Evening star., 1933-07-07
.L0RT0N IS UNIQUE
PRISON EXPERIMENT
Barnard Made Reformatory
"Country Club" Jail and
Awaits Test.

Capt. Morris M. Barnard, veteran in
the field of prison administration,
waited grimly today at his Lorton, Va,
country club for prisoners" for q pos
sible outbreak that will put to crucial
test his long -nurtured "honor system"
A pioneer in the modernist theory OF
prison freedom. based on the old saying
that there Is honor even among thieves,
the white haired general superintendent
of District penal institutions has at
tracted wide attention among pencil
coquan and Lorton.
Capt. Barnard came to Lorton in
1916 with the doctrine that stone walls
do not q prison make" and straightway
he proceeded to eliminate the old-time
hard-boiled prison atmosphere in favor
Of an eaSy-going humane routine de-
signed to make confinement almost q
pleasure.
Prisoners Great Boosterx
The prisoners themselves were great
boosters of the reform-begun largely
as an experment-and it was they who
first dubbed the penal establishment on
OccoQuan Creek country club"
Court attaches tell stories of regular
visitors" before the bar who have asked
for 80 or so days at Capt. Barnard's
sylvan retreat.
Capt. Barnard was brought here from
the Midwest to carry out drastic reform
recommendations of Federal commits
sion composed Of John Joy Edison. then
chairman Of the District Welfare Board,
Wendell p Stafford then a justice OF
the District Supreme Court, and Supt.
La Dow Of Federal prisons The COM
mission had advanced ideas on prison
reform, ideas that shocked the old
school OF jailers and wardens.
The commissions plan coincided ex
Actly with Barnards theories on prison
management. Lorton was a young
'reformatory" in those days and it
suffered the usual growing pains.
Tbere were . good many escapes at
first-h you can call playing hockey
from Lorton an escape" 1t is a COM
paratively simple matter to make .
"break" down there, If you want to.
Bars and Walls Lacking.
Prisoners are not restrained by bars
or high-walled battlements at Lorton
or Occoquan. There are no picture
type or story-book guards marching up
A Government ofiicial who attended
base ball game there not long ago was
surprised to find that no cne stopped
him as he drove his automobile into
the reservation and even more sur
prised when he drove out again without
being either stopped or questioned. Il
could have carried one or two prisoners
away with me easily. I believe-but
maybe they know all the prisoners" he
remarked afterward.
There are radios to bring the In
mates into close contact with the out
side world and its news music, sports
and fun. There are newspapers to read
during leisure periods. And, OF course,
there is work to do, too.
From time to time there have been
unconfirmed stories about brutal treat
ment inflicted on few unruly con-
victs. Released prisoners have sought
to have newspapers run sensational
stories about their alleged mistreat-
ment, but usually further inquiry has
shaken these claims. There have been
several oficial investigations of such
complaints, but always the institution
has been vindicated.
Retirement Held Up.
When Capt. Barnard was slated for
retirement year ago because OF MS
age, DR.. Luther NJ Reichelderfer wrote
. strong plea to the Civil Service Com
mission for a special executive order
extending the superintadent's term Of
service. The request was granted by
President Hoover.
In his letter to the commission, DR..
Reichelderfer. president Of the Board
of District Commissioners, declared that
Barnard cannot be separated from the
service without detriment to that serv-
ice" and added:
THE reformatory at Lorton being de-
veloped under the direction and man.
agement of Mr. Barnard is a unique
penal institution. At Lorton the
experiment is being tried to afford
prisoners a more nearly normal mode
Of life. The safekeeping Of the prison.
ers depends more upon educational
effect and the development Of higher
morale than it does upon physical re-
straint."