Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1913-09-27
.FORTY-FOUR HONOR
MEN HAVE ESCAPED
Figures Of Prison Since 1911 Show
Only Eleven of Them Have Been
Recaptured by Officials.
SEVENTY-EIGHT PER CENT
OF PARoLED MEN MAKE GOOD
One Hundred and Ten Violations of
Parole Law Since It Was Passed
In 1911, Records Show.

According to the Oregon prison rec
ords, since 1911, A beneficiaries of the
"honor system" have escaped from
the Oregon penitentiary. Fifteen trus-
ties, not designated as "honor men, I"
but virtually of the same class, have
escaped in that time "Honor me" /"
and TRUSTEES are defined as follows by
the prison authorities:
"Honor men--Conviets sent away
from the prison without guard to work
on roads and in other capacities. They
do not return to the prison at night. !"
"Trusties-Men given liberties in
the prison and outside, not given the
ordinary prisoner, and who are locked
up in the prison at night.
More Than Score at Large.
Of the "honor men" who have es.
capped, IL have been recaptured and 81
are still at large. There have been
more TRUSTEES during the administration
of Governor West than ever before,
Warden lawson explaining an increase
was necessary because of additional
work at the Asylum Farm. He says
that since the Inauguration of the sys-
tenn there have been about 500 "honor
men," the number daily being between
so and so. The average number OF
convicts daily in 1910 and 1911 is 422.
The records show that many of the
"honor men" who escape have served
a large part of their terms, there be.
ing instances where men would have
been freed in 30 days. Frank Murphy,
who escaped five days ago, had only
| 80 days to serve. If captured he will
have to serve his full term of five
years. Opponents of the system de-
clare that this is an argument against
/, it, for the men not only disregard and
violate their "honor," but do not show
appreciation of the kindness that has
been shown them. "Honor men" are
usually those with families and CON
victs who have comparatively short
periods to serve, according to the au-
thorities, and hence, it is argued, if
men with little motive to run away do
so, the system is failure. Men with
long terms to serve are often made
TRUSTEES, but the percentage of escapes
under this system is not any larger, if
as large, as that under the "honor sys.
tenn"
Mr. lawson says rs per cent of the
paroled men "make good" whereas in
California, which has the best record
of any state having the parole system,
80 per cent "make good"
Paroled Men Report
A report in the superintendent g Of.
flee for August gives 147 paroled men
reporting, having earned in that month
$75s6,55, with only two of the men re-
lporting being out of work. The rec
ords show there have been 10 viola
tions of the parole law since it was
passed in 1911, Of this number, 3s
were returned to the penitentiary, and
the prison authorities have no record
of the whereabouts of the other 70,
Honor men" are stationed at present
as follows;
Predetermined institute, L; blind
school, /; soldiers home, ]; Marion
county, doing road work, 10, A gang
of 1 men has just been brought back
to the prison from Hood River county,
There are is TRUSTEES at the asylum
farm and IA working in the yards and
buildings at the prison,
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