The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1913-10-09
OSBORNE ENDS
PRISON Term
Much Pleased Over success
Of his Experiment
THE system At AUBURN
n, Fire. " unir,siliesrs. iosnreiiss
Ard Cruel TfvsAa Ergrriatse W
llnsoin ana othsft ags,ns Sisysrr
psxisswc apeiieshis 20 prison star.
sy--Unsermliy ~ psnlshmsru

Aubsm ~ ~ OFT 2 Thomas
" OsDofne. enAiriusa u me Nes
porh stare COMMITTEES On Ffigpn ~
term aiisf spcnasas sea- "a A
uain prison ~ "a inmate fof ihs ppf'
fsHe ~ sig6yinR ihr PRISON stftea
from nra- hand sources. eldet W
tsii Imposed term and has reiafned 4
hsg aesE Hc praises siste Sgpcrip'
ienasui ~ Prisons Riley Tor resent re-
terms ana condemns tho present we
ton
Osborne was paiS and tired ans
showed the marks ~ hts gfdrals hD'
be pas enthusiastic over the success
~ biz experiment. which included
taste q ever experience thal Is pos
Fsbic Tor an inmate TO underfo ~ d.
from elcrlfoeu,inn he even com
miiied misdeeds u suffrien, moment
10 cause bis Incarceration IN TIE dan
Feon cells and he lay on his back on
the board neof 10 the prison iail from
O'Clock Saturday until O'Clock sun
day morning. his ration consisting 81
three giiIs Of water and three slices
ui tread
ne declared this part Of his expert
snce took him into the lowermosi
circles u inferno. and be "a positive
that the fruits Of bis weeks stay In
prison viii Be very valuable 70 the
commission IN the work II has before
a.
a am more than ever confirmed Ia
my previous opinion be said. that
the prtaon system IN singulariy unin-
teliigeni. ineffective and cruel ID
many respects the material welfare Of
the eonyicis ii well looked after
While IL Is MOI advisable for me 10
attempt % formulate any detailed
criticism o. the prison system at this
time. because am tired and be-
wildered as result OF my expert
ences, there are one or two things
that n viii be well 70 mention while
they are fresh IN mind
FIRST. the prison system Is form
Of slavery The great truths enunci-
ated BY Lincoln and others against
slavery are equally applicable to pris-
on slavery II takes from the con
Wet his own initiative and freedom Of
action and be becomes an irresponsi-
Bile automaton. unable 10 guide his
own destiny when he returns 20 the
outside world
"As one instance Of the nninteiif-
seDcc Of the system, there Is the at
tempt 10 drive prisoners from the
normal uses OF their senses Of sight
and speech. After seven days Of
marching and countermarching ! am
utterly unable to tell you about the APP
pearance OF the men Of my company
and can only describe the haircuts OH
about twenty men who marched and
sat IN front of me
Another nnintelligent aspect Is the
way the system inevitably tends to-
ward making punishment for small Of
lenses the same as for great oifsnses.
There Is no difference, for Instance,
between the offense Of a man who
speaks IN the shop and man whoI
tries 20 sili his Keeper with crow
bar Both are treated to the dungeon.
| obtained from my night In the pun
ishmout cell a glimpse into the lowest
circles OF inferno, and II viii be best
for me not TO try 70 analyze my im-
preston about II at this time.
There In a frightful waste Of hui
man life and ingenuity, there Is sich
awful waste in the utilization Of the
principle Of reformation Realizing
the considerable number OF degener-
ates and other undesirable citizens In
ciuded in the ranks Of the prisoners.
! was amazed AZ the amount Of splen-
did courage. fine feeling and neigh
borly interest displayed by the in
mates towards each other.
What a cruelty IL IL 10 forbid man
10 write more than one letter month
Think Of Il, He has been. perhaps, !
carried away from wife and family |
His friends are full Of sympathy He
Ia plunged into this strange and lone
some prison world and then By re-
finemeni OF cruelty he Is denied the
privilege Of writing What Is gained
by such restrictions | hope 10
translate these experiences into some
thing Of great value 10 cnnyicts, TO
myself and 10 the people Of this state.