The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1913-10-07

Il feel strong enough TO get into a
political fight" said Timothy \ichol-
sen. one of Richmoud's best known
citizens, prominent worker in the
Friends church. and of statewide repu-
tation as a prison reform advocate.
-Four weeks from today l will cele-
brate my eighty-fifth birthday. | have
led an active life but time has dealt
kindly with me and today l feel better
than l have for some years.
Mr.. Nicholson does not intend in
The future 10 engage actively in public
affairs because OF his advanced age.
For that reason he refused To consider
an appointment as clerk OF the lndi-
ana Yearly Meeting. His only cOnnec-
ton with public life now is an honor
AIRY membership of the State Boar of
Charities. of which he is the father
MIR. Nicholson retired from active
membership on this board four years
ago after nineteen years of service I'M
der nine governors.
The story of how this excellent or
sanitation was created and the long,
hard fight waged by Mr.. Nicholson and
few other men for prison reform are
among the most interesting pages in
the history of the state.
Fought For inmates.
Mr.. Nicholson said today that as
early as 1867 he began the tight Tor
humane treatment of inmates of state
prisons as a member OF the commit
tee appointed by the Indiana Yearly
Meeting. At that time and several
years later women prisoners were con-
fined in the same prison with the men
and juvenile offenders.
When we started the fight to have
the men quartered i'll one prison and
the women in another. the boy con
victs in reformatory and the girl OF
tenders in another reformatory, Condi-
lions at the old penitentiary were Sc
shocking as TO be almost indescriba-
BILE" said Mr.. Nicholson. He said that
women prisoners were frequently the
mistresses of the guards and prison
officials and that child birth back of
the grim stone walls was not so infre-
quent as TO cause comment. He also
said that women prisoners were some
times stripped and forced to run
through the corridors for the amuse.
ment of their brutal warders. After the
practice of herding all classes of pris-
Oners, regardless of sex. in the same
prison had been discontinued the fight
tor non-partisan board TO control all
prisons and other state institutions
ind to take their management out o:
the corrupting hands of politicians was
begun in earnest.
Institutions Bettered.
Mr.. Nicholson told of the hard fight
TO get the State Board of Charities
bill through the Democratic controlled
| legislature of 1899; how, to the great
surprise of himself, his co-workers
and the governor this bill finally be
came law. and of the great progress
made in the supervision of all state
institutions since that time.
Mr.. Nicholson said that shortly af
ter the board was organized it sue
ceeded in getting a bill through the
legislature which practically abolish
ed the flogging of prisoners in tn,
state prisons and reformatories. II,
said that prior to the passage of thi.
bill a prisoner could be sentenced Il
the whipping post on the charge o
a guard without being permitted Il
| say word in his own defense TIL,
| bill aimed at the flogging evil pro
vided that the charges of any guarC
should be made part of the writer
records; also the statement of the &C