Evening star., 1926-03-14


in practical way the penal system
through its workhouse at Occoquan
and reformatory at Lorton, Va.
Washington's leading private cit
izen," John JOY Edison. now nearing
his eightieth birthday. by his lead
'ership in this innovation and refpr-
mation has done the most outstand-
ing thing of the century in prison
reform.
Prison cells have been taken out,
the men and women sleep In dormi-
tories and eat at tables in the dining
hail. they work unmanacled in the
open, drinking in air and sunshine:
they are encouraged to talk together,
have entertainments, are given full
DAYS work under skilled supervision
and encouraged TO learn trades along
the line Of their natural bent. and
they are erecting the buildings in
which they live and work.
In other words. they are treated
like human beings. in sanitary CON
ditions. many of them getting for the
FIRST time in their lives an oppor-
tunity to associate decently with their
felnWmen.
What far cry this is from the sys
tenn Of solitary dungeon. with the
prisoner handcuffed wrists bleeding
and feet swollen from long hours of
standing on the stone floor; the
water cure. punishment by forcing
the culprit to lie for hours in a
rolin. the Straitiacke thrashings
and other barbarouS treatment. 1t is
a distinct antithesis of the hard
handed cruelty when the key was
turned in the lock of the dismal
smelly. loathesome. disease breeding
cell. while the warden smoked his
cigar. but never felt easy while the
offenders against society were out Of
their cells; the days when those who
had fallen under the heavy hand of
the law" were treated as beasts and
cave dwellers. and responded to the
treatment.
Ii is not maudlin sentiment that
negotiated the big change or that
rules at Lorton and OcCoquan flor
they are co-ordinated institutions.
Mr.. Edison. father of the reformed
system, is hard-headed business
man and banker who is well known
in the National Capital, where he has
given more than 60 years of steady,
day-after- work for the betterment
of the community in practical,
huSneSslike way. He has never
sought or held public office, although
three Decentralization Mckinley
and Roosevelt-on five different occa
Sions asked him to accept appoint
ment as District Commissioner. He
has been an adviser OF Presidents.
* x x
MR.. EDISON came to Washington
AA 64 years ago. when he was dis
charged from an Army hospital at
the age of Il. having enlisted as
soldier at the age of 10. He was in
general charge of the big Union Army
reunion in 1892 He took leading
IL. l. H. ~.
Hospital. He was a charter member
of the Washington Loan and Trust
Co. was chosen its second president
in 1894. and continued in that office
for "a years. Forty-siX years ago he
organized the Equitable Building As
sociation and has been its president
since 1898. He was in charge of the
erection of the first Office building in
Washington at Ninth and streets.
He has always been active in the work
of the Associated Charities. He was
chairman of the Mckinley inaugural
ceremonies in 1901. has been on every
inaugural committee since, and was
also on Cleveland'S,
He was a member of the orga MIA
ton committee of the Chamber of
Commerce of the United States and
initiated the erection of the handsome
national headquarters of American
business OH IL STREET. VI qidA lCl
Of a century he has been on the board
of the National Geographic Society
and is it's treasu He is one of the
building committee of three for the
National Press Club Building, at Four
teenth and r streets-the others being
John HAYS Hammond and j. William
Bryan. This will be the most imposing
privately owned building in Washing
ton and will be ready for occupancy
in a year.
1t was a practical business man of
such long and distinguished service
who undertook to do, under act of Con-
GresS and at the personal request of
President Roosevelt. what the keeper
Of every prison in the country IS
wears ago said could not he done,
and which only two of the prison
keepers thought was worth while
trying To do.
Tribute also must be paid to Jus
tice Wendell p. Stafford, not only for
thorough cooperation and encour-
agement in this reform. but for first
~voicing the sentiments regarding
treatment of prisoners that led to
the reform.
A representative of the German
government, acting in the capacity
corresponding to our Secretary of the
Interior and Attorney General, on
visiting OcCoquan and Lorton re-
Gently, expressed anna cement at the
liberty granted the prisoners to lead
normal lives. and said: This is the
most distinct departure in penolOGy
in modern times" He had just seen
life prisoners driving carts about the
grounds-2,6 600 acres.
THE lat DR.. Charles r. Henderson
of Chicago University. who was
president of the American Prison
Associa ton, and DR.. Amos w. But
Ter, the most outstanding penologist
in the United States today. a great
naturalist and friend of the late Vice
President Thomas Riley Marshall
who was also president of the
American Prison Association. took
a keen interest in the experiment
In prison reform undertaken by
the District of Columbia In fact, DR..
Butler has actually reproduced the
plant at OcCoQuan in Indiana, so en-
thusiaStic has he become over the
success of the venture here. Both
DIR. Henderson and DR.. Butler con-
Sidered NE undertaking of Mr.. Ed
son and Judge Stafford SO important
a departure in their special fields of
protecting society that they sent men
who were to run their prison farms
to Lorton to live for several weeks.
just so that they might imbibe the
spirit of the institution.
For the last 20 years, and espe-
ci1lly since Lorton was started.
prison farms have been established
in various places throughout the
States. and there has been a great
deal of talk about the honor sys-
tem.' Now, Mr.. Edison and NJ. w.
Barnard. the superintendent at Lor-
ton. are not sentimentalists. In fact,
Mr.. Barnard is an old.system prison
warden, who. when the District plan