The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1929-10-08
The Mystery Of the Prisons


The murdorous outbreak at the Colorado penitcn.iary,
with its l. dead. raises anew the mystery of how these
mutinics can happen IN institutions Of the character Of
prisons. with supposedly rigid discipline. with bristline.
armed guards and the apparent abject hclplcssncss Of
their herdcd convicts.
Iii the two outbreaks last July IN tho two New York
state prisons OF Clinton and Auburn, explanations we're
equally difficult TO conjecture. Governor Franklin Roose-
welt drew the conclusion that the Baumcs law, which
inficts life Imprisonment Oh a fourth conviction Of felony
was at the bottom Of the uprisings. 1t was argued that
this law makes convicts desperate. that when a set term
Is being served there is always the hope of emerging free
to start life all over again, but when a mere thief. for
instance, faces the same punishment as a murderer with
no remission for good behavior. tho mind can only de-
yelop tito murderous morosencss.
It was beyond intelligent argument to ascribc tho out
breaks to the stern discipline exercised over the con-
victs. for. while Dannemora prison, at Clinton, was of a
character that earned it the title OF Siberia, : the Auburn
prison was administered OH a liberal system. with convict
self government. Yet in the one prison. 1900 convicts
mutinicd, beat two guards. set fire to buildings and
s.orncd tho walls. They fought five hours against prison
guards. state guards and citizen volunteers, until finally
quelled with tear bombs. riot Guns and hand grcnades.
Three convic.s were killed aid many injured. while
100000 damage was done.
In the other riot. six days later, at Auburn with its lib
cral policy, 100 convicts rose by treachery against their
guards and another five-hour battle cnsued, with S250O00
damage, two convicts killed and four escaped.
While New Yor.. officaldom still is struggling to
find the answer to all this, comes the outbreak in Colo
RADIO. even moro melodramatc and bloody. with guards
executed one by enc III a cell room BY the leader OF the
uprising and their bodies tossed gu, OF the prison WIN
dovs. to be followed later By the leader killing his mates
and ending his own lie.
Meme OF the stories OF the battle sent out at the time
gave hint of what it all was about. Only the horrible
details OF the fighting and slaughter came over tho
wires.
Now an explanation is attempted to the effect that a
ring was exploiting the prison in the sale Of liquor. dope
and guns surreptitiously struggled i'll to the inmates
through the aid OF guards. This story seems preposter-
Gus. It does not seem tina. such practices were possible,
as they would impcril the lives OF the guards supposed to
be III the Illicit business.
But the story implies rotten politics. If men who would
connive at such graft from their official position were
selected to man the prison posts, and. maybe. politics in
another form, II not in that acknowledgements graft
will be found at the bottom of the whole tragic mess
when q real probe is sunk into the riot and the conditions
which made it possible to occur.
The reports OF the rising agree that the Colorado state
prison was crowded. This condition was c%oincident with
the same state OF housing at the two New York prisons.
Herding Of this character would have a hardening. de-
fiant influence. The New York World spoke of this cdi-
torally and expressed a theory that the ordinary man
can understand. It was that If there is one condition
more than any other which drives men to hysterical &C
ton. 1t is the incessant jostling OF one human animal
against another
There was a general trend Of editorial comment that
the New York riots disclosed a necessity of turning tho
whole American prison system upside down and inside
out. There was no doubt Of bad sanitation. of crowding,
Of questionable effect of the Baumes lifc-teym law, of
corrupt or inefficient guard system.
The Colorado mutiny adds hardly anything to the pic
turc. It deepens the conviction that III its prison system
and conditions this nation has a vast problem to deal
with. It is now very generally conceived that crime is a
disease. When q horde of sufferers from this disease
are thrown together, the tendency is to grade up the
ailment. Those who have it mildly are likely to suffer in
lection from the worse types until the crime fever IS
spread out In 2 general violent inclination.
These outbreaks come at a time while the memories
and influences OF a great war still affect the morale Of
the people and admittedly conducc to law violation and
crimes Of violence. It would seem to be a time when,
more than ever, offenses should be judged ~elastically on
their individual merits. But instead laws are enforced
with crazy quilt effect, allowed to break down at one
place and inflicted with hideous harshness at others.
In fact, the problem Of prison conditions and reform
IS rather closely linked up with the general problem Of
Law enforcement and the practices Of the courts. Per-
haps 1t should Be studied. not OF itself. but in connection
with the greater problem.