The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1927-10-26
CARROLL FOUND.
Love IN JAIL
CONTINUED from Page 81

@unlAAuSu ALVtu y A&E al
simple and flimsy, did you not
realize that even the tiniesk event
In prison was great nAWs,
For example. some little triumph,
such as the success OF q prisoner
in gaining q can of salmon or an
extra piece OF bread without get
ting caught In the act Of pam.
pering" oneself was the cause Of
great nlerriment-if there can be
such thing as real merriment
there.
Laughter Is Hollow
Wherever You find groups Of
men. you will find . hunger for
laughter.
But when you hear the laughter
Of the prison. you detect the hol.
lowness Of it and divine that II is
laughter that Is 1 mask. . curtain
for the snawing pain beneath II.
At first J was not taken into the
confidence cf the men and now
cannot write too Intimately Of their
lives.
/ used to like to listen to my
prison nurses-all men Of course
discuss matters.
They often would talk Of Chap.
man and other star" prisoners.
Ny night nurse was serving our
years My head nurse, q train rob.
Der, was doing IL. my day nurse.
up for murder. had 90 years.
These men would talk- didn't
realize @ at the time-tO get me out
Of my terrible depression.
Here | learned that there ID .
sort Of nlOtherly Instinct in these
creatures. They know yOu need o.
sort of love hat mothers can give
and they stretch out their callOused
hands to you.
And it IL d beautiful thing this
sort of love Of man for man. From
the trials and troubles OF these men,
| learned that even In prison there
in relatively: that 10, II you look
about you. yoa don't feel like cry
ing too much over your own sCr.
rows.
Chapman Was Symbol
The walls are 10 feet high at
Atlanta. and are Of gray stone.
Why did Gerald Chapman take
such a hold on the men Of the
prison? It was not because they
were lawbrakers in the sense Of de.
feating prison discipline, but be.
cause Chapman was emblematic Of
escape from Hell itself.
And by that / do not mean that
cruelties or anything Of that sort
are practiced by the prison author
tiles.
They are as kind ~ the law
permits; it 10 the taking away Of
mans liberty that seems 20 grave
q thing.
No matter what the thing in,
volved I wonder II God meant to
take liberty away from man with.
out the most painstaking analysis.
Men are human and judges are
human and / fear it IL human for
some man who has done little hat
is wrong to be deprived Of liberty
that is too great.
Ny study Of the rate Of increase
in prisoners In Atlanta leads me to
believe that many liquor law viola
tons that can't be a. bad a. other
crimes bring to prison men who
really should not be given such
drastic treatment.
Prisoners Increase
There were about $4,000 prison.
ers in 20 years before prohibition,
and in the next four years there
were 1000.
The moonshiner who used TO be
hunted In the mountains now has
turned bootlagger.
Where no used to ply his work
among people Of humble sort, now
he is patronized by the wealthy
men, who themselves are sent to
no such life a. IL the man who
peddles his wares.
/ While my heart IL full for the
men / left hack there. ! must
confess that my brain il not big
enough to suggest the answer.
realize fully that we must obey
the law and that society must be
protected, but In protecting Il.
self, must IL kill the souls Of
men, damning them forever?