The Waterbury Democrat., 1938-05-19

present menancing jail situation. At our March meeting, presided over by Chief Justice Maltbie, Parnassus representatives unanimously voted to come out openly against our old county jail system.
 Upon being personally informed of our action, our friendly sheriffs and jailers expressed themselves for Parnassus book serwce, visits and jail forum to continue nevertheless.
 In reply to press appeals, jail forum speakers from three oratori- cal clubs in or near Hartford have furnished aid so effectual that Parnassus librarian, Miss Cowles, has decided to move to 93 State stre eet, Wethersfield, Connecticut about June 1st, there to direct Parnassus labors and to supervise the redecoration of our state prison chapel; and to restore the mural The Charge to St. Peter," where Peter promises Christ to tend His lost sheep!
 This very appeal Miss Cowles, ar- tist and jail librarian, now makes to Connecticut citizens.
 The federal law against religious propaganda in penal institutions, permits Catholics, Protestants, He brews and every o:ner religious group to aid their own prisoners; a practice steadily advanced for years in English prisons, which are being closed due to their diminish ing criminal population.
 Our criminal population increases steadily. Our Catholic jail popula-' ton is overwhelming and greatly neglected.
 We summon the attention of Christians, both Catholic and Pro- testant, to the bitter present need of prisoners in our eight smaller county jails. Beside the usual array of delinquents, we find workmen de- prived of work outside condemned in jail to idleness or to labor that too often has no reference to a mans past or future. We call atten- ton to helpless old men for whom no refuge is available but the jail or the insane asylum! We call atten- tion to young boys and girls in jail, life of crime ahead of them unless we help them. Examples: A lad of sixteen doing a years sentence now in Danbury jail. A seventeen year old waif from Rhode Island saw charged with two robberies and 8 hold-up, lodged in New London jail. I saw six c. c. campers recently and lad of seventeen in Haddam jail.
 As for the women, they may do little laundry or something, but 1t is impossible to carry out any sort of constructive work for them under present conditions in jail.
 Parnassus on Wheels, Inc. like the penal authorities in England, and even some authorities in Italy, be- lieves that 1t is more sensible to convert and to educate our prison CTS while the state has entire control of their time and labor, rather than to neglect them and mismanage them and to drive them deeper down into the underworld and thence to fight their future depre- dations! Parnassus on Wheels, Inc. is the only society in Connecticut now actively working for the bene- fit of prisoners while they are held as bound-overs awaiting trial or as men and women, boys and girls under sentence in eight of our county jails. Owing to fines and costs jail detentions are more pro tracted than is usually understood. For both bound-overs and condem- ned prisoners, time in jail Is the psychological moment both to them selves to their future victims maybe, and to their future leighbors cer- tainly. Come to our meeting and help us to plan for the future of our prisoners, while they are in our power.
 GENEvIEvE COWLES, Librarian, Parnassus on Wheels, Inc.
 425 Temple St., New Haven, Conn (After June 1st, Address,:
 93 State Street, Wethersfield, Conn.)