New-York tribune., 1919-12-14
Old Offenders
Now Hold Re-
sponsibleJobs
By Frederick B. Edwards

No wonder people get wrong idea
of Sing Sing. We turn crook into
man-thats no story. But if
somebody will only escape, maybe
there'll be a shooting-scandal-
that is a story and a chance to be-
little Sing Sings reforms"
DR.. Kirchwey was speaking of the
newspapers Of New York. This is
the story which proves that DR..
Kirchwey was mistaken when he
said that the newspapers do not re-
gard the turning of crook into a
man as a story.
Around a long dining table in an
uptown hotel there sat on a recent
evening a dinner party Of forty
men. They were, all of them, keen
eyed, firm Tipped, steady of glance
and apparently prosperous.
It might have been gathering of
old friends, the reassembling Of an
alumni society; dinner Of techni-
cal or Office men brought together
to do honor to a loved executive.
About the coffee cups and above
the cigar smoke the talk buzzed
along She usual lines. The peace
treaty, reconstruction problems,
labor troubles, recent football and
future baseball were the popular
topics.
The Gift
The chairman, white haired, with
clipped mustache above firm,
friendly mouth, with blue eyes that
cleaned from behind rimless nose
glasses, raped for order. In the
sudden silence he said
"Gentlemen, we have gathered
here tonight for the express pur-
pose of honoring a man who has
done more for US than any other
man living. A man who has shown
US what We could be and who has
encouraged US to become what we
are. We are going to offer him
gift, which, though it is small, is
still important, not because of its
intrinsic value, but because it is the
outward and visible sign of the
esteem in which we hold him."
He lifted into view one of those
creations Of brown pigskin, gleam-
ing glass and FURNISHED silver which
is called an English kit bag, pos
sibly because it is not English and
is certainly not kit bag.
with this trifing gift" the
chairman went on, Eve offer to our
guest our sincere gratitude, not
only because of the things he has
done for us in material affairs, but,
most of all, because he has inspired
within us that spirit which has en-
abled US to conquer oceans and to
overturn mountains; because he has
made us men"
There were ripples of applause
and the chairman, who once was
known to Sing Sing as B-6592
turned to Thomas Mott Osborne anc
handed over the glittering bag.
Of the forty men who sat around
\ that table thirty-seven were former
inmates of Sing Sing Prison. The
rest Of the party was made up of
the guests of honor, DR.. Kirchwey
and Martin F. Loonan, secretary OF
the Welfare League Association
The dinner was organized and car
ried through by a committee Of the
thirty-seven ex-convicts, every one
of whom is to-day busily engaged al
an honorable industrial occupation
free Of the prison taint, living up.
rightly and fearing no man.
The Ciuers
At that dinner there was at least
one man who has served long
term for manslaughter; a gamble,
who has been in Jail in seven diff
ferent parts Of the country ane
whose name was for years a noto-
r.ous one in the underworld Of New
York; a gunman who had served
three terms for carrying concealed
weapons; man who had served
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