Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-10-12
COUNIRY'S CRIME DATA
FRACAIENTARY, SAYS
CHARITIES SECRETARY
New York Conference Told Euro
pean Methods Are Far Su-
perior TO Those in
Use Here
SYSTEM GREAT HANDICAP

ptfFrAro. n r.. oct. fa--~our crim-
Anal statistics are the despair Of the for
~Irner. The attitude Of the penoioRiHts of
European countries toward Ne must De
|ebout ike that We have toward those de-
pendent upon the sign language"
This was one OF the striking passages In
lxhs report Of the committee on statistics
lof crime. which wac read by the chairman,
lWininm T.. Gross. general eecrutary OF the
National Conference OF Charities and Cor
fraction. before the American Prison Con-
Eress here today.
Ths report. IN part. says;
THE lack Of a rational. comprehensive
lsystem Of criminal statistics In the United
States f. one Of the worst evidences TO con-
Itemn us in the eyes OF the scientific world
one naturally would like 20 turn 60 SIM
|HIs source 20 nnd facts OF every description
about the crime situation In the United
states. That source would be the govern
nnent at washington. But the Federal Gov
srnment IL a frst-hand source only 20 the
extent to which Il actually conducts the
lsystem OF apprehension, trial and subse-
auent treatment OF Offenders Courts are
srganiked by the United States In certain
rcafrictsd jurisdictions. Persons suspected
OF crime may be apprehended by Federal
efrcers- They may be confined In local
Jalis for the most part under municipal.
eounty or state control
judicial criminal statistics are gathered
with varying degrees OF regularity and COM
pleteness by twenty-five states. Ono OF
the best plans is that OF Indiana, where
the work is administered by State bureau
Of statistics. Criminal statistics as OBJ
tainabie from institutions, are gathered for
tho most part by State boards of charities
and correction or similar bodies In twenty
three States. Massachusetts, where the
system is organized under the Bureau of
Prisons, offers one OF the best examples
"The statistics for the most part are
gathered in a crude fashion. and published,
n nj aih with little scientific analysis. The
primary faults of the judicial statistics are
their lack of scientific standardized classifi-
cation and definition OF crimes and OF facts
descriptive OF the social condition Of the
/ criminal and the circumstances OF the crime
are their meagerness and unreliability and
the limited use made OF them by the central
authority.
'srhe foreign statistics of crime usually
quoted are those OF the courts. II would
be more appropriate TO refer to their insti-
tutional statistics. We have before us the
1914 report of the English Prison CommisL
sion. Beginning with an account OF the
prisoners under sentence during the year. II
proceeds 90 a comparison with years pre-
cedng and a study OF the relation OF the
amount OF crime to that OF general popula-
ton Not only are the number OF crimes
accounted for, but the analysis reaches
down TO the number of individuals commit
ting those crimes. With warning against
hasty conclusions from these statistics Il
II demonstrated that the number of prison.
efs received for indictable offenses is de-
creasinE. Again. II Is shown that the ten
dency Of discharged prisoners TO return to
lives OF crime is diminishing.