Los Angeles herald., 1909-09-28
CORRESPONDENT SUPPORTS
WORK OF REFORM LEAGUE

Los ANGELES, Sept. 24.-[Editor
Herald: 1 noticed your editorial in
The Herald of the 22d inst. in regard
to prison reform and your comments
on the work of w. c. owen, as we'll
as the effort Of Colonel Griffith in the
interest of prison reform. While the
efforts of those gentlemen are COM
mendable, in my opinion there is an
other light in which to look at this
question. l have served as an officer
next in authority to two wardens in
two state prisons, besides having been
interested, in business way, for some
years in one of the largest state pris-
ons in the United States, and no one
realizes more than 1 do the need of
reform in the management of our
penal institutions.
In the first place. no solid reform
can be accomplished just as long as
our prisons are officered by political
preferment. AS a rule, whichever
party is in power the officers are ap-
pointed out of that party, and those
positions in ninety-nine cases out of
100 are subjected to the rankest kind
Of graft Positions are given to those
who have been the best promoters of
party interests, and are soft snaps.
know also that the majority Of our
criminals can be reformed in our pris-
ons if they are properly Influenced by
personal effort, as I had the pleasure
of taking in hand two of the worst
men in the prison, who had been given
up as incorrigible, and with kind
treatment they were made the best
behaved men in the prison.
Mems lives are ruined and hence
forth they are branded as a Convict"
That name has cursed humanity<long
enough and should be wiped from our
vocabulary, if for no other reason than
that there are scores of men in high
places who are greater violators of
the law who escape justice through
money and influence. 1t is a la
mentable fact that often men are sent
to prison for minor offenses and taken
away from the support of their fam
lilies perhaps, their labor confiscated,
and often in long confinement. They
are discharged, clad in poor suits of
clothes and with only a few dollars to
commence life and with a name for
ever disgraced, with small hopes OF
obtaining a position. Is it to be won
dered if they go back to crime?
The principle of forcing men to
labor for years for their grub and
clothes is unjust, as there is ingrafted
in every principle or right and justice
that "the laborer is worthy of his
hire" 1t is simply legalized slavery,
and the law is unjust and should be
wiped from our statutes. A man is
in duty bound to support his family,
yet the Jaw takes away that support.
After years of humane efforts in
prison work I have come to the con-
clusion that prisons as now managed
should be done away with and that
there should be substituted state man
ufactories where profitable goods were
manufactured and at the same time
where the men could be paid for their
labor. as well as where men out of
employment could find honest labor
instead of thieving and robbing the
community for a living.
Some might say: How could the
men be paid wages when every peni-
tentiary runs behind thousands of dol
lars every year?" Why do they run
behind? Simply because it is po-
litical swindle of the taxpayers.
In my opinion our courts should
not send criminals to prison for any
specified time. as when such offenders
of the law were reformed under the
above plan and were prepared to be-
come good citizens. even in cases of
murder they should be discharged,
and in case they violated their parole
they should be returned again to con-
fnement. These few facts I hope will
be carefully considered by those in
terested in the Prison league.
G. MAJOR TABER.