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THE JOLIET
PIIISONPOST

DEVOTED TO PRISON N E AV S

VOL. I. JOLIET, ILLINOLS, JANUARY 1, 1914. No. 1

Published Monthly By The EDITORIAL

BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS AND THE WARDEN OF THE ==r^======^=^^============-— =—=—---— -^^^-—^

IL,I<INOIS STATE PENITENTIARY, JOL,IET, XL,!,., U. S. A.

Address:— THE JOI.IET PRISON POST A WARDEN IS A TRUSTEE
1900 Collins Street - - . - Jolibt, Illinois

If one reads the statutes he will learn that

Single Copy Twenty Cents

lk^,adfa"n'ndH'or'y;y'^i!" 'bne Doiiarand Hf^y'^cents ^ Warden of a penitentiary has ditties toward

^al^a^'a^^i^l^lkn--"::":"":::"""::::::":::T^egCnlrl both the state and its prisoners, who are en-

EDITED BY A PRISONER trusted to his custody. In fact, a prisoner is a

ward of the State and the Warden is their

REPRODUCTIONS PERMITTED UNCONDITIONALLY ,. , . , ^

— - — : — T — - — — — guardian, actingf under orders from the Uov-

Application for entry as .Second-Class Matter at the Post Office at ° °

joiiet. Illinois, pending. emor and the Commissioners of the Prison

«T^^ ^a7 Board.

— In the nature of things much must be left to

The prisoner who looks only for sympathy his discretion and the result is that his posi-

in this paper will be disappointed. We hope tion becomes very similar to that of a trustee.

that he who recognizes his own shortcomings A Warden's duties to the State are gener-.

will find encouragement in every number. ally understood, while his duties toward his

prisoners are not so clearly recognized.

The fulfillment of the obligations of a War-

Obhgations to ^^^^ ^^ j.,j5 prisoners call for the best that is in

GOVERNOR EDWARD F. DUNNE a man of honorable character, profound wis-

The prisoners at this penitentiary are in- ^l^!"''' "n^im'ted generosity and abundant good-

clined to give Warden Allen credit for every- , . , .

tu: 1 ■ u 1 4.1 T-i 111. Any man mav be proud to prove him.sell an

thing which pleases them, Thev should not rr ■ ^-^r i ' r ■. J

, , ' ^ ' . , (fficicnt Warden of a penitcntiarv.
lorget that (jovernor Dunne appointed the

Commissioners, who in turn selected Mr. Al- ® ®

len, who, in his turn, named Mr. William Especially for Knockers

Walsh as Deputy Warden, A sneak may escape being a scandalmonger.

While on this subject it is well to go back hut a scandalmonger is always a sneak. Every

farther. The people of the State of Illinois ^^^^^ community has its percentage of scan-

«i^^4.«,i r^ « ^ T-k 1 *u i.- dalmongers. .so it is not to be wondered at that

elected (jovernor Dunne and thev are satis- , . ■^. . , , ,

~ , . , , , " . this penitentiary has at least a few.

tied to give the prisoners a chance to improve . , , , , , , ,

. , , , , , , , , , .,. A scandalmonger is no better than a stool

m both character and health, so that they will ^^j^^^^ ^ ^,^1^^,^ ^^ ^ t^^,^^^. ^^.,^q ^^,„, ^^^^y

have a better opportunity to prove themselves The former convicts himself of cowardice out

worthy of citizenship after their release.^ of his own mouth.

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

What Can Coercion Accomplish ?

A prisoner can be compelled to work but
cannot be compelled to think.

This prison is a very large industrial plant
and it cannot be run successfully as such, with-
out the co-operation of the prisoners.

A prisoner can be compelled to carry brick
from one place to another, but he cannot be
forced to keep books or do good steam fitting.
He may prefer either to carrying brick and in
consequence he usually does the higher grade
work, but if that is the only inducement he
will usually do as little as possible.

Prisoners respond readily to encouragement
and it is not difficult to get them to give to the
State the best service they are capable of.

