The daily morning journal and courier., 1907-05-22
sTRIPEs FOR CONNECTS.
This Country Has Much to Learn in
 Handling Her Criminal Classes.

Washington has followed the exam pie of Connecticut in discountinu- ing the use of stripes for conviets of the less vicious class. The plan is yet in the experimental stage. but is in line with the tendency of the times, which is to make punishment less disagreeable and less humiliating. Stripes are still to be used for desperate criminals, or those who violate prison rules; but those who are supposed to be suscep- tlble to reformatory influences are to be clad in uniforms not strikingly diff ferent from the clothing worn by or dinary citizens. Thus grades of crim- inals are established and the distinc- tions recognized. God behavior is re- Warded by removal of the insignia of crime, and disobedience may be pun ished by enforced return to the striped clothing.
 In the hands of judicious and honest officials this change In policy may be made effective in improving discipline and in reforming prisoners. To the dis honest officers it affords one more op- portunity for the display of fayoritism, which is one of the greatest barriers to reformation. If one prisoner be clad in stripes, while another guilty of ex- aetly the same degree of crime wears plain clothing, this distinction having no other reason than that the latter has money, friends or influence while the former has not, the results will be bad in the extreme. Favoritism can not be practiced unless the prisoners know it, and, as soon as they see this form of injustice, they lose whatever. respect for law they may have had. The opportunity for unjust discrimina- tion in administering the regulations as to uniforms is the same as in admins
 tration of the rules governing paroles and the trusty system. The official who wishes to be partial finds it easy to believe that certain prisoners are not such very bad men after all, and the fact that they may have been per- sonal friends of the officers prior to conviction, or that they have friends who are willing to exert an influence in their behalf is supposed not to be a controlling factor in determining the treatment that shall be accorded. Whether outside considerations do in fact have a bearing in the administra- tion of law and rules is 6 question not to be settled by proof, but which each prisoner and officer settles in his own mind and usually with very great de- gree of accuracy. Whether a trusty system, a parole system or a system of | distinctive uniforms shall be an agen- cy for good, therefore, depends chief
 ly upon the good judgment. and good l faith of the officers in charge There are many who doubt the wisdom of ef-
 forts to make prison life less disagree l able for criminals. In one view of the matter the greater the severity of pun l ishment the less likely will the offender | be to violate other laws and lay him. self liable to reincarceration. Quite l likely there are men who can be re- strained from criminal acts only by fear of punishment. On the other hand, it is argued that punishment may be 1 made so severe as to deprive a man of all sense of moral obligation and make of him confirmed enemy of society, 1 whereas he might have been reformed by milder treatment.
 Records of crime in this country, as compared with the figures from the
 criminal courts of other countries, leave no room for doubt that America has not made beginning in solving the problem of handling the criminal
 classes. Crime in this country Is not only vastly greater than in Europe, but 1t is increasing. We have much to learn in the control of criminals, both
 inside and outside of prisons, Efforts
 to shed light upon this important prob len. are to be commended, even though experience may show that new ideas are not the best,-Port1and Oregonian.