Evening journal., 1914-01-19
SAYS POST
IS RELIC OF
BARBARISM
Degrading and Inhuman Also
DR.. Robinson Tells Sunday
Audience
RIDDLES ARGUMENTS
FAVORING PUNISHMENTS

Several hundred persons, among
them many women. representing oy-
cry walk of life, gathered in the
Friends Meeting House, Fourth and
West streets. yesterday afternoon to
hear DR.. Louis n. Robinson. profess
sor of economies at Swarthmore Col
lege, lecture on the subject OF the
whipping post as degrading. inhuman
and a relic of barbarism. judge Her
bert l.. Rice was one Of those who
heard the lecture.
Among those who attended the
meeting we're members of the Senior
Glass Of the Wilmington High School.
suffragists, a big delegation OF mem
bers Of the Brownson Library Asso-
citation, who are arranging for a de-
bate on the same subject. and mem
bers of the Socialist Forum. The
meeting was presided over by George
b. Miller. Of the philanthropic com
mittee of the Friends meeting. He
read portions OF the scriptures in
opening the meeting
Professor Robinson explained that
when first asked to speak on the
whipping post subject he had written
to people who had been interested in
study of prison reform for their
opinion and he read letters from
many of them. In nearly all cases
the writer's opposed the whipping
post, and those who did favor Il con-
sidered II more humane then the
modern prison. Those whose letters
were read were the warden of the
Minnesota State Prison. Professor
Lichtenberger of the University OF
Pennsylvania. the superintendent Of
the Ohio State Reformatory, Wendell
p. Stafford Of the Supreme Court of
the District of Columbia, the secre-
tary TO Jane Adams, Mrs Ballington
Booth and Amos Butler, secretary Of
the State Charities of Indiana Almost
without exception these letters de-
clared that the whipping post, in tho
opinion of the writer, was brutaliz-
ing and degrading to the person be-
ing flogged, 10 the one applying the
lasn, and TO the spectators and that
It was but a survival of barbarism.
In opening his address Professor Rob
inson said that he judged he would be
opposed by those who considered him
an outsider This argument he said was
not new and it represented that type
ters Of right or wrong state lines
cannot act as barriers. The South
wished for slavery before the Civil
War. What business was il Of Massa-
chusetts, he asked. The second argu-
ment advanced IN favor of the post
and one that would be used against
his speaking on the negative side was
that Of Casing names. he said. and
added: Weak. hystcrical. senti-
mental. and even worse adjectives are
applied to those who denounce this
form Of punishment This Is. Of
course, no argument. and Il will be
found ] think that men do not turn
TO IL unless all their other arguments
have been proven false and useless.
II is only one step. you know. from
calling names TO specchlessncss and
the bursting Of a blood vessel More
over. ! have taken the trouble to find
out who these men are that oppose
the whipping post. and | assure you
Il Is no slight honor to be classcd
among them
81 have found, in examining the lit
crature on the subject. but four real
arguments in favor of a hogging as a
punishment for crime. They are.
Cl the argument of retaliation: (2)
the argument Of economy; go the ar
gumcnt of preventing crime. and ti)
the argument Of reform Of the offen-
DER
Mr.. Robinson said the spirit OF re-
taliation was a bad thing to exercise
and declared that giving the offender
the same punishment meted out TO his
wife stamped the deed as not wrong
"The money cost" he said lis not
the only one. It lays burdens on So
ciety that cannot be estimated in
money. The effect on the person who
does the logging ii debasing. The
idea is that whipping acts as de-
terrent.
III this be so. how Is it that in the
New Castle wOrkhouse there are
more people from Peninsula and
Maryland than Delaware. the whip
ping post neither keeps other Offend
ers out OF the state nor sends your
own way. This kind of punishment
docs not reform man. but changes
him TO a cruel and vindictiye charac-
| ter.
1T is said such offenders should
not so to palace prisons ! do not
4 know of any such and doubt IL there
arc any in the United States. but II so.
I let us rejoice there is ono less hell on
earth filter instead OF a cesspool.
The whipping post is not an expert
mcnt Il has been tried in other conn
tries and abandoned
Referring to the statement that
criminals would rather have their
terms of Imprisonment heightened in
place of receiving the lashes, Pro-
fessor Robinson said
Congressman Brockson calls our
Attention to the fact that Il
has been his experience and
that also of other lawyers that
criminals would be willing "a
have their term of Imprisonment
extended indefinitely. II II were
possible by so doing to avoid the
beating. A similar story comes to us
from England of the criminal who
beloved like a COW when confront
led with the recompense demanded by
society.
"The error in this mode Of reason.
ing lies in the belief that an ex.
preston Of feeling at the time of re-
ceiving the sentence is a measure oil
the efficiency of the whipping-post
AS Mr.. Taylor so we'll said in his Cat
Speech in the House of Commons. the
question is not what is his state
when sentenced but what is the ef
feet after he has been logged