Evening star., 1937-03-27

various utilities and farm buildings.
Its buildings and grounds have value
in excess of s2,000.000. 1t is admins
tered entirely by women officers.
The enabling act providing for this
institution specified that each woman
was to be given training that would
fit her to be self-supporting on her
return to society Each woman on
admission Is placed in quarantine.
Many of them arrive in a debilitated
or diseased condition, ravaged in body
and mind by drink, drugs or other
vices. They Immediately become the
objects of continuous and scientific
program of physical and mental hy-
giene. The United States Public
Health Service furnishes medical,
mental, surgical and psychiatric care
for each individual woman. The SUI
perintendent and her staff provide
the type Of reformative treatment best
suited to the need of the individual.
An attempt is made to inculcate into
the women the desire to live in con-
formity with society's standards.
The experiment in penology has
succeeded, and about one-third OF the
number Of women released from tho
institution have gone out upon parole.
Only two have had their paroles re-
voked. Some, it Is true, have not
succeeded in adjusting themselves.
Among these were confirmed drug
addicts and other incorrigible delin-
quents, but the great majority have
returned to the world better equipped
for life.
Once the Federal prisoner has been
classified as to the institution in
which he shall serve his sentence, the
officers Of that institution concentrate
upon the most fitting treatment for
him. When an inmate has served
one third of his sentence the parole
officer requests each department that
has had contact with him to furnish
reports, called progress notes." and
later parole considerations are based
upon these to a great extent.
PUNISHMENT is administered when
an inmate is guilty Of misconduct,
by reprimand, restriction Of privileges,
solitary confinement, restricted diet
or loss In some Of the regular reduce
ton in sentence provided by law for
continuous good conduct.
With respect to the educational
and vocational training made available
to the prisoners in the reformatories
and at Northeastern, where the more
"hopeful" cases are confined, 1t Il
based on definitely social objective
That is to say, learning Is used as
means of better social adjustment
rather than for its own sake. Edu.
cation is thus divided into academic
and vocational work. The academic
extends from teaching elementary
school subjects for the benefit of the
illiterate or nearly uuterate to cor.
respondence courses and individual
instruction in special subjects at
college level.
"It is astonishing" he says, chow
unsuitable some individuals can be FOL
a task in hand. Every effort must b
made to get the right instructors, ana
this is often more important from
standpoint Of the psychology Of th
instructor and his understanding thai
1t is from the standpoint Of his edu.
cational qualifications. I remembo
once visiting prison class where tn,
students were being taught to writs
On the blackboard, in fluent, Spen,
cerian hand, was the motto they haA
been told to copy. Believe it or not
some instructor had placed there tht
sentence: How swiftly the happ
hours flow by'!"
A board of directors of flve person
who represent, respectively, industry
labor, agriculture, retailers and con
sumers, and the Attorney General
determines to what extent industris
shall be carried on within the Fedora
institutions, with an effort made so b
diversity these activities that no singh
private industry will bear An undu
burden Of competition.