Elk City mining news. (Elk City, Idaho) 1903-1913, 1912-08-01
I'm LAND OF CRIME
OFFICIAL FOR MANY YEARS is
GORGED WITH MURDERS.
Views Of F. q. FreyIIng, Who Knows
the Underworld, on the Require
ments Of Prisoners and tho
Causes of Offenses.

London.-For nearly half century
have been associated In an ofiiciai
capacity with that curious. but In
tensely interesting, section Of human
ity known as the underworld. f. G.
Freyling writes in London Answers.
1t Is strange and mystic region. In
1t dwell actual characters whose doing
and emotions are more amazing than
any portrayed by even the most vivid
and imaginative novelist.
have been engaged officially in
many of the most sensational crimes
particularly murders-of recent times.
It has not been at all uncommon for
me to have to listen to the details or
murders for whole week at a time.
Indeed l remember the late Justice
Hawkins afterward Baron Brampton.
trying four murders at the Old Bailey
In one week All of them were SEN
fenced to death. And later Justice
Darling in my presence tried three In
forty-eight hours. In these cases, too,
the dread sentence Of death was
passed. but two of the men were re-
proved. l was officially engaged In
all these prosecutions
For thirty-one years, at least, have
been gorged with crime, and l cannot
for one moment believe that a man
who has been thus employed can
emerge from the ordeal otherwise than
with his ideas as to some people be-
ing somewhat distorted.
1t has been pointed out to me that
In the many years I have been en-
gagged in criminal work l have had
endless opportunities Of doing good In
the shape of advice. warnings and ex-
hortations to discharged prisoners and
their friends and relatives. Has any
body except the court missionaries, the
probation officers and clergy whose
duty 1t Is, tried to induce a prisoner
to reform and lead a better life?
And. If so, with what result?
In my humble way 1 have delivered
many lecture to prisoners friends
and relatives and on three occasions,
at least, prisoners whom have prose-
cuted have come to me, after serving
their sentences, and thanked me for
my conduct
But my experience has been that
prisoners don't want your advice, and
they don't want your lectures. What
they want is money which might en-
able them to live honestly after their
discharge. Withoe it they must either
starve or thieve.
1t Is no use giving a man a religious
tract when he wants food. Try lit
tie of both and you may succeed. But
the effort must be sustained or your
subject will inevitably drop back into
evil courses
Statistics Of crime, need it be said.
only include judicially condemned
criminals. Hidden crime far exceeds
prosecuted crime. Thousands of cases
tried in court are never reported to
the public. nor could they be; and
there must be large numbers of GRIM
inal matters which never come before
the courts at all, because of certain
difficulties in the way Of prosecution.
Indeed. can assure my readers that
the official career of man compelled
to be always looking at the seamy side
OF nature Is not one to be envied.
Now. there appear to me to be two
productive causes Of crime One is
the nature Of the individual, the other
his or her social environment.
1t Is, Of course, not a mans fault
That he Is born bad. and from his earli-
est childhood is brought up in the
midst of crime. 1t is, however unlike
ly that he will. under these circum-
stances, escape contamination. But,
Notwithstanding his unfortunate lot,
he must be punished, when he COM
mits crime. that others may be de-
TERED and his particular crime re-
pressed. If possible.