The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1922-04-20
Prison Reform Daugherty's S
 Hobby
By W. H. ATKINS, International News Service staff COrreSpondert.


 Washington, April 2o.-Attorney General Harry M. Daugherty has a lot of hobbies
 He likes to drag away on a. rusty looking pipe. He's a pretty fair fish erman. He turns a wicked tenor in an impromptu barber shop quartette. when not engrossed with official cares he enjoys a card game, horse race, billiard game. or any one of forty other varieties of pastiming.
 His real hobby, though, is making good men out of bad ones. it's not new hobby for him. He's been doing it for years. Taking the helm as head of the Justice Department, and the President right1bower in legal problems, MT. Daugherty jumped in to a. field of activity genuinely to his liking. Possessing human qualities in rare degree, the Attorney-Gen his hum anness into the dark recesses of the Federal prisons
 Within the Federal penitentiardes Mr. Daugherty has introduced moral lated to make real men out of the convicts. so that when their terms end they may go into different fields of activity and again become useful citizens-fr.ee from the temptation to repeat their old and dangerous ways.
 tained by the Government at Allan ta, Leavenworth and McNein Island, Cal, MT. Daugherty has seen remark able results from the operation of prison shiools. In Atlanta Prison some foreign born, after a few months study were able last Christ mas to write intelligent letters to friends and relatives.
 Prisoners Make Good. More than 1000 prisoners were paroled, and their earnings were about s1,OOO,o 900. The Attorney-Gen- chance to make good, and they are making good Besides they are con- tributing their share to the country's productive. output-production that would be lost if they remained i'm prison.
 The success of industrial enter prises at Atlanta. so conducted that there is a profit both for the Govern selves on a bonus 1baSiS, according to their output, had led Attorney-GAen- era1 Daugherty to urge Congress to pass a bill authorizing the 1nSta1la- tion of similar industrial features in the prisons at Leavenworth and Mo NeEl Island.
 A cotton duck mill operated at Atlanta Prison brought a net profit earned for the prisoners in bonuses of two cents a yard on their output about s45,00o. About $50 prisoners are employed in the Atlanta Prison cotton mill. The product is not sold in open market, but is disposed of to Government department needing such supplies.
 ''IdleneSs PerniciouS
 Because of industrial methods and other measures tio establish prison reform, the Attorney-General said recently that, although there are now 645 more inmates at the three pri- ons named, the expenses of operat- ing them will be about $70,000 below the amount appropriated by Con gross.
 MT. Daugherty's opinion is that idleness is dangerous both to the idle and to society.
 "Idlen'ess is pernfoious," he said ''pernfcious both morally and physi- cally to all men, especially to prison CTS. If men in prison are to again fill places of usefulness in society it is imperative that constructive labor be furnished them during their confine- ment.
 No record of merely material ac- complish1nent can give such satis- faction as comes from the re-estab- nshment of man as a useful mem Der of society. The period of a mans incarceration for an offense against the State need not necessarily be de- structive of the mans present or fu- ture worth to society nor of his self respect or immediate earning ca pacity."