The Wenatchee daily world. [volume] (Wenatchee, Wash.) 1905-1971, 1910-12-31
most CRIMINALS.
UNDER 50
Oldest Convict is 73, but One
Of 81 Was Recently
Released.

interesting statistics regarding the |
ages Of criminals have been compiled |
by the state board of control in its |
biennial report to Governor Hay. It'll
is shown that in the state peniten-
tiary there are rs conyicts under the
age of 20 and ASS hetween the ages
of 90 and 80, making a total of SCI !
who are under the age of 80 years. |
This is more than double the num-
Der between the ages of 80 and 40
years as 23s come in that class.
AS men grow older they grow bet |
ter, or else they are discharged from |
the prison, for there are only 70 in |
Jail between 40 and so years old. |
They grow still better in the decade |
between so and 60, as there are on
ly 81 committed who are under the |
age of 60 and more than so years |
old. Those who have passed the
three-score year mark and get in
trouble number only Is and there is
only one prisoner at Walla Walla |
who has passed the allotted space of |
three score years AMI 10. He is 10 |
years of age. One man, 81 years
old. was received during the past
biennium, but he was later released
These figures show that the charge |
frequently made that most of the
dangerous criminals are young ones |
is true, at least this record bears out |
the statement frequently made that
it is men under the age of 80 years
who commit more crimes than any
others The fact that rs inmates of
the penitentiary are under 20 years
OF age shows that the youth of Wash
ington as certain percentage are
decidedly bad. There are PAT in
mates between the ages of 20 and
% years.
Majority Are Incorporate.
Another striking feature of the
report is that of the 901 inmates of
the state penitentiary 1876 are class
ed as incorporate, 1S2 as temperate
and 3 are moderate. Just what is
meant by moderate is not defined
and that definition would prove
most interesting if someone attempt
ed to make it clear to the average
layman.
1t as also shown that of the in
mates $50 pleaded not guilty when
arraigned in court, while $50, or
more than so per cent, admitted
their guilt
1t has often been contended that
single men are more likely to get
into trouble than married men and
this report of the state penitentiary
bears this out. Of the inmates 500 i
are single men, 141 married. % have
been divorced and 80 are widowers.
This would indicate that the mar
ried men have too many troubles
of their own to get busy breaking
laws.
Many Are Orphans.
It is also shown in the report that
319 of the inmates are orphans, 219 Il
have both parents, 1915 have fathers
who are dead and 1913 have mothers
who are dead, while in Is instances
it is not known whether the parents
are alive or dead.
Comparatively few prisoners re-
turn for the second term, or at least
few of them are in the Jail at the
present time, as out of the 9G1 prfs-
oners $40 are serving their first
term. So are in for the second time,
u are third termers and one bears
the distinction of having been sent
back for the fourth time.
In Washington more Protestants
than Catholics seem to get into trou-
bic, as the report of the state board
Of control shows that SAT Protest
ants are in the prison while SIS Ca
thclics have been committed The
Mormons have managed to get along
without being represented, while 9
heathon are in Jail. The atheists are
also law abiders or else there are
none of them in the state TO amount
to anything, while % profess no re-
ligion.