The Washington herald., 1915-01-29
CHARITIES WORK
Curse, HE SAYS
Supt. Whitaker Gives Views
on Reform of
Criminals.
HE DEGREES PUNISHMENT
No Methods Would Be Able to Re-
move All Abnormals from
Crime. He Declares.
HE DEGREES PUNISHMENT

Thomas Mott Osborne, or Henry Ford.
or any one else cannot reform all the
men in Sing Sing, and many of them are
doomed to crime, W. II. Whitaker, su-
perintendent of the workhouse at Deco
guam, said last night at a meeting of the
Mems Club of ST. MarGaret,s Church.
1T can't be done" said Mr.. Whitaker
Undoubtedly some of the men can be
lifted to their former positions in society
Or to their proper places in society.
They are the normal men. But you can't
make an abnormal man normal. and
some men are born abnormal mentally
just as some men are born abnormal
physically.
81 do not believe in punishment for
prisoners. At Occoquan We have no
guards and no walls. The only punish
ment necessary to teach a normal man
to behave is to deprive him Of his liberty
That is enough for any one who has ever
had his liberty taken away. Mr. Os-
borne, who spent a week In Sing Sing
as voluntary prisoner, cannot feel the
same way that a prisoner feels.
Criminals Always Come Back.
abnormal men should be confined to
an institution always. We plan to care
for those men in the new reformatory
which We shall start to build next spring
In Indiana the indeterminate sentence
plan OF reforming men has been tried,
and II has worked successfully with the
normal men. The abnormals return, and
will continue to return to prisons.
AT Occoquan We get back about 30
per cent OF the men sentenced. Most OF
them return within a week. We have
had men visit US thirty times in four
years"
Mr. Whitaker paid his compliments
to charities when he said. in reply to a
question:
The lodging house where men are
given temporary lodging is the curse Of
the country"
He explained:
What we should have for unemployed
men who now stay in free lodging houses
is a farm, just outside the city. Give
man to understand that If he wants free
lodging he must work on the farm When
he has worked there and we have got
him on his feet. We can get him job
and he will keep it. 1t would help TO do
away with the floating population
Tippernry Wins MemberEhiP.
Mr.. Whitaker referred to the prisoners
at Occoquan usually as the men, and to
the guards as Instructors" He said
that the plan is as far as possible to
employ Instructors who know some
trade well enough to tell other men about
II.
Mr.. Whitaker showed illustrations OF
the quarters at Occoquan and of the
methods Of dealing with the men. There
are no cells, except for six punishment
cells. and even these are well-lighted and
ventilated.
II plans are supported by officials the
workhouse will be self-supporting within
five years, he said.
Mrs, Helen Donohue De Voc sang sew
eral songs. among them "Tipperary." and
aroused the club to such enthusiasm that
the men made her an honorary member.
Mr.. Whitaker was introduced by Rich
ard B. Watrous. president Of the club;
Rev. DR.. Herbert Scott Smith, rector of
the church, offered prayer. Officers OF
the club, besides Mr.. Watrous, are Edwin
J. Mckee, vice president. and F. c. Clark
treasurer.