Weekly journal-miner. [volume] (Prescott, Ariz.) 1908-1929, 1912-01-31
(From Saturday. Daily
(By Frank e. McCrary)

10 maintain the Territorial prison
during the fiscal year ending June
80, 1911, cost the people sl0l ,639.33f
Arizona has a population Of $4,000.
Under the present methods the cost
will be unbearable when our popula.
ton runs into millions.
You may have no property TO he
taxed, but every storekeeper has, and,
the price Of everything you buy must
include his taxes. You cannot avoid
paying your share OF every expense
incident TO government. During the
year named, you have helped 10
guard, clothe, feed and house daily
average Of 445 men at the Territorial
prison. During the same year,
through your agents the courts, You
sent 20 prison 277 men at an esti.
mated cost Of 100000.
Few men 20 to prison who have BOT
women or children dependent upon
them for support. Every man has
God-given right 10 support his fam
lily, but, the law says conviet's
labor belongs 90 the state. Who
keeps dependent families Of eonviets
from starvingi You do. You pay for
the care and keep of the husband in
prison and then lower the moral tone
Of his unfortunate children by giving
them aims. Your prison methods breed
poverty, disease and crime. Is this
good business.
DO You believe that the people OF
Arizona are six times as bad as the
people Of New HampshireI IL this
is true, and you were bomesceker,
would YOU look for home in Ari-
zonas One out Of every 500 of Ari'
zona's population is in the prison at
Florence. In New Hampshire, only
one out of every $50 is in state pri.
son. In Georgia. where the negroes
outnumber the whites (nnd the whites
operate the courts) there is only one
out of every 300 in prison. Is Ari'
zona's moral tone lower than
Georgia'si
The new state of Arizona can raise
its standard Of citizenship by reduc'
ing the percentage of It's population In
prison. Howl BY creating board
Of managers which will have com
plete control Of those who drift in
and out Of the charitable, reforma'
tory and penal institutions Of the
state.
An indeterminate sentence law u
necessary. Arizona has such law
but IL is imperative. II permits the
iudse 10 sentence a man 20 prison for
an indeterminate term, whereas ~
should have made the indeterminate
sentence obligatory In all cases. The
Arizona courts have not seen TIT TO
impose the indeterminate sentence 10
any degree, because there has been no
pYoyision made 10 handle the men
paroled under this law. convict -
not necessarily a criminal. Through
the indeterminate sentence law the
parole bureau is given authority TO
supervise, outside prison walls, con
yiets who seem to be worth the ef'
fort. on course, there viii be found
instances when those who have been
paroled commit new crimes, but ~
.uch ea.es. the state IL saved the ex'
pense of n trial. The parole yioiator
IL returned to serve his maximum sen
tenee. Another result Of this law Is
this. IL drives from within our Dor
ders. the floating criminals who fear
its workings. Again, the indetermin'
ate sentence starts every eonvie'
.ven with his fellows. All have reia'
lively the same sentence. Each knows
lust what he has 70 do to make pos.
sible his parole at the expiration OF
his minimum sentence.
A parole Law is necessary IL sho"io
nut the power TO parole, exclusively
!, the hands Of a board. This board
shopld he authorized 20 look after the
eouviets ON parole; to find them EN-
pJovment IL necessary, and 10 en-
eouraee them in all proper ways The
narole officers warrant should be SUI
fieient 10 return paroled man 70
prison, subject To later hearing ny
the board.
Some wears ago, Indiana passed "
Law providing for the operation known
Ms vaseetomy 10 be performed on NJ
ineurable insane. imbeeiles, habitna
criminals and others Of defective
type. TO prevent the reproduction o.
their Kind. We now know that th'
Mcnamara boys dynamited the Lo
Angeles Times building r committee
wholesale murder. II is said tina
their father was repeater ana
life man in the Ohio penitentiary. !
the operation named had been pei
formed on him during his first ser
teuee there might have been no Nc
Namara boys to do wholesale murde
New Jersey, Indiana, Iowa, oonnee,
emf and California have this Sc
law. win California apply u TO u
McNsmara boys' VIII N" ''''"''