New Britain herald., 1930-12-30


 necessarily suffers during incarcera- | tion.
 Moving pictures are shown eve ry Saturday evening, during the winter months, to those who. be- cause of conduct, are entitled to see them. This includes everyone in the 1 first grade
 Religious services are regularly 1 conducted. Sunday schools are maintained and instruction given by Protestant. Catholic, Christian Sci ence and Jewish teachers. Attend ance is voluntary.
 "The prisoners are orderly, quiet 1 and apparently under good dlsCi- l pline. They are neat in appearance | They walk 10 and from their meals | in good order and are as healthy in appearance and in action as any similar group Of men.
 Upon admission the prisoners clothes are sent to his home. He is supplied by the institution with garments for his use while at Wethersfield. On his discharge. he is given a suitcase. q suit Of clothes. an overcoat, two shirts. two suits Of underwear, two pairs of socks and a pair Of shoes, the value of the en- tire outfit being about $2G In addi- tion to this, he is given a railroad ticket to his destination, and, if without funds Of his own, five or ten dollars in cash. In many cases. discharged prisoner has standing to his credit substantial amount which he has earned while serving his sentence.
 AS is well known, all prisoners, except those convicted of murder in the first and second degrees. are sentenced under the minimum and maximum plan by the courts hear ing their cases. There is q commuta- tion rule for good behavior which is applied. as in most prisons, more or less automatically. It amounts to sixty days per year, for all sentences of more than one year, up 10 five years; and is fixed at ninety days per year thereafter.
 "About one-half of the men re- leased from the prison are on pa role, and are under the supervision Of th. parole authoritios. Repre- seutatives Of the Connecticut Prison Association maintain, as far as pos sible, contact with discharged pria- oners.
 A grade system divides the iu- mates into three classes in order 10 be eligible for parole. q prisoner must have been in the first grade tor a period of six months. Upon the expiration of the minimum sentence, less the time allowance for good behavior, all such cases come auto lnatically before the Board ot Parole which then gives cOnslderl- ton 10 each individual case, grant ing or refusing parole as conditions. in the judgmeut Of the Board, may warrant. In cases where applications are denied, the matter will not De heard again by the Board until the expiration Of one year, except upon special action 10 the contrary talk ell by the Board. Prisoners who have been upon parole for one year and have maintained q satisfactory standard of conduct are, thereupon, eligible for final discharge.
 "Prisoners upon their admission are placed in the first division. They may lose this advantageous position by infraction Of the rules, dropping into the second or even the third grade, depending upon the serious ness of these violations. lt speaks well for the discipline and spirit Of the institution that on December gnd 1850. when We checked up oil this matter. there were in the first grade 557; in the second grade %A; and in the third grade 1. In dddl- ton to this, there were 5 in the m sane ward who are always claSsl- fled as first grade prisoners.
 "The grade system is amplltled somewhat by the honor system whereby the men wear certain ln- signia indicative Of their having oheyed the rules for varying lengths of time. |
 "Lectures, addresses, concerts and various other entertainment are provided at intervals for the prls- oners in the chapel These occasions are well attended and are open to prisoners in the first grade. In addl- ton 10 this. on four nights "eeh from ' p. m. to E:5o D. n., the ra- dio is used Loudspoakers are ln- stalled at the ends of the corridors so that the prisoners in their cells may have the opportunity Of near ins well diversified programs. On special occasions, this period IS eA- tended to 10 D. m.
 "There IS. Of course, the recreh- ton ward. From one 10 five ?. m. on Saturdavs and Sundays, weather nornifting, the men have an oppor- tunity for recreation and exercise. . Baseball mines are organized durln2 the season. q series of games taxes place. with the awarding Of Chahl- . pionship; and in addition to thls. . the prison nine plays with outsld' . teams which come 10 the prison fo" that purpose. FOOtpdI Is dIHo FlaH ed. as we'll as a game some"hM similar 10 bowls, known a-s Bocci Ball. which is a particular favorlte with inmates of Italian origin. There is also d prison band under conp"- tent instruction.
 The report here mentions th" privilege given the prisoners ot complaining of poor treatment 10 the state department Of public wei fare and asserts that careful nves- tigatons are made when complaints are received. II also comments on . the periodical visits paid the prison by the department heads.
 The provisions for disciplin-
 ing the inmates consist Of r"-
 ducton in grade, the abatement