Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1913-12-24
NEARpEN M'cLAUGHRY, OF ANA
aosA PRISON, sLAMEs PAR.
sENrs FOR MUCH CRIME.
DETECTIVES BRED THRU
ALCOHOLISM AND DISEASE
Points to Large Per Cent Of Prison In.
nnates a. Mentally Deficient Because
Of Sins of Father or Mother-Nar-
row Dividing Limo Between Paths Of
Right and Wrong.

who leaves the green fields and pleas
ant pasture Of right living and goes
afar into the desert Of crime asked
&c McClaughry, warden of the state
EefoFmatory. at Ananosa. who ad-
dressed the men at the First Congre-
gatlonal church, using as his treatme emit,
why Men Get In In his subject, of
the subject he dealt with the many
phases Of criminology.
I'VE can only look at the line which
divides right from wrong-a line so
fine that it must be drawn with the
edge OF the keenest sword = and
know that on this side lies the right
ana beyond that line does wrong. Now
this line must be drawn with the keen,
sharp edge of conscience. for conscl-
ence is the keen sword which we bear
ever with US and which wounds or
goads US. when we urge ourselves
against 1t.
For nearly forty years have been
asking myself this same question why
do mon disobey the law? Where are
the beginnings OF that downward
course that brings its traveller to crime
and TO the barred door of the prison?
All Prisoners Not Criminals.
"Now, not all whom the law impris-
ons are criminals in intent. There IS,
as yon must know, small number OF
men and women, and very small the
number Is, whose nlisdeed was the
product of accident or ignorance. For
the others the downward course TO
crininality began in simple lie, IN
the smallest action that brought the
impulse to. or the supposed necessity
of concealment or evasion OF fact.
have seen parents lie about the ages
of their children when the question OF
adequate fare in a public conveyance
was up: I have seen people IN the
nresence of their children conceal
their nicke1s because the conductor VI
a street car had missed them When
collecting fares. These people are In
oiptent criminals and were teaching
crime. Is It any wonder that IN
later wears they found that theif
children were decetving them. and mad
started petty offerings and by other
roads that involved stealth. cunning
salfishness. and disregard of the rights
Of others. on the broad highway that
leads to recognized criminahtyf
"Teach the young child to abhor
eytl. Many persons are seemingly Oh
the opinion that the extent OF crlnaln-
aIity in our land is measured by only
those persons who are caught AZ
crime. That Is sad mistake. FOR
every one in prison the expenehceu
professional criminals figure thal h'e
ara at large-this ratio Is Tor crimes
OF magnitude-burglary, robbery lot
gerry. counterfeiting. swlnohne' etc.'
while for petty theft sneak tnie' ~
and the so-called minor crimes - no
-. a.ad,y TO the criminal in the for
feit,,re OF his right to liberty or MS
sours salvation, however-it Is hsureo
+het over a hundred criminals are at
1.roa for every one in confinement.
.In oo,r study Of the imprisoned
or;ninal we find that liquor, drugs
and the social evil stand as the three
grean agents Of Satan dn weakening
man, resistance to the evil that IS
ever present within his nature OF a.
his elbow, and are the leading 1actois
that overcome his Impulses TO 90 rig ~ :
and open the door to crime. MOI All OIL
the prisoners at Anamosa WILL ac
knowledge the previous Use on nQuot
or drugs.
Inherited Tendencies.
I'm fact according to their own
statements, only AZ per cent admit the
1,se of liquors, and a very few to the
use of drugs. But in our study OF unelF
minds we find that 59-S per cent are
sub normal That means that with an
average Of 25h years for the "'hoie
about go per cent OF this whole mum :
her are those of children OF III years
Of age and Less. That is out OF I'll
prisoners examined by the Binet-Sim-
12S
were mentally only II years old, eight
10 years old, tWeTEtyseven years old
one s years old, two Z years old, and
ten Ave years old.
"Do YOU know what that means?
It mears that just as in the case OF
So per cent Of the 13o, 600 insane VINO
crowd the asylums Of the United
States the cause Of their mental
feebleness lay In the combined agen-
cies OF alcoholism and venereal dis
eases. either in themselves or in their
parents unto the third and fourth gen.
erations preceding them. While very
few Of this so per cent OF sub-norma1
minds in our institution are incapa-
BILE of following the simple laws of
Gods ten commandments for even a
little child may follow them, 1t means
that with bad environment, neglect,
lack Of training and care in youth, lack
of familiarity with his simple laws,
in addition to the burden Of enfeebled
mentally thru bad herehty. coupled
with the strong passions and tempta-
lions of physically full grown men,
they have come into the position of
active enemies Of the law.
DO you see how difficult is the
duty of retraining this go per cent?
Do you realize how nearly hopeless is
the task OF taking a man Of full stat
ure. of fixed habits back to the moral
training he should have had when
z young and tractable, in order that his
disordered view of right and wrong
may be corrected and he may be re-
leased as a safe and sane citizen. Do you
realize what infinite patience, firm
ness, tact and skill - required if even
half Of this submerged 60 per cent are
ever cafe persons at large again? II
you could live q life among them you
would understand"
u Snake in Bunch Of Bananas.
h Waterloo, Dec. 24.-F. W. Moore, 9
clerk at the Pinkerton grocery on
Fourth street west. was somewhat
shocked when he attempted to remove