The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1913-07-24
JAIL TO HAVE SCHOOL
County Commissioners Of ST. Louis County
Have Been Asked to See That a School
is Installed in the County Jail as the
Law provides.

6Uu tIVUtuVus
The county commissioners will be asked
at their next session, to insist that Sheriff
| Meining shall afford the needed facilitie
for school in the county Jail. The boare
has already authorized such school unde
the new state law, which had its origin
in Duluth.
The law as it reads does not give tn,
sheriff any discretion in the matter; it rest
all the discretionary powers with the com
missioners. The sheriff, however, refuse.
to permit the forming of classes on the bas.
is of possible danger.
We believe he is entirely mistaken in thi.
and the experience in other jails and in
prisons shows that he is.
The situations, that for several years a
woman in Duluth, who has given much OF
her time to prison reform work with re-
markable efficiency, has been freely admit
ted to the Jail for such work and Mr..
Meining, while sheriff, has in no way OBJ
jected to this, but quite the contrary, to
his decided credit.
She has taught the prisonesrs by going
from cell to cell, sitting outside the graf
ing. These men were found so eager to
learn and so apt, that this new law was pro-
posed to facilitate the work through form
ing the men in classes and providing teach
ers at the county's expense.
In the local Jail there is range of cells
in the middle of the cell room. These
consist of the usual two rows of cells facing
each other, with narrow passageway be-
tween. The cell fronts opening on this
passage form solid steel walls, the lighting
being only through grating at either end. :.
But surrounding this cage or double row
of cells is wide, open corridor and the cell
ends on this corridor are open grating. 1t
is here this women has sat to teach the in
mates, going from cell to cell.
To carry out the law it is necessary for
the sheriff to permit the prisoners to come
out into this corridor, where in one or two
classes they can be taught in groups. This,
he says, would be dangerous.
Yet in every modern prison the prisoners
are gathered by the hundred in large school
rooms for just such instruction. We do not
any attempt at jailbreaking from
such meeting; we do not remember any
published report of any attempt at an out
break at such time or even any distur-
bance.
Yet the liability of danger would be far
greater among prisoners, all serving time for
crimes, than among those merely accused
and waiting trial, or serving short sentences
for misdemeanors.
The sheriff, we understand, has offered
to let the men be taught in the narrow,
1imly lighted, inner passageway, where
there would be far greater opportunity and
far greater temptation to do harm, than in
he large, light, atty corridor.
We can not butSbelieve that as he gives
his matter second, serious consideration,
ne will freely and fully cooperate in carry
ng out this law and the authorization of
he school by the commissioners, which |
mounts practically to instructions. He
;an station guard at the door to give an |
'larm in case of the slightest disturbance
II indication of trouble. With such pre-
;aution his responsibility would end there
AN be no question as to this.
There is no need to discuss the value of |
he work. He knows himself of the results.
Not one per cent Of hundreds who have had
his chance for instruction has refused it.
They have, almost without exception. been
ager for it, have grabbed for it, and in
most instances it has been the first oppor-
unity they have had for any form of
chooling.
The letters they have written after con-
iction or after release to express their ap-
'reciation are not only full of gratitude,
'ut of new born resolve and newborn
of responsibility. We refuse
o believe that any official would merely
stand in the way of such a
novement.-D Duluth News Tribune.