Prisoner Endorses Prisoner

One of the greatest sources of mischief dur-
ing prison life is that the prisoner is sur-
rounded by so many who are anxious to en-
courage him in the belief that he has been
wronged by society.

He is seldom, if ever, questioned about the
eifect of his crime or crimes upon his victims.

That society and individuals sometimes
w rong the prisoner is well known to everyone
who understands the administration of the
Criminal Code, but this does not signify that
every prisoner .should be encouraged to look
upon himself as a victim.

No More Facing the Wall

The .story is current that the first day Dep-
uty Warden Walsh was on duty, he saw a
number of prisoners who were waiting to in-
terview him standing with their faces close to
the wall. He said nothing at the time, but
after he had disposed of them he experimented
by standing in the same manner for several
minutes. He soon satisfied himself that it
was a very disagreeable experience and he or-
dered the practice discontinued, directing that
henceforth the prisoners could stand as they
wished; thus, a man with a heart, by only a
few words, stopped a degrading and humili-
ating custom, which had been enforced with-
out exception for over fifty years.

EDMUND M. ALLEN

ON PRISON REFORM

At the Joliet State Penitentiary

(Interview by the Editor)

It is my intention to make life in this prison
as nearly normal as it is possible to make it in
an institution of this kind.

So far as practical each prisoner w ill be em-
ployed at the work to which he is best adapted.
Shortly after I became Warden I transferred
two physicians from manual labor to the hos-
pital as assistants to the prison physician.
Now they assist in the treatment of patients
and are highly efficient head nurses.

A prisoner who was driving was made
stable boss four months ago. The officer who
Iiad been in charge was transferred. The en-
tire management of the stable — where twenty
prisoners are employed — was turned over to
the prisoner. His services have given entire
satisfaction ; the condition of the horses has
improved ; no complaints have been received
from the employes ; operating expenses have
been reduced, besides the saving of the salary
of the officer who was transferred.

A plumber and steam fitter of seven years ex-
perience, who had earned six dollars per day,
was changed from polishing furniture to work
at his trade, at which he has given entire sat-
faction.

I could recite many more instances of res-
ponsibility placed on prisoners with satisfac-
tory results. My experience justifies me in
stating that there are many prisoners who will
do better work without a gua/d than under
one. At this time many of them are doing their
utmost to help make my administration suc-
cessful. I believe that t am reforming pris-
oners in this way. besides saving money to the
tax-payers.

I do not believe in the combination of shop
\A-ork by day and cells by night. Outdoor em-
ployment will be given the prisoners just as
fnst as such work can be procured for them.
There are a few prisoners who. by reason of
iheir character and the nature of this institu-
tion, must be emploved in shops.

The laws of this state regulating the com-
netition of convict labor with free labor will
be strjctlv complied with. At this time only
twentv-eight per cent of the prisoners are em-
ploved on products to be sold on the market,
while under the law I am permitted to so em-

January 1, 1914 "^ O

^' i

ploy forty per cent of the total nuniber of the
men and women imprisoned here.

By the passag^e ut an act entitled "An Act
to authorize the employment of convicts and
prisoners in the penal and reformatory insti-
tutions of the State of Illinois in the prepar-
ation of road building- materials, and in work-
ing on the public roads," at the last session
of the Legislature, and approved June 2S,1913,
Illinois became the ninth state in the union to
adopt the honor system for the use of convict
labor for improving roads. This act provides
that prisoners owing the state five years or
more do not come under its provisions. On
September .3rd, 1913, the first company, con-
sisting of fifty-one men, left the prison as hon-
or men. The destination was Grand Detour, a
village near Dixon, Illinois. Two experienced
oflficers, Capt. T. F. Keegan and Guard Chas.
Hardy, were in charge. The prisoners were
dressed in citizens clothing; the officers car-
ried no w^eapons; leg-irons, hand-cuffs and
balls and chains were left behind, and this fact
was made known to the men before they
started. Each had been promised on behalf of
Governor Edward F. Dunne one day addi-
tional good time for every three days, depend-
ing only on industry and good behavior. They
started with confidence, determined to make
good, knowing that they bore the responsibil-
ity of pioneers in a great event, and that the
hopes of the 1400 prisoners left behind depend-
ed upon their good conduct.

