The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1914-1938, 1918-01-03
OLD JAIL HORRORS
When Imprisonment For Debt
Was the Law of the Land.
TORTURE FOR ITS VICTIMS.

Poor Wretehss Unable to Pay the Tri-
He They Owed Were Flung Into Pris-
on 70 starvs to Death Unless Res
eusd by Charity or Their Creditors.
In the early part Of the last century
there was started an earnest effort to
entirely abolish or at least to regulate
the old colony law Of imprisonment
for debt. The movers in this abolish
ment felt that no class Of the commu-
nifty deserved consideration more.
It had been the inhuman rule that
for the smallest debt possible to con-
tract, though it were but cent in
value, the body Of the debtor, whether
man or woman, would be seized by
the creditor and cast into jail.
Each year poor wretches had been
dragged to prison by thousands on
what were truly called "spite actions"
Once behind the prison walls they were
consigned to fate harder than that
which awaited worse criminals.
Murderers and thieves, forgers and
counterfeiters, real criminals of all
kinds, were fed, clothed and cared for
at the expense Of the state, but for
the unhappy man whose only offense
was his inability to pay a trifing sum
Of few cents no such provision was
made. The food he ate, the shreds that
covered him, the medicine he took
nay, the very rags he wrapped about
his sores-were provided, If provi6 I'd
at all, by his friends, by the public or
by some humane society.
The room in which he was confined
with scores of other offenders was ut
terly without furniture of any sort.
In 1t were neither beds, nor tables, nor
chairs, nor so much as a bench or
stool. He sat on the floor, ate of the
floor and at night lay to sleep on it
like dog, and this misery he endured
until he died or his debt was paid or
his creditor released him.
Against this at length humanity re-
volted, and in 1894 change for the
better was ordered. 1t was stipulated
that the inspector should provide fuel
and blankets for such debtors as, by
reason of their dire property, could
not get them and should make an al
lowance of Z cents day for food and
charge this against the creditors. If
any creditor refused to pay after ten
days notice his debtor was to be dis
charged.
For twenty-five years the commune
~ 60 ~ hof la
mild concession was all that humanity
required, for no further change was
made until 1914. Then was passed
the bread act" under which each pris-
oner whose debt did not exceed SIS
was entitled to a discharge after an
imprisonment Of thirty days.
From documents presented to the
senate Of New York in 1917 it appears
that the keeper Of the debtors jail In
New York city certified that during
1916 1884 debtors were confined and
that upward of GOO were always In the
prison. The sheriff of the county GER
tilted that 1,129 were imprisoned for
debt under $50, that Of these 100 owed
less than $25 and that every one Of
for the assistance of the Humane So
ciety.
One man remained, It was noted, In
the New York jail for three years, who
was only indebted to the extent Of $50,
before death ended his misery and
during the entire time was fed by the
Humane society. Another unfortunate
had been imprisoned six years and
was supported by charity. In the face
Of such striking evidence the legisla-
ture of New York state relented and
in 1917 forbade the imprisonment Of
debtors for sums less than $25. This
led the way, and state after state fol-
lowed.
When the new states I'm the west
framed their constitutions they order
ed that no one should be imprisoned
for debt. The old statute was finally
stricken from the laws Of the eastern
states until today none of our states
has a law requiring that debt Is
punishable by imprisonment, unless 1t
has been contracted under some fraud
ulent Misrepresentation philadelphia
Press.