The Norfolk weekly news-journal. (Norfolk, Neb.) 1900-19??, 1909-05-28
NEW PENAL METHOD
Chicago Woman's Plan to Shield
Families OF Criminals.
FAv0RS INDUSTRY IN PRISONS

Wet Earn Enough to Save Kin From
Tho Burden OF His crime--Favors
Paying For Work at the Union
Wage.
The speedy disappearance OF wife
heaters, home deserters and tramps
and the alienation of some of the In.
Justices OF the present penal system
are the objects aimed at In an Idea
being worked out by Mrs. Mary d
Ide. 1888 Kenmore avenue. Chicago, n
member of the North End Woman's
club and OF the League of Cook Coun
ty Clubs, who Is buslly engaged In de-
velopIng the details of her scheme and
enlistlng others In lts support.
Mrs. lde has long seen great lnjus-
tice In the modern prison In that the
heaviest burden entniled by the sen
fencing of II criminal to a term be-
hind the bars falls often not on the
culprlt himself. but on his family. The
man goes To jail and may or may not
be put ut hard labor, but his family Is
left out In the world and must shift
for itself
"Why. have even heard of criminal
husbands" said Mrs, Ide In explaining
her plans, "who held their wives In
submission 10y the threat that they
would go to jail for Il rest and leave
them without any support at ull,"
But all this would be changed II
Mrs. Ide could have her way. and jail
would be far too serious proposition
and too much like prosaic. everyday
working for II living to be considered
for moment by the leisurely inclined,
The gist of the proposed plan Is this:
Let the criminal. when sent to Jail, be
put at his trade or labor and paid a
regular union wage. Then let his
board and lodging be deducted and the
balance be sent to his family, so leav-
ing the burdens of a Jail sentence to
fall where they are intended to fall.
10 carry out the plan It would be
necessary according to the originate
to change the prisons about so as to
give them less of the present day as
pect of "houses Of correction" and to
give them more of the nature of "houses
of trades" Mrs Ide would prefer
that they be made in reality colonies
or virtual little towns. with all sorts
of factories and industries and oppor-
tunities to put each man to work AT
the trade or labor for which he Is
most fitted. If he is not fitted for any,
let him learn one and go to work.
There would be shoe factories. mat
tress factories. furniture shops. car
pentry shops. printing offices. stonecut
ting sheds, brickyards. tile manufac'
turing plants, and the products of all
would be placed on the market and nc
loss entailed to the state. for Mrs. Ide
sees In her plan the elimination Of one
of the greatest objections to prison
made articles.
"pay is the keynote to my plan
said she. IF we can pay the prisoner
the regular union wage. | believe that
the greatest obstacle. the opposition
of the trade unions, will be overcome
Now the prison made articles are man
ufactured by free labor Let the meu
be paid wages and their product put
on the market | think that this wage
and the consequent justice to the pris
oners' dependents should obviate the
objections of unions, though | haven
yet consulted labor leaders.
THE expressions Of opinion which
have received have all been very fa
vorable to my idea. Superintendent
Whitman of the house of correction
said chat 1t is just the thing we are
coming to, and We may as well take
II up now as later. and Judge ClelanC
said that the plan had many goo6
ideas. | spoke to Judge Mack abou
it also and asked him If my plan wa!
impracticable He told me | was OF
exactly the right track and urged m'
to hold to IT."
Mrs Ide intends to enlist the aid OF
prominent judges and lawyers through
expressions of opinion from each anC
then start the work of raising popular
subscriptions through personal can
wasting for funds to carry on the cam
paign Of publicity AS the club sea
son Is over aud the aid of women's or
ganiZations cannot be enlisted. Mrs
Ide intends to carry on her work pri
vately through the summer and have
the plan well developed by the tim,
the women's clubs can take II up II
the fall she has been promised tn,
floor ut the first meeting of the League
of Cook County Clubs
make the criminal dread the jai
sentence less aud crowd the prisons
Not in the least" said Mrs lde in de
Tending her plan The criminal is no
the mau who will look on the oppoT
tunity to support his family uude
compulSion as an iuducement to go t,
jail
II have had the idea in my mind 70
mauy wears and hope to see It IN prac
tice. believe there is remedy 70
every evil II we can only find it,
Chicago Post.
New Alaska Yukon Postage Stamp.
PoStmastPrs Of the various office
throughout the United States hav
been notified officially from Washin
ton that new postage stamp OF spe