The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-10-26


az possible. The main conditions are as fol-
lows:
HE shall in all respects conduct him.
self honestly: obey the law; avoid evil asso-
Citations; abstain from the use of intoxi-
eating liquors or going 10 places Wnere
liquor is sold.
If man will comply with these condi-
tions, work diligently and report TO the
management once a month. We can trust him
anywhere. in the State or out of II. Up 10
the present date there have been released
upon parole. and under the foregoing con-
ditions ISIS men from Indiana Reforma-
tory. OF this number so per cent nave
proved themselves worthy Of the confidence
the management placed in them. Twenty
per cent. have been either returned to the
institution upon violation OF parole, or nave
left their assigned employment and cannot
be traced. Such men are considered 'delin-
quent' and will sooner or later be re-
turned TO the Reformatory.
EARNINGS OF PRISONERS.
1T would take too long for me to go into
any detail as to the employment, earnings
and prospects of these paroled men. But
/ may say in passing that our books show
these paroled men have earned as wages,
during the period they have reported to US.
over 100000 They have thus contributed
to the wealth OF the State, instead Of be-
ing dependent upon its bounty.
TT may make the foregoing figures more
readily understood IL we take the cases OF
the last meeting of our board OF managers
THE eighteen men whose final release was
granted on Oct. 1st earned during the year
Cash wages ...................... Si 913.56
Boarding for eleven men during 100
months estimated worth $l2.0O per
month ............-..-- .......--....... 1-o'oV
Total 61ls56
Average earnings per man.s 1899. "a
Highest earnings CT any man........... 5lS.6o
Total cash on hand or due at time OF o,o 90
Averase cash savings '. ................... 1900
Highest amount or one man. u4.oo
OLD OFFENDERS.
1T often happens that the men sent to
us have served one or two terms in other
prisons, or have been several times con-
victed of felonies and given jail Or work.
house sentences Sometimes the inmate
confesses this readily. Often every possible
means is used to conceal the facts from us.
When upon investigation the board is con-
vinced that an inmate has previously been
convicted of a felony, he is required to
remain in the Reformatory a longer time
than he would have remained If he were
an entirely first offender. Ii he Is con-
firmed criminal and appears to give no
evidence of determination to forSake his
felonious life. he may be transferred To
the State prison, there to remain possibly
until the expiration OF the maximum time
result is obtained, society is protected from
his assaults, and he has himself lengthy
period TO mediate upon the fact that the
way of the transgreSS0r Is hard.
1T is by the most careful and often pro-
tracted methods of investigation that the
board of managers arc able to SIT out and
| has shown himself susceptible TO reforma-
tory methods, and keep within the prison
and from whom society should be pro-
| tected. The board of managers is very
careful and conservative In the matter of
granting any parole. The board feels that
| its duty to the people of the State Of In
! diana lies as much in keeping citizens who
are not reformed within the prison walls
! for q period commensurate to their crime
\ as II does in letting good prisoners out at
| the earliest possible moment. The board
| believes that the reasonable probability
! that such applicant will live and remain at
! liberty without violating the law must be
I determined b: the inmates record for good
| conduct in prison. by his character as re-
vealed in the study of his tendencies, habits
and ideas shown in his prison life and
| his previous history, by due consideration
of the nature and circumstances of his
| crime and on condition that has promise
| of employment at fair wages when released
on parole.
MUST KNOW MEN WELL.
cit is well-established fact that the
man most dangerous in society is apt to be
a model prisoner in the observance of prison
rules and regulations; therefore. a clear
record in prison is not the only ground on
which the inmate is paroled.
Actual experience in the study and han
ding of criminals knowledge of human
nature in general. and impartiality in judg-
ment are the main requisites in success
fully determining the proper time for an
| inmates release on parole.
1.-The board of managers believes that the
proper punishment for crime should not
be disregarded, and the public, for whose
Ioxx do fC af,,lIx
considered in the granting OF paroles as is
the inmate whose liberty depends upon its
Judgment
! for these boys. The majority are placed in
the community from which they were sent.
Others are sent to their friends in distant
States. In every case the inmate is placed
with some responsible person, who will re-
port to the management any violation OF
| the parole rules.
1T has been said that inmates will not
serve as long sentence under the new law
| under the old. This is mistake, for
we have made careful estimate, with the
following result:
THE last 800 men sentenced to Jefferson
! vile prison under the old law (not includ-
ing life terms or United States prisoners)
! served an average of one year, ten months
and twenty-four days. The first 800 men
| sentenced under the new law and paroled
served an average of two years, two months
and seventeen days. For many reasons,
which il is unnecessary to enumerate here,
the Indiana Reformatory has not so far
reached the ideal conditions which the peo-
pie of Indiana have right to expect. One
| of the chief hindrances to successful work
is that we still have in our institution what
is known as the contract system. The
contract system means that the State
contracts the work Of the inmates at q
| certain price per day to individuals who
have no interest whatever in the inmate
except to work him and get as much labor
out of him possible. Such contractors
often have no sympathy whatever with
reformatory methods, and, indeed, oppose
them in many ways. The contracts that
are now in force will until July, 1906.
impossible to inaugurate in the institution
the reformatory methods that should be
there. We are. however, gradually arrang-
ing to handle the inmates of the institution
as the law intended they should be. AL
ready we have the beginning of several i'm
portant trade schools.
TRADE SCHOOLS.
1--WE now have inaugurated in the insti-
tuition the following: The timers trade,
in which we are employing regularly five
boys; the carpenters trade, in which we are
employing nine boys; the printers trade.
seven boys; in the band, twenty-six boys;
in the brick masons trade, four boys; in
the blacksmiths' trade. three boys; tailors
trade, ten boys painters trade. ten boys;
electrical department. fourteen boys.
I'm all we have lightweight boys now
being regularly instructed in these trades;
not only that, but from it will be
the purpose of the mana cement to so in
struct these boys from day to day that
when they are paroled or discharged from