The Seattle star. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1899-1947, 1914-03-17
By John H. Perry.
ARTICLE NUMBER SIX

We have seen that the THEORY
of our prison punishment acting ms
deterrent 60 others committing
crime IN absolutely false.
The punishment by the red hot
irons. the thumbscrcw and the whip
ping post failed to deter otheD from
committing crime. Instead OF do
terring others from the commission
OF crime. IL created moro and hard.
ened criminals. IL made the people
believe this was not . government
FOR the people. but a government
AGAINST the people. !, CAL
LOuSED and HARDENED and
BRuTALIZED the PuBl.iCS
MORAL sENSiBfLiTiEs. We have
seen tina, PUNISHMENT by
DEATH did not deter others from
the commission OF crime.
So. " the red hot irons. the
thumbserew punishment. the
whipping post and the death
penalty all failed 20 act a. .
deterrent to the commission OF
crimes. certainly we can never
decrease our crimes nor reform
our criminals by the SEVERITY
OF the punishment inflicted.
Such punishment only DE
GRADES. and BRUTALfZES. and II
INCREASES crime. II our dearly be-
loved PRISON PUNISHMENT sYS-
TEN discharges it's victims by the
hundreds. and from every ONE
HUNDRED discharged. EIGHTY
COMMIT CRIMES AGAIN. Prob
ably not Nfty Of that hundred would
have ever committed a SECOND
crime had they not been ruined In
prison serving time for tho first
crime. We are forced TO admit that
our present system II a dismal fall.
ure.
Our jails and penitentiaries are
nothing more nor less than GRIM
NAL FAcTORiES-workiug ~
hours a day. year IN and year out.
grinding out PROFESSIONAL
CRIMINALS.
What shall be done7 OF course
our first aims must be directed In
the lines OF preventiyes. The
state must stand custodian for every
child left homeless without parental
influence.
Our second step must be 20 reotify
the evils OF our social and industrial
system. This can be partly done by
the enactment and administration OF
anti-child labor laws, Juvenile court
laws. minimum wage requirements
and proper and sanitary working
conditions.
In some states this question has
been substantially solved as 10 one
class OF ao-cailed "convicts." The
class known az wife dcaerters, OF
non-supporters. Some states make
II felony 20 willfully desert or fail
I to support ones wife and children.
| Instead OF taking the guilty hus
band and father from his wife and
children and locking him up in pris
on. and leaving the wife and chill
dren in destitute circumstances. this
STATE will EMPLOY that HUS
BAND and put him 10 workout II
the open--and the state pays n rea
sonable price for that work. and tina
money goes 10 the maintenance ant
HuUUbih w tiiN WIG hHb
They are not objects Of charity.
The state ls getting useful
work done. the guilty husband
10 not degraded by prison asso-
citation, and when he's a man
again. they can send him back
TO his wife and children--not az
a degraded, useless, confirmed
criminal, but az a man who has
been taught 10 work.
The state would only have 10 taxi,
those convicted OF violating on
crime laws aud put them to usefu
work.
Let the proceeds Of their labor. o
a reasonable compensation therefor
20 to support that convict's depend
ents II he had no one dependlnl
upon him. let the state pay into
fund for his use and benefit rea
sonable consideration for his ser
vices rendered, and when his tern
Ia expired-do not throw him out OF
the world. ruined and pennileas9 bu
pay to him from that fund which h,
has helped 10 create just and fai
compensation.