The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1911-05-22

care as opposed to the long years pre-
ceding, surely if one made good by
reason of the work, it was justified.
"All of the seventeen except two
have either finished their terms or
been pardoned. No definite effort has
been made to keep up with them, but
their letters are frequent, telling of
battles fought and victories won;
sometimes of temptation that was too
strong for them, asking advice on
matters material and spiritual, finan-
cial and moral. They never ask for
aid other than advice. One Is at
West Point, N. Y, having Joined the
Army another is fireman on a rail-
road; another working in an overall
factory; two are employed by farm
ers; one is at work in a sawmill; 9TH
ers are at home with their parents.
I'm spite of all their efforts, they
are and will remain to the end Of life
ex-convicts. theoretically, philosophy
and religion teach that an error re-
pented of and atoned for, should be
forgiven, and the offender restored to
his former place, but we do not follow
this teaching, and it is with actual
conditions that we have to deal.
Vicious Surroundings.
MANY boys in the prisons Of the
State were brought up amid vicious
surroundings and have never known
anything else; but if taken in hand
while yet they are young, they can be
saved to the State and become valu-
able citizens-but if thrown in prison
with vile associates, their criminal
tendencies are only increased.
"At the session of the Legislature
of 1910, Senator Mcdowell again in
troduced his Juvenile Reformatory bill
After passing the Senate by an over
whelming vote, it went to the House
where after a hard fight, it passed by
a majority of sixteen votes, only to be
defeated the following day on recon
sideration, under a misapprehension
Why, who can tell? Possibly a pres
sure of other business prevented the
legislators from giving the matter
: their individual time and thought, pos
sibly they lacked means of informa
ton as to existing conditions ant
needs. Will YOU see that YOUR leg
islators are in possession Of facts?
What about the negro, is some
times asked. We have Agriculture
High Schools without them; We ar,
to have a State Normal School with
out them; we have elections withou
them; surely we can have a juvenile
+ Reformatory without them if it Il
deemed advisable.
p, "The expense must be considered
I Such an institution can scarcely b
e wholly self-sustaining, but located il
e the country, with the boys doing farr
n and garden work half a day and a
h school the other half, it will not b
t a heavy expense. This plan is prat
t teal. 1t is being carried out in man
S places. Prisons, courts, the machii
e cry of justice is by far the most e,
l. pensive department of our govern
e ment. It is infinitely cheaper in do
d lars and cents to reform a boy an
e make a citizen of him than it is
o change him into an ex-convict. In
l. certain instance in this State it CO!
e $4,000 to send man to the Penitel
d tiary for two years, and this is by I
e means an isolated case.
e Number On Farm.
If "Since June, 1909, to the prssel
e time, period of less than two year
e, fifty white boys. under twenty-on
a. have been on the Rankin State Farm