The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-01-11
Chaplains From Five Prisons
Talk of Their Duties.
WOMEN'S REFORM SLOW
Talk of Their Souls to Chaplain
for Effect.
Prisoners Should Have Home to
Go to When Free.

Kansas City, Mo, Jan. 11.-FlVe
prison chaplains from three states told
the tenth annual convention OF the
Society for the F'riendless their ex-
periences in making good men out OF
bad ones in a meeting of the Y. M
c. A. building.
Pm sorry to say that am not very
hopeful of the reformation of our
women prisoners" was the thunder
bolt with which ]. ]. Martin. chap
lain of the Missouri penitentlary at
Jefferson City, began his address Out
of the 1900 prisoners there' SHY
four. are women, and of these hfty-
four are negroes. OF these ten Wnlte
women, eight are charged with kllnns
their husbands. The women are not
susceptible to reform. They taiK Oh
their souls to the chaplain ana tnen
stoop to the meanest actions oenlno
his back.
THE prisoners must first learn that
law is sovereign. Only about per
cent give trouble to the deputy ward
ems. but that per cent IS SO actlNe
that rigorous measures must De used.
Often it is necessary to crush the
spirit of such men before we can get
at their better natures. Wherever
possible I try to arouse the latent
manhood in a prisoner, but even the
most ingenious theories fail before
the real conditions of the case.
The Value of Kind Words.
"Often kindness will do where other
methods fail. but believe in teaching
above all the sovereignty of the law.
Then. believe that the prisoners
must have proper food. Hungry men
are no good and as result OF changes
for the better in this department. the
contractors say they obtain better
no nriGOnPTS CPrt9lnlX
their conduct has improved wonder
fully"
Mr.. Martin spoke in the place of
Henry NJ. Andrae, the warden, who
could not come to Kansas City.
The Rev. Leroy A. Halbert, secre-
tary of the pardon and parole board,
spoke on conditions at the workhouse.
He urged the necessity of increasing
the facilities for teaching the prison.
ers useful trades. Many of those in
the workhouse and jail are now COM
PEELED to remain idle, he explained.
No Homes to Go to When Free.
Thomas Houston, chaplain of the
Kansas penitentiary, reminded his au-
dience that when the offender leaves
the prison, often he has no place to-
go and is greatly in need of help. He
said that there were S44 men and
thirty-six women at the Lansing
prison.
Inmates know that the chaplain has
faith in them" he said in part. MANY
of them are exceedingly sensitive to
their condition. 1 deplore greatly
that so much of the dime novel liter
ature is finding its way into the con-
vict's cell They do not want this
kind of reading. most of them, as is
shown by the pathetic eagerness with
which they seize upon good books
within reach
The speaker explained the good
done by religious work among the
convicts.
Discipline Imperative There.
Francis Doherty, chaplain of the
military prison at Fort Leavenworth,
Kan, attended, wearing his military
uniform made it clear that discipline
must rule supreme in a military pris-
on.
This is a different class of work
from the ordinary prison reform
work" he said. 1.-The chief offenders
here are deserters, and in most cases
their fall was due to defective home
training. I will give a case in point.
"One of our prisoners was a young
man from the Tennessee mountains.
Willful and proud, he had been spoil
ed by too indulgent parents. Then a
friend enlisted and he followed suit.
The inevitable happened. The rigid
military discipline and the pangs of
inconsistencies caused him to leave. To
the public desertion does not seem
men regard this differently and he
was brought back to where he had to
obey. 1t was an awful struggle, but