The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1917-10-01
Reform of Criminals
nv "a. ADDINGroN BRUCE
Author OF The Riddle OF Person
atty" Psychology and
Parenthood." etc.


In a recent number OF the Boston
Medical and Surgical Journal Dr Y.
v Anderson issues a report bearing
illuminatingly on the important
problem OF reforming criminals.
Dr. Anderson. who Is connected
with the Boston municipal court as
director OF medical service. recog-
nizes the necessity OF dealing with
criminals not as a class but as IN
dividuals. He recognizes further
that many criminals are mentally
disordered. and that in all such
cases special treatment Is needed
II the individual problems they pre-
sent are 90 be satisfactorily and
Justly solved
In the present report he insists
more particularly on the import.
ance OF carefully discriminating be-
tween criminals who are feeble
minded and those OF abnormal rath.
er than subnormal mentality. To
aid court authorities In discriminat
Ing between the two types ne has
made a comparative study OF a hun.
dred feeble minded criminals and a
hundred psychopathic ones.
Here. briefly. are his fndings:
A majority OF the feeble minded
IS per cent-never got beyond the
NTH grade in school. while 50 per
cent OF The psychopaths got beyond
that grade
The feeble minded as a class are
in the majority OF these cases in.
dustrlally inefficient. and are not
capable OF holding down positions
for any length OF time
But the psychopathc Ms a class
are In the majority OF these cases
fairly efficient industrially capable
q holding positions for much longer
nerlndS and - AeEa slAf@-ss- iit------f+AA ,. r
do so more because OF their TEN.
peramental peculiarities. their emo
tional instability etc. than any real
lack OF industrial efficiency"
Continuing. Or Anderson notes
that the hundred feeble-minded
criminals studied by him were ar
rested 1925 times. or an average
OF 1885 arrests for each The hun.
dred psychopsths were arrested
only 500 times. or an average Of
3 50 arrests for each psychopathic
criminal
In the light OF these findings It
becomes evident that II wrong.
doors mentality Is under SUSPICION.
and n his lie history shows he Was
an extreme dullard in boyhood. WAS
unempl0yable in manhood. and has
been repeated offender. the
chances are that he Ia OF defective
rather than aberrant mentality
In which case. according 10 Or.
Anderson, Il is. OF little use 20 put
him on probation or the feeble.
minded criminals studied by the
Massachusetts specialist. only %
could be considered satisfactory
probation cases
But with the psvchopathic type
the situation is reversed. Says DIT.
Anderson
Twenty one per cent Of the pro
hation periods OF the predetermined
were successful. while more than
twice that number t49 per cent? OF
( the probation periods OF the psychic
/ paths were successful
The chances are better than two
70 one in favor OF the psychopaths,
and this without any special effort
directed toward training them 10
counteract the difficulties OF per
sonallty most responsible for their
failure
1T is quite likely that moro can
be done for the psychopaths thru
probation than thru any other
agency. provided their treatment be
guided by a knowledge OF their tenn
peramental peculiarities, their per
sonality EMBELLISHMENTS. 40 that
their environment can be suitably
influenced or chosen FOR them and
they themselves trained 20 inhibit
their impulses"
In this report. clearly there Is
food for thought by those who as
lawyers. judges. penal ofncials or
social workers come much into con
tact with offenders against eGc.sty.