The Washington herald., 1912-10-22
Our Prison Reform Experience.


treated with as much kindness as cir
eumstances will permit, and all agencies
that will make for genuine reform
should be encouraged. But there has
been sufficient proof recently that sem
timentalny has been carried beyond the
point of safety. A prison is place
for punishment and those who find
themselves behind Its walls while un-
derstanding that good conduct may
shorten their sentence. should not be
permitted to regard it as affording a
short cut TO freedom by the path of
violence
There have been several illuminating
Instances of the manner in which GER
tain so-called prison reform methods
meet the test of experience. All of
these have been sensational and Sc
rious. The first of them that attract
ed attention all over the country was
the outbreak in the Michigan peniten-
tiary, where the mutiny reached such
proportions that the civil authorities
were powerless to subdue it and the
8 itary had 10 be called to their as
sistaIice. Yet that Institution had been
re- fssp al prison reform meetings and
: other gatherings of sociological in
.ssrsf as model of its class, as bring
ias uppermost that which was best in
li5ian nature, even when it had gone
ray, and as lifting to the surface
ac-or and manhood of the inmates.
II that was needed was faith in
theory to justify the belief that we
were making hopeful progress toward
reterm. But there came a time when
~ system meant only opportunity for
tsose for whose supposed benefit it had
hssi instituted They forgot the priv
LES that had been granted, the kind
- Ses bestowed upon them, and made
q desperate effort to obtain the free
FiefE- which they priced more than any
sjiHg else. Then came the reaction,
sel taste of the whipping post to the
{ mt of their endurance was the Sc
quel to the lax discipline that had been
exercised in the name of humanity. As
q result the kind of reform" that had
been practiced probably will not be re-
vived in that State.
In Rhode Island similar trouble has
been experienced on somewhat
smaller scale. In that instance. how
ever. it was less case of good inten-
tion than of loose methods and neg
lect OF ordinary precautions. One of
the worst prisoners was "A pet of the
warden. and where escape was SO easy
he arailed himself of his chances and
is now desperado at large.
But the jail delivery at Rawlins,
Wyo-. in which escaped convicts ard
armed guards had a battle resulting in
the death of two citizens on the street.
was the climax of series of troubles
which has been in progress ever since
the reform" policy was instituted two
wears ago. The beginning of it was
ne burning of the broom factory. One
the convicts committed suicide. AMI
elfer almost murdered fellow-con-
ct, and many escapes have occurred.
was few days previous to the des-
rate dash for liberty that the pris-
fers lynrhed negro brought there
yr protection against the wrath of an
tdde mob. This gave them sense
their own power The authorities
: ght have known that they would use
when the time came, but apparently
extra precautions were taken.
These three happenings ought to con-
tute impressive object lessons, COM
81 as they do in such rapid succession
eey seem to prove that where men are
ssihned against their wills and for
Tsiitive purposes only strict discipline
sslh power to enforce it will answer
- the protection of society against
ts.ose who have de6ed its laws.
"a