The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1914-05-14
EVIL INFLUENCES
HINDER REFORM
Politics and Sentimentality Curb
Prison Reformation to a La
mentabIe Degree.-Says Our
Friend Sherlock.

form-that is, the intelligent treat
ment of criminals is hindered by
two causes: Political influence and
sentimentality. Of these interior
ences, one arises from greed for
place, and for power with voters;
and the other from good impulses;
but it is difficult to say which is the
more demoralizlng, or more likely
to defeat the objects of the reform
movement. These objects are the
safety Of society, reduction OF the
taxation made necessary by crime,
and the reformation Of the criminal.
If the objects of Incarceration were
simply social isolation and punish
ment, political interference would
not be OF consequence, except in it's
corrupting influence upon politics;
and if the object was simply to
make comfortable and agreeable the
lot of the criminal, and not to dis
cipline him into better moral state,
the efforts of the sentimentalists
would call for less condemnation.
But under the modern idea of the
value of man to the state, that his
treatment as an offender should be;
first. for the protection of society,
and second, for the discipline of the
man with view to his reformation
his reconstruction mentally, NOR
ally. and physically-it becomes
evident al once that this idea can
not be carried out if the prisons and
reformatories are part of the poll
teal machine, or if they are admin
istered in spirit of misplaced SEN
timent.
Object of Incarceration
If the leading object of incarcera-
ton were punishment that is, in
jury TO the individual-there are
some of our prisons even at this late
day, admirably adapted to their end.
For the worse punishment that can
be inflicted upon person is to con-
fine him amid evil ways, and thus
make him worse than he is. In do
ing this society takes the place of
the ingenious satan, Our machine
ry which catches hold of an offend
er and draws him into the circuit
of It's education is calculated to con-
firm him in his tendencies, and make
him professional criminal. 1t is
that the jail and penitentiary infu-
ences are such as to improve him
in no way, except occasionally in
his physical condition. The advan-
tage of confinement to a criminal is
that abstinence and a regular life
may improve his health; but better
moral habits will not be formed in
him unless the authority to which
he is subjected is concerned in the
effort to educate him into better
life.
1t does not need any argument to
show that if men put in charge of
him are selected not for their fit.
ness, but are chosen by the polite
al machine on account of their serv-
ice to the machine, the prisons will
run without intelligent reference to
the reformation of the criminals.
Sometimes prisons are honestly
managed and sometimes they are
corruptly managed by the politi-
clans; but never when politics in
terferes. are they conducted either
with regard to economy for the
taxpayers or in the moral interest
of the condemned. So that there
will never be the least hope for
prison reform, until the prisons are
taken out of politics.
Conditions Elsewhere
Public opinion has compelled
many states to build better jails.
and even penitentiaries, to pay
more attention to sanitary measures,
and to conduct them more humane
ly, out in some instances that we
know of elsewhere. the manufact-
ure of confirmed criminals goes on
in this way, and only here and there
is any effort made for the perman-
ent change of their habits. That
change will not come so long as the
prisons are merely places of con-
fnement, and for giving situations
to political workers.
But when we come to methods of
reform, they are hindered as much
by misconception of the work to
be done and by sentlmentality as
by political interference. The prob
lem that presents itself in its SIM
plest form is to reduce the number
of professional criminals who live
lawlessly upon the community.
This can only be done by combining
them. taking them away from their
field of activity, and bringing to
bear upon them, influences that will