The Saint Paul globe., 1905-01-10
PILLS NOT PRISON CELL
THAT is THE MODERN METHOD
FOR CRIMINALS
The Good Are Not Very Well Treated
Nowadays, but the Thief Is Fed and
Cared for-He Has a Disease With
Long Name

1t is difficult to see why dear Mrs.
Chadwick should be in the least de-
pressed, or, indeed, why any crimianl
OF the present day should be cast
down. For, however badly we may
treat the righteous, modern thought
has evolved a number of theories
which relieve the criminal of all re-
sponsibility. AS for the astute Mrs.
Chadwick she has presumably had a
good time; no one seems TO know
what has become of the immense sums
she obtained from kindly bankers, but
no one can doubt that While she was
spending the money in princely fash
Ion she must have enjoyed herself.
Now, While she is under arrest, She
is being taken care of by the state
or county-which is more than is be-
ing done for her victims-and it is
freely prophesied that she will never
be punished for the crimes she has
committed. For in these days of SCI
ence the lot of the clever criminal is
happy one. If he is not allowed to go
on technicality of the law he is ad-
judged insane or a degenerate and
sent to sanitarium for a few years.
One man had the courage the other
day to come out and say that he did
not believe in the born criminal the
ory, but that a man went wrong as
the result of environment and because
he chose evil instead of good But
some very learned members of the
medical profession will not agree with
him. thief. in these days of science
is given a pill instead of ninety days
He must be treated for his disease.
The consequence is that there seems
to be no class so thought of, so PAM
pered, as the criminal class When q
man does wrong he must be insane. so
a course of treatment is prescribed
and he comes out as good as new
and sometimes as bad as ever. If he
is really convicted and cannot be prov
en- insane, he may go to prison for two
OF three years. but the combination OF
his own good behavior when behind
the bars and a pardon board shortens
the term until it really doesn't amount
to much. Thousands of dollars are
spent by the state to convict a GRIM
mai, twelve men give up weeks of
their time to it and there can not be
much doubt of his guilt if after fair
trial he is convicted, and yet in a few
months the pardon board comes to-
gether,s practically tries the case over
again, and let's the man go free. Crime
does not decrease under this system
Then when everything else fails, the
theory of degeneracy comes in and
helpS out the poor man. He will be
examined by clever physicians, who
will discover that his ears are crooked
one eye is looking up street, while the
other is looking down, there is a bump
On his head which foreordained him to
evil, and When the learned examiners
finish. with him it has been clearly es-
%I,0@
not help stealing. He is not bad, but
unfortunate. must be given a course
OF treatment, and mayhap, he will be-
come an ornament to society," But these
creatures with crooked ears should not
be punished. The punishment is re-
served for those who meet them on a
dark night. The suggestion of q whip
ping post for wife beaters will prob
aply not be adopted; the man who
beats his wife means we'll, but is af-
nlcted with disease bearing a lone
name, and should be given the best OF
treatment course of hot baths and
De Wen fed. The only relief to his wife
IS that she may recover while he is ir
the hospital. He is a little stronger
When he comes out but one NAV be
permitted to doubt whether the cure
was effective
Now, Mrs Ballington Booth. not 2
scientist, but Christian with long ex
perlence of the criminal classes, does
not hold very much with the degenerate
theory. She has reached thirty-foul
thousand men in prisons during the
past ten years, and of those she has
brought under her wonderful reform
ing influence, only per cent have
fallen back into the old life. Amone
those She has saved have been scores
or gentlemen with crooked ears. ano
bearing all over them the marks Of de-
generacy. Mrs. Booths methods arc
NOT modern, but very effective. One
thing she insists upon is the servins
out OF the sentence by the prisoner and
!Ilpresslng him with the idea that he
is morally responsible for his own acts
and that he must not blame his trouble
on the germ theory.