The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1914-02-06
Many Changes in Penal Ideas BE-
ing Worked Out in the
Land of the Gar
WISH TO PUT CONNECTS
AT SOME USEFUL LABOR
Siberia No Longer To BE Re
garied as Land of Exile
and TerrOrs

brought by escaped political oHehueIs
whose LOT Is indeed hard. but TINS III
ormation usually conveys ittle or h'
dea OF the Russian prison system III
General, where prisons built 10 mouse
90 criminal offenders are made "a
rouse 500. where they are forced 70
i've in large rooms la chronic ldle
,ess. gambling away what little they
ire allowed TO earn, and where es
capes reach a percentage OF nearly 10
so that A criminal recently sentenced
FOR his thirty-hfth murder and sen
fences pending against him amounting
10 over so years. Ii must also be re-
membered that only political offend
ers are executed in the empire OF the
car.
A few years ago all political pris
oners were removed from Siberia and
sent 10 prisons west OF the Urais ana
now an attempt Is to be made TO re-
organize the entire prison system on
the American plan. II the necessary
money can be obtained, the govern.
ment will build number OF model
prisons with workshops when shah
As far as possible, be self-supporuns
Plan Solitary Cells.
The preliminary peftod et strict Sc
clusion in solitary cells, the grazing
of prisoners, good conduct promotion
from grade TO grade with as re-
suit OF continued good conduct con
iitional release from prison before
completion OF sentence are the main
ines or the proposed reforms, us
Success, OF course. entirely depends
1 H.. a. lao. srtkH ftfttl
inent TO Incur the enormous capital
outlay in erecting properly equipped
sprisons throughout Russia
At present Russia mas only two
prisons OF this kind, the rest being
,lll old-fashioned or hastily adapted
o a purpose they were never Intended
serve. The employment OF conV.cts
on state works is held out as an in
iucement to the Russian treasury to
ncur this enormous capital outlay. IL
pointed out that in European Russia
alone an aggregate area nearly equal
the total area OF the United King
iom OF Great Britain and ireland
useless land" not OF the deer
crest and grouse moor variety. but
Requiring simply elementary drein-
sge. afforesting, or irrigation TO be-.
o any tn Russia Upon this work IL
IS proposed TO employ the Russian
onvict OF the future and also upon
he building OF ordinary metaled
Foads, which are almost nonresident
n Russia.
Convict exile 10 Siberia was inst-
uted, apparently on an English mod
/. in the days when England WAS sell
int Il mr. IN 10
more precise. was paying head money
0 INSCRIPTIONS middlemen 20 remove
hem from the United Kingdom, and
these middlemen transhipped them TO
vhat is now the United States OF
america, and sold them for work on
he plantat ions at great profit
When the United States came into
being and closed this form OF activity,
n hich laid the fortunes OF many 4 re-
pected family in the neighborhood OF
khe west coast ports. Botany bay and
Norfolk island served as dumping
Nrounds for English conyicts. SINH
sarly Russia originally sent her con
kicts TO Siberia 10 work in silver and
HALT mines belonging TO the crown.
One by one these enterprises were
hut down. because, even with con
or long time the gold mines made
my profit. For a generation past the
kold mines OF the crown in Trans
baikalia have been the only work
Npon which the convicts have been
Employed, and there has been SO little
af that work in proportion 70 the num-
Der OF convcts that shrewd governors
NJ convict prisons made the permits
ion 10 work there dependent upon ir.
eproachable prison behavior.
Convicts Do Good Work
On the building or the Aimur rail
Nay. as on the CircumBalkal line, the
honyicts have done good work, and
Have satisfaction all round. They
armed on an average OF SLIGO per day.
Ahich Is double the normal rate o.
Day for unskiled labor in the neigh
Aorhood OF ST. Petersburg. Rates
lulc. OF course. much higher In dis
Cant parts of Siberia, but even so. the
onyicts gave satisfaction TO all par
Eies In the work OF excavating and
billing entertainments for the neAv-rail-
%ays. The only alternative was the
Employment OF cheap Chinese labor
which the government wisely dis.
ountenanced from the outset.
When the convict has done his time
The law settles him on the land and
his is the convict exile now 10 be
polished. II has never been a real
awe system. and il j. officially esti-
MATED that only some three per cent
hf the time-expired convicts ever ac-
$ually settled down in the country;
he rest formed a floating body OF beg
tary and crime. that infested the
%hole country. and as time went on
facilities OF communication grew.
hooded the villages land small towns
lf Russia's home provinces also Tx.
De to Siberia. except in this form as
The consequence OF a conviction for
lelony. was formally abolished i'm 1900
n Henceforth Siberia Is 20 be regarded
got as land OF terror and despair.
Il still fingers In the understanding
IL western nations, but as the India
Z Russia. the source OF incalcuable
suture wealth and. as in fact it Is, a
right, smiling. sunny land where
inmmer heats balance winter cold and
.ature repays richly the work Of man
IA many capital forms OF industry.
x'hs political exile is no longer sent
here. but 10 various distant parts of
European Russia--by political exile,
ie IL understood. the person who is