Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-01-21

ton OF the criminal. am OF the 0PluAoh
that frequently severe punishment Is neces-
sary and exerts wholesome influence In
the direction Of prevention and reforma-
ton. ! am convinced, however, from the
limited study of the history OF crime and
its punishment that have been able to
make that cruel and vfndictive punishment
does not lessen crime. On the other hand
think 1t may be safely said that where
cruel and brutal means of punishment have
been in vogue, there the more serious forms
of crime have been most common. 1t would
probably be too much to claim that cruei
punishments have been the cause OF serious
crimes; but l think the history of crime
and it's treatment most certainly demon
strate the fact that cruel punishments have
never proved an effective remedy. Inc
whipping post In my Judgment, Is cruel
and yindictive form OF punisnment, ana
would not lessen the crime at which 1t is
aimed. / do not object to 1t primarily be-
cause it is too severe for the criminal but
because / think 1t would fail Of Its pur-
those who inflicted it. / think such pun
would have a brutalizing effect
upon both the criminal and the person In
f1fcting the punishment. Society cannot
prevent crime or reform the criminal py
descending to his level and retaliatIng IN
kind. Punishment at all is 5ustiffable only
as corrective and reformatory measure,
and 1 do not believe that such a punisn-
ment as the whipping post would prove IN
any considerable degree either corrective
or reformatory.
A Logical Extension.
.'If the whipping post is accepted as
means of punishment for the wife beaten.
1 can see no logical escape from the con-
clusion that similar forms of punishment
should be adopted for other offenses, and
that all along the line we should revert to
forms of cruel and brutal punishment such
as have been in vogue in past centuries,
but which advancing civilization mas ais
carded.
'I am not unmindful Of the fact that
merely to reject the whipping post or other
methods of cruel punishment does not solve
the vexed question of what to do with the
wife beaten. / admit that our present meth
DDS of dealing with him are inadequate
and that some effective remedy is urgently
demanded. But 1t seems to me that this
is true, in large measure, in reference TO
the treatment Of criminals In general. In
my judgment one of the most important
problems of the immediate future con-
Germs the treatment and reformation OF
criminals. Two important objects must
be kept in mind First, the protection of
society, and second, the reformation of the
criminal himself. In both of these direc-
lions there is still much to be done, and l
am of the opinion that the treatment of the
wife beaten Is after all bound up in the
larger question of the treatment Of crimi-
nails in general. 1t is true that when the
wife beater is sent to jail his wife and
children sometimes deprived of the
means of livelihood provided by his earn
ings; though frequently the wife beaten is
not the kind of man who does make ade-
quate provision for the support of his fam
lily. But isn't 1t true also that the thief,
the burglar, the gambler and criminals gen.
orally, when sent to Jail. frequently leave
their wives and children without means OF
providing the necessities Of life? Families
Of these men, too. become burdens upon
society, SO that, after all, In this respect
the case of the wife beater is not SO diff
ferent from that Of Other criminals.
The Forced-Labor Remedy.
"As remedy, it has been suggested that
the wife beaten should be imprisoned and
compelled to work and his earnings used
for the maintenance of his family. There Is
little doubt that this would be most desir-
able. and there Is probably just as good
reason why every criminal who Is able to
work should be made to work, and his
earnings used for his own support and the
support of his family, when such there be.
Such an arrangement would doubtless be a
great step In advance There seems to be
little difference of opinion on this point
But when we turn to the practical side of
the question, difficulties are at once en-
countered. How are We going to do it? In
what way can the state provide employ
ment for criminals SO that they shall be
made to maintain themselves and produce
surplus that may be used for the benefit
of those dependent upon them? That, to
my mind, is one of the greatest problems in
crimfnology. Many efforts have been made
in the way of providing employment for
criminals, and many criminals are today
employed; but 1t is nevertheless true that
instead of criminals being made self-sup-
porting as class, their maintenance is a
burden, and heavy burden. upon the state
In many respects, because Of complica-
lions arising in the development of our in
dustrial organization, the conditions of
prison labor are more circumscribed today
than ever before; and it is a most difficult
problem. In many cases, to find suitable
employment for prisoners even when the
question of financial return is left out of
consideration. 1t seems rather a severe in
dictment of the capacity of the state that,
having under its direction a large number
of able-bodied men who are capable of
engaging in the arts of production, it can
not employ these men In such a manner as
to produce even sufficient to maintain them
selves. Nevertheless, such is the fact in
most communities today. When society
has solved this problem, 1t will be in
position to deal more intelligently and eff
fectively with it's criminal population, in
GLIDING the wife beaten. Then it would be
possible to provide by the labor of the
criminal himself the means for the support
of his family. More important still. whole
some remunerative employment is undoubt-
eddy one of the most effective agencies of
discipline and reformation.
But until some such reasonable solution
can be worked out, let us not in a spirit
Ol FllulCllNcuSSS TGLuTi 10 any OIL the
cruel methods of former centuries"
Wife Beating and Wife Desertion.
The Star has also received very inter-
esting letter regarding the whipping post
by Mr.. William H. Baldwin, member of
the board of managers of the Prison Re-
form Association, who has made a special
study of the question of wife desertion.
Mr.. Baldwin has expended several hun
bred dollars and a number of months
work in making one of the most exhaustive
STU dies that has ever been undertaken as to
existing laws for the correction of wife
desertion and nonsupport. He says:
I'm reply to your request for my views
OH the policy of Furnishing wife beating at
the whipping post in the District of CO.
lun,bia I may say that I do not feel that 1
am qualified to give an opinion except SO
far as it is based upon some attention paid
t. the kindred subject of wife desertion
or nonsupport of family; but as that Of
Tense springs from a similar defect and in
wolves also the question of what punish |
ment will best prevent it, in connection
with which the whipping post has been
mentioned some of the same considerations |
may apply to each.
las the District laws seemed to be inef-
fective in dealing with husbands who desert |
Or do not support their wives / was led, |
on account of some cases which came to |
the notice of the general conference of the |