Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-01-11
CRIMINAL PROBLEM
PERMANENT

Illuminating as it may be to confess
1t. the confession must be made that
society is still in q state of siege.
THE property casses. and they com
prise the vast majority of our popula-
ton. live in a state of sieges II we doubt
it we have only to notice the bars and
bolts on every hand, the Waterman. the
policeman, everywhere.
After 1000 years of social order oil
one sort or another: after 1000 years OF
Christianity it is still the fact that those
who have must maintain their possession
by force or the threat of force. The
mailed hand of government lis over every
house and shop and bank vault in the
civilized world and apparently ii must
be so for centuries to come.
The criminal problem may be looked
upon as practically permanent and GER
tainly we have none more important
What ought to be done to protect the
hiding part of the community from
the part that is disposed to prey upon
it? That is the question.
"Of course the most desirable thing is
to get rid of crime itself, either by trans
forming the lawbreaker into a law-Ieep-
err and law-defender. or, better still, by
preventing the citizen from ever becoming
criminal at all.
The possible prevention of crime Is a
great subject by itself. The possible ref
ormation of the criminal is another
Main Object of Criminal Law.
But the main purpose and object of
criminal law We hold 20 be the welfare
and protection of society Itself. It is
this object which underlies all sound legis-
lation and judgments.
1T is this which justifies the infection
of punishments which would otherwise be
cruei. IT is this consideration that COM
pels the judge to turn his eyes away from
sl,a tr,1f ,l.,-
and even from the greater suffering that
often falls upon his family and friends
and keep his eyes fixed upon the thou
sands of innocent people whose safety and
security demand that the consequences of
law-breakng should be painful
I'VE do not believe in taking any atti-
tude toward the violators of law that will
lead them to look upon their offenses as
trivial. to look upon themselves as victims
of oppression or upon governments as
their debtor.
True Principles of Criminology
But we do believe in taking a passion
less, patient and impartial attitude toward
them, making it as easy possible to do
right. as difficult as possible to do wrong,
keeping always before their eyes the hope
of redeeming themselves and convincing
them in every practicable way that they
are still the makers of their own destiny.
We believe that some way ought to be
devised to prevent the return to social
life of those who have committed grave
crimes and have given no indication of re-
form. We believe that there should be a
rigid separation of those who are await
ing trial from those who have been con-
victed.
We believe that all convicted persons
who are able to work should be compelled
to work. We believe that those who may
be reasonably supposed to be reformab!e
should be treated and employed with that
end in view. We believe in the beneficial
effects of education upon most of those
who are confined in prisons.
I'VE believe that for certain criminals
there SHOULD be labor long and severe We
believe that no system of dealing with
the criminal classes should ever at any
point lose sight of the fact that the Grim
inal is a man. He should never be need
lessly degraded, insulted or abused
I'VE believe that vital and momentous
point of time is when the prisoner is
released and turned back upon the world.
and that the law should employ all DOS
sible agencies to guard and assist him in
making new start. We believe that
many who come up for sentence NAV be
wisely put in the watch-care Of judicious
officers and given one more chance to
choose between q life of decency and a
life of crime.