The mirror., 1914-07-02

left prison. He is holding good
position in one of the towns of
PENNSYLVANIA. We hear from him
frequently and the burden of his
letters to us is that he thanks God
that the Volunteer Prison league
came into his life, and how he has
wished that he had harkened earlier
to the godly counsel and wise pre-
cepts.
John c. was liberated in 1907,
having come under the operation of
the parole law. which permitted
life prisoners who had served
twenty years and whose conduct
had been good, to be paroled. For
twenty-seven years John had been
an inmate of Sing Sing prison, and
for many years of that time hope
and John were strangers.
We went into that prison carry
ing message of hope to such poor
souls as he, and it was with gladness
that he received the message, and he
has told us how he hoped and pray
ed that the time would come when
be would secure his release, and
thanks to the wise measures insti-
tuted by our law makers he was one
of the first who came under the
operation of the "lifer" parole law.
He now holds a position of trust
and responsibility in New York
City.
Forty-seven Years in Prison
Another example, and this one is
eighty-three years old. He was,
think, the dean OF the prisoners of
this state, for he had spent forty
seven years of his life in prison. In
Dannemora every one knew old
Frank. He too was beneficiary of
the life mems parole law, for he is
now much bent and at times some
what feeble. He is very proud of
his kitchen garden and the fact that
he is the organist for our services.
Last summer he went as caretaker
to some vacant flats in Brooklyn.
He rented them all, and the agent
let him have another house with the
same result. He returned to the
home with $50 of his earnings, and
unknown to us in the winter spent
81 of that amount for flowers for
our grounds in the spring.
Rev. F. II. B. was pastor of
thriving church in Philadelphia. His
wife died after presenting him with
baby. Later he became involved
in a scandal which was of such
character as to render his pastorate
untenable. He resigned. In a short
time he was physical and moral
wreck. In New York he was picked
up by the police and sent to Black
wells island.
Made Useful Citizen
After his release he came to us,
frankly told his story and accepted
our proffered aid. One of the most
eloquent and scholarly ministers in
Philadelphia, whose letter is on file
at the prison department, wrote
Captain Anderson urging him not
to give the fallen pastor any money,
but to accord him such assistance AS
would enable him to obtain some
sort of a foothold. The assistance
was given, advice was rendered, the
man was induced to believe that
all hope was not dead, and he soon
recovered some of his lost ground.
Today he occupies prominent
position with large organization
engaged in the work of human up
lift. He is forceful speaker and
an indefatigable worker. His faith
in human nature and III the ability
of the God assisted man to rise on
his dead SELF is one of his most
potent assets.
Harassed by Police
George +. Warnell had been so
frequently in prison that he could
not enter town without receiving
immediate orders from the chief of
police to depart. He came to us
saying that he could find no place
upon which he could set his weary
feet. We interceded for him, OBJ
tanned a place for him on a farm in
New Jersey. He proved faithful
and today owns the farm and is do
ing a general and prosperous real
estate business. Sometimes be visits
us and often sends us donation for
the purpose of helping Others who
were as unfortunate or wicked as
himself.
Now has this all been worth while?