The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1912-01-03
SPRING WILL TEST
PAROLE SYSTEM
Governor OF Oregon Discharges
Prison Guards and Lets Pris-
oners Work Out

Salem, Orc. January 2.-Govcrnor
Oswa Vests convict parole system.
open door" prison policy his oppo-
nents call 1t, which has given rise 70
political hullabaloo, is approaching
its final tryout spring training. as 4
were.
Political enemies have contended the
Governors honored guest OF the state.
sir, attitude toward the convicts might
work out fairly we'll In the cold. gray
months OF winter but that when spring
begins TO issue it's annual call 10 the
wild there won't be enough "honor''
conTicts In the state to man tho pcni-
tertiary pump, OrcEon's youthful exc
cutivc is planning TO show the sceDti-
cal that tho honor OF convict Will
resist spring and all its wiles. He
says he's going TO turn the convicts
loose in droves and he will make
a bet with any one that they stay
within bounds
Every once in Il while the young
Governor. who popped into the exc
cu:'ve's office through the door OF the
State railroad commissioncrship. turns
Il trick with the convicts that sttrs
tho state from its boots up. lie start
cd in by discharGing nm army Of
guards and telling the warden To let
the convicts do a. little moro runnin:;
around Ivy themselves. He said his idea
was that If they got square treatment
they'd be wis ccnouEh to take advan-
taEc Of ii and lead better lives
One day the Governor called Nd the
warden over the telephone and told nm
10 send Jim Baggs, who was consid-
cred enc OF the most desperate crimi-
NAILS in the prison. down to hi, Office
which is about half milo from the
pcnitcntiary.
Give him dime tor stree, car far,
and tell him where 10 come" the Gov
crnor ordered.
The warden told the Governor bc
would put up his last nickel that IL. lin
had a dime and his liberty lie would bc
as hard to catch as the provcrbial
March hare. But the Governor said 10
send him along, anyway
In half an hour or so a palc-faccd
man, In prison suit of clothes. got off
street car in front of the State House
',''' asked Tor the Governor 1t was
I'm Instead of trying TO get away
he told almost every attendant he mo-,
az thc capitol who lie was and how he
came. lie seemed pretty proud of him
self. - NM
Jim was ono OF the first of the Gov
'rhors honor mon" lie won, an
ana sol Job with Il farmer in Wash
ihSton county and wrote TO tho Cover
nor I" tell him he liked farmin, bcttrr
'han pulling the stopper out of ,safcs
ana hiEhwayinS." lie told the Exccu-
i've that Governor West was suu.ro
guy and he intended TO see that ihe
rlSht thing was dono by him.
u wasn't long before the C;ovcrror
WIS ic'tinG out honor men" in nocj,s
some Of them so; jobs as attendants
AZ the state reform school an, ,hn
state asylum for the insane and hosni'
tai Tor the fccble-mindcd.
am going to make IA lot or mon
out OF a lot of men and not a lot ~
rorntcs ont OF u lot of men" tbo O..
erhor put it, So he personally or-a-
ili|cd pcnitcntiary baseball teams aud
IN one game he himself pitched FOR tho
winning side; before il was winnint,
TOO. lie got some people intcrns,aI
III MS theory and they organizer tba
Prison Aid Society. aud through ,bcir
help Governor West bought a moving
picture outfit and Installed MOVING
picture SHOW In THO pcnitentiary. lie
started u newspaper and cvcry month
OF SO mas signed article In II tell.
ing the convicts what good fcl,ov.s
thcy are and to he fair and snuora
Every year the city OF pcndleton in
Eastern oregon, has a three DAYS. wild
west SHOW, called the Roundup. This
save Governor West an ideu. He knew