The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1914-12-11
WIDOWS SON
"REFORMED" TO
| BAD CITIZEN
Heard Nothing, in Prison But
Crime, Says Young Des-
peradO
came NATURALLY
WHEN RELEASED
Striking Indictment of Ameri-
can Penal System in His
I a.
ey NORMAN ROSE.

Why does a boy, after year and
half in a reformatory, come forth
smbittered, discouraged aud ready to
plunge deeper into crime?
These were the questions in my
mind as stood on one Side OF stout
ron door and looked through the bars
az John Gaskins. 2 years old VINO 10
IL Brooklyn Jail. awaiting sentence
or a series OF robbcries To which he
,leaded guilty,
Under his plea-"frst degree, sec
nd offense" this boy may get 10
years in Sing Sing. II seemed hard
realize. as | looked into his clear,
blue eyes and followed the straight,
youthful line OF his slim figure.
Gaskins was one OF gang which,
asst spring. looted a car OF silyerware
II freight yard They melted down
$4,000 worth of silverYare, Gashns
estified, and got $4,000 for IL. MS
share was SO 900. and he spent II III
wo months on Broadway. He had a
ute OF rooms at swell hotel, ana
e opened good many magnums
or the denizens OF the white Way.
When his money vas gone, Gas
inns turned TO robbery again. lie
aided in bdrglariling four cigar stores
md a iewelry store. He was arrested
and escaped from the Tombs Ar
rested again, he got away while be-
ing transferred from court TO prison,
and was caught for the third time a
ew nights ago
He's "ip bad" now There's no doubt
about that But 1t seems as though.
le might have been saved from the
place he stands in today If reforma-
tories reformed
He was the son Of a chief engineer
pn one of the big coast lines. lis
father died when he was a child. His
mother married again, and he didn't
ret along with his stepfather He
an away from home. He got into
bad company. and for some minor
Dffense was sent to the Elmira re-
sormatory. lie stayed there is
months
When Gaskins made his plea OF
Sguilty, he told the Judge that his ex,
P'erience In Elmira vas largely re-
sponsible for his subsequent life OF
rhine. went TO ask him his reason
for making that statement.
There Was another hey theFe-t thar
Knew me he SAID, and ne knew
that can play the T. fiat tuba. | was
assigned TO play In the band. ! had
I Ito play every day. wasn't strong
,nough to stand il ana ! got dilated
heart | asked to be relieved from
band duty and TO be allowed to 90
more gymnasium work. Ny appeal
was ignored don't think anybody
nad il in for me or wanted 10 make
me suffer. It was just that nobody
cared
THE band had a room TO itself,
where we met for practice, With prac-
. Ideally no supervision. In the band
we're number OF the most degener.
ate young criminals you can imagine.
| The conversation after practice was
finished was horrible, and there were
even worse things. was in con
slant daily touch with the worst vie
mess anybody can think Of
"One day | got letter from New
York. saying my mother was dying.
| IL was Feb. IL. had expected 10 get
/ out on the goth. That was when my
time was up. / showed the letter 10
one OF the officials and asked him II
| couldn't go home to see my mother.
under guard He said be didn't be
| iieve my mother was sick: that prop.
ably had got one OF the other band
| boys. who had done his time. to write
me a fake letter
II was kept an extra month. he
cause my cell floor was not as clean
as an inspector thought IL should be.
and / got out March IS. When ! got
to New York and went to my moth
er's home learned that she had
been dead and buried month.
Il loved my mother. She was all
I had in the world to love- The
boys eyes filed with tears-very real
tears.
II didn't care much What hap
pened," he said. II was just sore at
everything. / hadn't touched hands
With anybody but criminals for is
months. 4 hadn't heard anything but
! rime and rottenness. | turned back
TO crime.
'Tm not roasting the men at FL.
mira. / guess they're all right, in
their way They mean we'll enough.
But they didn't care anything about
me. They didn't believe was worth
anything and they didn't bother about
me. They Just slid me through my
term and got rid of me.
This story Of John Gaskins is a
criminals story. II may be the whole
truth and nothing but the truth or II
may not
But John Gaskins himself, p years
old, standing behind iron bars, with
4 40-year sentence hanging over him,
ais young eyes filled with bitter
ears. Is evidence enough that re-
iormatories. in this country, today, do
rot reform.