Los Angeles herald., 1909-08-09

Prison association, the Massachusetts,
Prison association, the Central Howard
association and the National Probation
League, both of Chicago, and the Board
of State Charities of Indiana, all of
whose officers have furnished US with
publications and information that have
been of great service, we have taken
great heart from the letters sent us
by individuals. Nothing can exceed the
cordiality shown by such men as Brand
Whitlock, the we'll known mayor of
Toledo, author of 1.-THE Turn of the
Balance" and other works: Lincoln
Steffens, whose investigation of mu-
nicipal corruption has made him an
expert on the administration of crimi-
nal law; Fred r. Bechdolt, Joint au-
thor of No. 9009" and author OF many
other noted stories. Judge Cleland NC
Kenzie, whose work in the municipal
court of Chicago has given him ma
tional reputation; Elbert Hubbard, VINO
more than six years ago republished
in The Philistine IngersolPs notable
address Grimes Against Criminals,
and since then has himself written
many excellent articles on that sub
iect; and such specialists as u. r.
Brockway, for many years head of the
Flnira reformatory; G. V. Collins,
superintendent of state prisons in New
York: Amos w. Butler of Indianapo-
lis, John H. Wigmore Of Chicago and
many others.
William Marion Reedy, editor Of
the Mirror st. Louis, and largely
quoted writer, also has done service
that is much to be appreciated. so
has the Sheldon University Press, of
Libertyville, Ill, whose magazine, THE
- I,a q
culation in connection with the Inter
national Correspondence school and
will shortly contain a somewhat ex-
haustive article giving the entire work
and program of the Prison Reform
League.
Politicians Render Aid
No one can study this question with
out being driven to the conclusion that
politics lies, a fatal shadow, over the
entire administration of the criminal
law, and we have not cultivated ma
tional politicians to any great extent.
Senator La6Follette, however, put him
self to much trouble to procure official
documents for our Chicago office, as
did Representative McLachlan for that
in Los Angeles. Hon. John w. Hill,
of the general assembly of Ill
nois, who was chairman of the COM
mittee that last year made an eXten-
sive investigation into and report on
the institutions of that state, not only
wrote us at great length but forwarded
us documents of much value. From
the committees report much of which
was hideously black We now quote, Nin
order to show that conditions are such
that politicians cannot afford to
ignore them. The first passage select
ed is from that portion of the report
that deals with the death at the Pom
tiac reformatory of William Hamlin,
aged 10, and runs:
"Too much attention cannot be given
to the punishment to which Hamlin
was subjected. Hamlin was cuffed up
on the morning of the gath of Decem-
Der, his hands being hung as high
above his head as he could reach, in
which position he was kept the entire
day of the oath, and all night of the
oath, all day of the 25th, until 2
o'clock of said day, when he was let
down for two hours. At the eXpir-
alton of two hours he was again cuffed
up, or put in irons, as it is sometimes
termed, handouts being put around his
wrists and the chain to which the
handouts were attached put over the
crossbar over the door, about six feet
and one-half from the floor, holding
his hands at full arm length above his
head, and kept in that position from
that time until o'clock of the next
day, when he was again given two
hours rest. At the end of the two
hours he was again cuffed up similar
ly as befors and kept in that position
until he was injured. During the time
of confinement in the solitary the pris-
oner is allowed one piece of bread a
day, but is allowed all 1he water he
cares to drink. The solitary cells are
rude, primitive structures, relics of
medieval torture; each cell is about
seven and one-half feet high, between
four and five feet wide, about seven
and a half feet long; the floor, the
ceiling, the side walls and one end
wall are of cement. In the cement end
of the wall there is a window about
two feet square. The other end wall
consists of bars iron bars, in which
iron bars is door"
Hung Up for Days
From the evidence taken we add the
boys dying statement that they had
hung him up for the best part of three
days and nights by the hands until he
could endure 1t no longer, of which fact
he apprised the guard, telling him that
he could not stand 1t and begged to be
let down for a while; that when he
heard the guard coming in to chain
him UP again hes broke and ran and
climbed on the bars, and hung as long