Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1915-04-07
Appalling Cost of Crime.
BY Peter Cotton, Fl. Madison. Iowa.

According to latest statistics the cost oil
Earring for criminals in the United States
g appalling. And from am analysis OF
he parole laws in the IS states and the
United States government, it could be re-
duced 80 per cent.
Conceding that statistics are relative,
that they are not always reliable, and
that they are seldom absolutely accurate,
the estimates from all sources are never
theless stupendous. From all figures OBJ
tanned the total is v%ariously stated to be
from So. GOV. 10000 to 81. 00. 100000 per year.
Even at the smaller figures. that is a
terrible cost to put upon the taxpayers of
the country for crime alone. A statement
has been made that no other nation ON
earth has Its equal. With this enormous
sum scattered throughout As different
states and the government, and those
units being themselves separated into diff
ferent smaller parts representing peh!-
tentiaries and refornatories-not counting
| iails-it is not difficult to understand that
the taxpayers are seldom brought race 10
face with the amazing truth.
Using the larger sum of 5000 600 as
a basis. and assuming the population of
the United States to be In round num-
| bers 100. 600. GO. the cost is found to be $50
per capita, and for Il family consisting of
husband and wife and three children, the
| tax upon them is, directly and indirectly.
$SGp per aTIluH-anOut OIIe-ItSlil Viz "a u
| ings or wages of bread winners. III the
| incubation is less. then so much the worse
for every one.
Using the smaller figure of $1,000 100000
as a basis. the above cost would then be
split in half: and ut that you have an
astonishing and altogether needless tax
a burden that is without benefit. Should
real estate boards. merchants aSsocia-
lions. commercial bodies. and corporations
conduct business on such "A basis and
with so little regard for ultimate ends,
they would go to ruin.
The official census of the United States
for the year 1910 places the unlbe of
persons confined in the various peniten-
tiaries at 4e3. 1884. 1t may be assumed that
now they are half a million. A conserva-
tive estimate of the cost of maintenance
and supervision OF that number would be
$500 per annum per capita. Upon that
basis 500, 600 1000 of the cost of crime Is
accounted for only for that particular
item which goes into the grand
total. Assuming the average population
of the two prisons in Iowa to be 1900.
we find that the enormous sum of more
than $500, 0O yearly goes into support and
supervision alone. That sum enters mere
ly as a unit in an amount 10 or % times
as great in the total cost of crimes. in
Guiding improvements, the jaiis, and con-
~tributory insane.
Iaklng the earning capacity OF each
prisoner to be $500 a y~ear-which is slight
ly less than the United States fixes the
earning capacity of each man-the eco
nomic loss to Iowa in wages alone is $780,
600 more. Add to these figures the cost
and maintenance of dependent families of
prisoners and you find the total cost Of
crime is staggering. Then if you go a
step farther and add the total cost of
all police. sheriffs, judges, courts n
.jails, the loss to the public is altogether
amazing and unjustified by results.
The belief that every man in prison is a
thief is erroneous. United States statis-