The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1914-07-14

worker in a civil establishment
is discharged.
They have found out in the Navy
that you cannot make a good, efficient
sailor or marine out Of material that
does not have any native bent or am
bition or desire to be q good sailor or
marine. by any method OF severity OF
lie niency in punishment; and that II
makes no difference whetier you dress
a deserter in striped clothc- and crop
his hair or give him the prison honors
of a disciplinary battalion-he is not
Of the fiber for the work.
Because Of the useless expense OF
maintaining an archaic penal system
that gives back to the service a mere
handful even under best of intentions
Because the Navy has "a huge and
expensive court-maTtial system L I
under this method handled 25.etO
cases last year-and out of all there
were but AZ per cent court-marflai
cases hat We're criminal in character.
And in the naval courts last year 80
per cent of the cases We're directly OF
indirectly concerned with the offenSeS
Of absence without leave or desertion.
Big Saving Feasible.
If those two offenses were treated
by a summary dismissal. there would
be an enormous saving in mercy and
money to the service; and to serve in
the Navy would indicate both eff
ficiency and willingness.
h naval service lost $500 men
last year, and 129e Of them were SC t
to prison for the above offenses. This
involved an expenditure Of about
81, 15O,0OO a yea for maintenance,
transportation and subsistence Of
these prisoners and the 1000 men and
officers for guards. If the Navy
should abolish prison punishment for
1 thoCa fopCo throo mall nricnrC
would suffice where now there are
eleven. And this step is now under
consideration.
A compilation was made Of all the
prisoners who had passed through the
detention barracks system since June,
1912; there were approximately 25G0
prisoners during that time. Out Of
these, 665 were sent to the disciplinary
barracks under the system l have out
lined. OF these latter, $50, about %
per cent, were discharged at the end
Of their sentences not recommended
for enlistment. There were "a men
recommended for enlistment back into
the service, and Of these 2S reenlisted
and 5 of them deserted. There We're
Internationally restored to d1ty 421
men; and Of these it was reported
that 22O IA been unsuccessful, leav-
ing Poi who were either in the service
or who had honorably severed their
connection there With.
For the year 1912 there were II
men who were restored to the service
and were serving with credit. There
fore, it Woul seem hat when the tx
pense of maintaining these barracks
is considered, e service of II men is
out Of all proportion to the value O.
the system, to say nothing Of the per.
nicious influence exerted by then
prior to their trial by court-martia
? And the majority Of the men sen.
fenced for these serious offense!
against discipline are for one reason
2 or another, for military or naval pur
poses, incorrigible: they do harm
they are not subject to the rigid rou
tine OF discipline; and from the poin
: of view Of the nature of such service
the Navy believes it Won be we'll ril
s of them. And it is, as have stated
: seriously considering the system Q
e summarily discharging them on thei
e first OffenSe back into civil life. More
over, it is believed that such summar,
discharge would have q proftabl
effect on discipline.
Approaching the subject as a matte
q of pure financial saving aid as a mat
q ter Of naval discipline, the Navy ha
reached this position.