The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1914-02-01


before leaving That is the usual way;
but il is the exception sometimes that
counts.
Hand That Falls Upon Shoulder.
Let us return TO our average convict.
Just out, and with the world before him
where to choose 10 display mis- prison
made garments and TO sncnd his So
| 1t not seldom happens, to be-
! gin with. that be is not so much out
as be had imagined. Our present meth.
! od with conyicts has peculiaritics
| Here is common example,
! a man was convicted and jailed for
robbing postoffice. The sentence was
| five years. The specific charge was Of
stealing postage stamps. Having done
| his bit in the federal penitentiary. he
was given his outfit and the gates were
! opened. He was proceeding ioyfully on
| his way. when sheriff laid a hand on
lus shoulder, and informed him that he
| was prisoner. What for2 The sheriff
! smillngIy explained that the sentence he
| had just served was for federal of
/ Tense; he was wanted now on state
| charge of breaking into the grocery
store in which the postoffice was
| housed. For this the state prison ac-
! commodated hun with lodging for five
| years more. The man out1Ivcd that. and
! fatuously imagined that his payment of
that debt was fully discharged. He was
awakened by the hand on his shoulder
again. What was the matter now?
I Why, he had, while in the grocery store,
! postage stamps possessed himself un-
lawfully of box OF matches, thereby
committing a secoud state crime, in
volving further detention in the state
! prison of five years more.
! This is an example of our cat-and-
| mouse way with convicts, and is, of
! course. much more destructive to the
victim than an outright sentence of the
same length would have been. But in
what manner it tends to reform man,
or 10 protect the community, does not
| clearly appear.
Sometimes the sheriff is dilatory in
arriving to make the second or third
arrest, and it would seem that the pris-
oncr might have a chance to escape.
| But in such q case the warden himself
would take hand in the game In an
instance Of which | heard a good deal,
the mau g sentence expired, we will say,
on June j. The warden had been ap-
prised that he was to be re-arrosted,
but the sheriff was not on hand-could
not get there for two days. But the
| law, or prison regulations, or something,
enables "A warden to dctain prisoner
beyond his fixed time, in the event OF
his committing some prison irregularity.
The warden Informed the man that he
was reported to have broken a plate i'm
the dining room, the penalty for which
was three days more in his cell. Before
the. three days were up, the sheriff had
arrived. the man was re-arrested and
Justice was satisfied,
GA Suspicious Character"
We will suppose, however, that our
man has no second or third or other
indictments hanging over him. and that
he really does get clean away. What
Will be his adventures?
If the weather be not rainy he reaches
his train unscathed. But if that new
suit, with "jailbirdp - written all over
it in characters which all detectives and
police, at least, can read as they run,
chance to get wet. the raw shoddy
forthwith shrivels miscrably up, and the
wearer's ankles and wrists stick out so
betrayingly that a mere child might
recognize the sinister source OF tho gar
meuts. But, anyhow, few days wear
| Will so wrinkle and crease and deform
the suit that it becomes unwearablo, and
the man might as conveniently and more
prudently 90 about in shirt and draw
crs. Should he present himself in 1T
requesting a Job from some virtuous
citizen. the latter is less likely to grant
it than TO step to the phone. and call
! =
cious character here-better look him
over!' - The officer looks him over ac-
cordingly, and either advises him to be-
take himself promptly elsewhere, or, if
a crime happen to have been committed
recently IN that neighborhood, the per
petrators Of which are still at large, he
takes tho man into custody on suspi.
cion.
That the man is utterly innocent
makes small difference; his status ms an
old offender is readily established, and
the rest follows almost automatically,
"You did the job all right; but. if YOU
didn I, You re vagrant without visible
in the lookup for SIX months or year.
And let me tell You, our lookup is no
jokeI likely you III get on the chain
gang, and then God help you! If they
don Z take a fancy to you they re liza
BILE to croak you any time. Now. I'd
like to sec You get out Of this easy. and
here IS what yon ID better do You own
: MP to the crime, and I'll have word
with the Judge, so he III let you or with
} short sentence in a place where they
treat men right, and You II got out in
about three or fonr months That S
what you d best do: and if you don T.
7 wash my hands Of you, What do you
say9'
"He's an Incorrigible."
. What would you do9 Stand on your
, rights, demand full and fair trial,
prove your innocence, and be acquitted
without stain on your characters That
is the proper and righteous course for
=, free and independent American citi-
; zen
But YOU are not u citizen, in the frat
4 place; yonr civic rights arc gone for
3 good, and instead of your innocence be-
ing assumed till your guilt is proved. it
s is the other way about. Your friend the
. detective is prepared, for one, to swear
0 that to the Hbest Of his knowledge and
Y BELIEF you are the culprit; and there
@ is commonly number OF other easy
e swearers hanging about the courtroom
c to support him. You have no friends.
C on tho contrary, every eye You meet is
c hostile. You have no money to hire n
lawyer. for that 50 had gone bcfoge
y you had mustered courage to ask for tho
+ job that got you into this trouble, And
I above NIL, your spirit is cowed aud