The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1902-01-24
STANLEY on CRIME
Governor Gives His Idea on
Criminal Punishment.
AGAINST REFORM SCHOOL
Believes Maynard Urchins
Should Have Good Homes.

Topeka, Kan. Jan. 23.-The first an
nual meeting of the Society for the
Friendless held its opening session last
night at the First Congregational church
at the corner of Seventh and Harrison
streets. The president of the society,
Judge T. F. Carver, made the opening
address. He told of the purpose for
which the society had been formed and
then branched into a discussion of the
criminal and ways of saving him.
This society" said Judge Carver, lis
product of the nineteenth century.
There has been money in abundance
spent for the betterment OF the higher
classes. Schools of higher education,
universities and colleges have been
founded, but we propose TO seek for the
betterment of the criminal; to make out
of the weak and lowly specimens of
| humanity strong and healthy men, Crime
is contagious and as long as the environ
ment surrounds the weak SO long viii
they commit depredations upon society.
Many think that punishment does not
prohibit There are many men who COM
nit crimes while in the heat of passion
or from stress of circumstances who are
not totally bad and the life of the pen
itentiary is worse than death itself to
such as these. When they emerge from
this confinement they have no place to
go and no way to make a living; they
have no friends and no money. 1t is the
purpose of this organization TO stretch
ID Io1r
them in every way it can"
At the conclusion of Judge Garver's pa
per the choir of the First Corgrcga-
tional church sang and they were 1ol-
lowed by an address from Governor w.
Z. Stanley. The subject of the COVER
nor's talk was the condition of tho penal
institutions of the state. He said:
I'VE must look at this thing in a cold
blooded, business way, for when we do IT
in any other way we lose sight Of the
end we have in view. There, or course,
are many kinds of criminals, and 10 DO
any effective work 1t must be done at the
beginning. The great majority of crimes
that are committed in this state are of a
somewhat minor character. Larceny
forms the great bulk of them aid it is
the city of Topeka there are schools OF
crime; places where the young boys are
reared with a total disregard for the
rights of others. The streets are the
places where these schools are held and
there is no place like them for the prop
agation of crime among children and es-
pecially boys. These boys who grow up
on the street do so because they have no
homes or perhaps they have places which
are worse than homes and they are fore
ed out on the street where they learn
all there is to learn of crime.
1.-The reform school is not the place for
boys. They should be placed in the good
honest homes of our citizens. There they
could learn how to be respectable men;
men in every sense. Since have been
governor have issued only for absolute
pardons. but there has been system OF
which I hope VIII prove a great success.
1t is my opinion that pardons should sell
dom be granted and never save in eS-
IRENE cases Punishment for crime
should be swift and sure. You can not
get away from the fact that punishment
must be meted out to those who break
the laws. and Furthermore, it must be eff
fective.
The system which I would like to see
inaugurated in our penitentiary is that OF
graduation. When a man comes in there
put him in grade two, and if he is worthy
Of il promote him after a while to grade
one. If his conduct continues good make
him eligible for a parole. In this way
a man who is placed in a penal institu-
ton such as that at Lansing viii realize
that it depends on himself how long he
STAYS there