social conditions are such as
to prevent any radical changes unless
pushed with persisten. effort. That was
the most important step made in prison
reform, and its good, effects upon the
prisoners are so obvious that they cannot
be questioned There is. however, little
harmony of method in the prisons of dif-
ferent States the management of each in
stitution being the author. for the most
part, of its body of rules ard regulations,
although in New York a long step In the
centralization of authority has been made.
| and in the similar methods of admins
tration.
| 1t is possible that. with the frequent
! improvements made IN the condition of
convicts in recent years, those who profit
by them may be interested in the meth
DDS employed in Great Britain, where the
discipline is stern and unyielding and
| every day of a sentence has twenty-four
| hours of time in 1t. 1t has fallen to my
| lot to do a long Tagging in a public
| works prison in England. and the expert
| ence has no alleviating memory. 1t was
simply unalloyed hades. On conviction
and sentence the prisoner is taken to a
county prison to do nine months of separ-
| ate confinement. This is spent in a large
| cell, well-warmed, lighted. and ventilat-
ed, without a bed for the first three
/ months. with bed two nights in the
week for another three months. and then
with increasing frequency until last
month a bed with sheets. rug and pillow.
| is given every night. The work is sewing
bags and weaving. and the task is as
much S green hand can do with indus
| try. Th. food is ample, but UNMARRIED.
twenty-three ounces of bread daily. made
from unbolted -four A pint of Cruel for
breakfast and supper. based upon four
ounces of oatmeal; and a week and three
| ounces of meat for the other three days,
with eight ounces of potatoes daily. The
food is clean, served in the cell hot. and
is ample for a man not working in the
| open air.
No one except the keeper comes into the
cell. The governor OF the prison passes
the open door daily. and the doctor comes
If summoned. No books except a Bible.
hymn-book. and prayer-book are given.
and there is no variation in this awful
period. in which many men break down
physically or mentally. The keeper is not
allowed to speak to a prisoner except in
the briefest terms, and then only to issue
an order. s-.cnt six months in this sep
arate confinement without. hearing hu-
man voice except at church service: and
the whole nine months of separates"
without speaking word to a fellow-pris-
oner The intention Of this Imprisonment
is to give the prisoner realizing sense
Of his position, and It fetches him every
time by its cold. calm, silent, unchanging
oppression.
The separates" being finished. the pris-
oner IS transferred to the public. works
prison, of which there are now four. in
Engiand-Dartnpor. Portland. Parkhurst.
and Borstal-with a female prison at
Aylesbury, in Cxfordshire. Men who |
were engaged in the same offence. or
brothers, are not sent to the same prison. |
The transfer is made In a prison car, |
which Is simply an exclusive carriage, |
and the traveller is not made the wretch |
ed victim of public curiosity. Arriving on |
the public works, the prisoner is assigned |
to outside labor and kept at it. There is |
an average of one warder or assistant |
warder TO every ten men. besides a bat
TALON of the Royal Infantry for guards |
at each station. These warders are long |
service men with first-class discharges |
from the army, navy, or marine corps. in |
which school they have learned that an |
It,
They are forbidden to construe any Of |
fence they may observe in any other way
than as a subject of report and report |
means punishment in 99s cases out of |
OG0
Punishment consists of confinement in
separate cells, light and warm. with one
pound of bread and one pint of water
daily. loss of class, privileges of writing
or receiving letters or visits. For assaults
ON officers the penalty is fogging with
either the cat or birch, not more than
thirty strokes of either; but no man
fails to be taken in the hospital who has
received twenty cuts of the cat The
work is redeeming marsh land building
fortresses, quarrying stone or cutting it
for building purposes. But the days
work, even in summer. is rarely more
than seven hours. Meals are taken in the
cells and the Iood is not sufficient. There |
are no fat men In penal servitude 1t is
prescribed to the fraction of an ounce,
and If the prisoner feels that he has not
his allowance, he can, at all times have
1t weighed or measured in his own pres
ence.
AS his sentence wears away the pris-
oner passes into different classes, which
are shown by the facings on his jacket
with increased privileges; and the last
year of his sentence, If he has been a
good-conduct man throughout, may be
spent in the special class. which gives him
a blue dress, visits every two months, and
more frequent letters. The burden of pc
nal scrvitude falls in with the perpetual
which never relaXes No
man can go out of sight OF the officer in
charge of his party nor pass behind him.
He must not talk. laugh. nor even smile
He is not allowed any other article in his
possession than a handkerchief He can
have no paper nor pencil, but one piece
Of soap, one towel, one wooden spoon, one
plate. tin cup. and wash basin.
He must be silent. obedieut. and al |
though the rules do not say So he must [
look as miserable as 1t !s intended to
make him feel. The weekly dietary scale | 1
never changes. There are no holidays ex-
cept Good Friday and Christmas, and | 1
these are only marked by chapel service, |
which never changes. No outsiders ever |
come to speak, nor any visitors ever |
admitted into the prison. In eight years |
| never heard woman's voice In speech | ;
or song; never tasted fruit, nor any other
than POTATOES: never smoke to |