White Pine news weekly mining review. [volume] (East Ely, Nev.) 1910-1920, 1911-01-22
MAKING MEN BY
PAROLE SYSTEM
INMATES OF THE PENITENTIARY
WITH no RESTRAINT ASIDE
FROM PERSONAL fLfD"h
HAVE ATTEMPTED ESCAPE.

The parole system, as tried in this
state with some of the unfortunate
inmates of its penitentiary, appears
ito be justifying all that its advocates
claimed for 1t when its institution
was preached. A number OF the In
mates have been placed at work on
the state farm, with no more re-
straint over them than is involved
in their personal pledge not to abuse
their liberty nor to escape. And in
the couple of years during which the
system has been experimental with
not one of these aliens of society,
these shipwreeked derelicts, has
broken this pledge. Rather a good
showing, Is 1t not, for a lot of con
viets," when in u usual work-a-day
business life We are prone TO regard
the pledged word of our competitors
as of hardly any value?
Society is beginning to amend and
modify its views as regards The status
of its unfortunate members subject
ed TO restraint and reform in peno-
logical institutions. We are beginning
to realize that organized society still
has its responsibilities in the prem
Uses. and that perhaps il was not alto
gether blameless in the matter of its
~so-called criminals"
The tendency now In the appliea-
tion of pathological science is TO give
the poor devil another chance-to
make him over. as il were. For it
must be borne in mind that of the
total but a small percentage n o n
genial criminals. The others have
become so through environment. force
of circumstances. or what not-but
there is still left the germ of man.
hood and w~omanhood. So today the
problem in ~penology is how to most
make over the unfortunate who has
transgressed soeiety's laws-to give
him another chance to make good,
with perhaps a fairer start.
The discussion of a problem of this
character can be approached from
many different directions, can be
urged from many sIandpoints. but
whatever prejudice one may hold
against the criminal class" social
ed, as a whole, ii must always be re-
membered. for one thing, that there
are many innocent men suffering for
the crimes of others. This fact alone
would Justify nor humane and more
liberal treatment of those confined.
Then. too. the rationale of punish
ment must be considered. If the
only objection in sending a man to
the p~enitentiary is to enforce the old
Mosaic code. why then Ii matters
little how harshly he is treated when
he gets there. since We only desire
to see him suffer. But if, as is more
probable. punishment is intended to
be but corrective and reformative,
then all past practices in penology
have been wrong. And society has
g%rievously wronged its more unfort-
innate members.
The science of penology-or,
rather. so much OF it is entitled to
be called a seienee-is but in it's in
fancy. But ii is old enough for us to
realize some of the many wrongs
committed in the name of Justice.
Among the things We are learning is
that the practice is a vicious one
which herds together indiserimin-
ately the first offender and the con
firmed law-breaker. Ii is unjust to
the former in that IL is eorruptive.
With as much reason one might as
we'll pack rotten fruit and sound in
the same barrel.
We are getting wiser in this old
world of ours. and part of our added
wisdom is a broader humanity and a
larger charity for the lowly and the
unfortunate. The poor We shall
have always with YOU said the
great Teacher. And so long as we
have poverty will We have suffering.
and with suffering crime-and If
society be responsible for the poverty
then is il responsible for its conse-
quences. In acknowledgment of this
responsibility, then. the least organ
lied society a do for its erring is
TO reprimand them in a spirit of
charity and humanity .-Tonopan