There are other prison camps, but this is the
first and only camp in the world from a peni-
tentiary' where the officers are withtnit wea]>-
ons and shackles. The trip was made bv trol-
ley cars and train. Arriving at their destin-
ation the preparation of "Camp Hope" com-
menced. The outfit consisted of twelve 0x9 feet
tents, to be used as sleeping quarters, and three
18x30 feet tents; one is used as a dining room,
another is a general lounging room and for
chapel services and the other is a store room
and home for the officers. fTbe tents were all
furnished bv the Adjutant General.) The
kitchen is frame covered with tar paper and
banked with dirt. Immediately after camp was
made the road work was commenced.

The progress to date is satis factorv to the
community at Grand Detour, and also to me.
The conduct of the men lins proven them wor-

The Jc)ll(«t Prison Post

thy of the confidence I have placed in them.
There were persons in the neighborljMpd of
the camp who at first were suspicii)us ijf con-
\ icts, but the.se have long since ac(iuired con-
fidence in those at this camp.

These honor men have almost everv privi-
lege which a free man enjoys. Amongst the
icstrictions placed on them are. (1) they are
not permitted to go away. (2) drinking alco-
holic lif|Uors. gambling and profanity are pro-
Iiibited.

The prison authorities have recently pur-
c/iased a farm of over one-thousand acres, up-
on which at some future time a new prison will
be erected. This farm, which is located near
the present prison site, will be worked next
year.

During extremely cold weather, when road
work cannot be done, the company now at
Camp Hope will be employed and housed on
this farm, and preliminary w'ork in contempla-
tion of farming next vear will be performed.

During 1014 I will employ about three-hun-
dred prisoners on this farm. The property has
gravel beds and they will be worked. The
crravel will be used for public imnrovements in
road work. A larp-e truck garden will be es-
tablished. The products will mainlv be used nt
lhe prison. Grain for our cattle will be crown
nnd the excess will be sold in the market.
Standard cattle will be purchased as a start
towards a herd. A model poultrv plant of suf-
ficient capacitv to supplv eegs for the officers
nnd prisoners will be started.

I have not decided what my plans for road
work will be next year. I am holding back for
permission from Governor Dunne to improve
about forty miles of continuous road, having
a terminal in Springfield. Illinois. If permis-
sion is given me I intend to work from two
hundred to two hundred and fifty prisoners on
this job. I desire to do the work on a road
having Springfield as a terminal so that the
members of the Legislature may readily 5;ce
the work done by my men. I am opposed to
working men in camps at widely distributed
points, because by scattering the work I can see
that we will not get proper credit for w hat we
do.

I believe that all prisoners who, und?r temp-

355483

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

tation, prove that they are loyal to the pledge
they g-ive me will stand a good chance to ob-
tain honorable employment, without practic-
ing any deception as to their past lives when
they are released. They should then be in good
health and inured to hard work. I will give
them written recommendations testifying that
tliey have kept their pledges as honor men. and
that should entitle them to at least some con-
fidence at the hands of employers. I frequent-
ly receive letters from business men. suggest-
ing to me that I send honor men to them when
released. Many of these letters contain prom-
ises to give employment and lend a helping
hand.

Governor Dunne has promised me his aid in
securing from the next Legislature an amend-
ment to the law as it is now written, so as to do
away with the restriction which prevents pris-
oners who owe the state over five years from
working on roads. I desire to have this re-
striction removed altogether, so that, in the
discretion of the Commissioners, even those
serving life sentences may be included in the
benefits of this law.

Professional road builders will attempt to
defeat our purpose. They see in the success-
ful operation of this plan and the extension of
its provisions to a constantly increasing num-
ber of prisoners permitted to work on roads,
the gradual reduction and ultimate extinction
of their profitable business enterprises. The op-
position may be national in its scope, l^ecause
if prisoners from this penitentiarv are suc-
cessfullv emplovcd on roads, one big problem
will have been solved for everv ^state in the
union, as there is no other state where condi-
tions are more complex than in Illinois. The
cry of "danp-cr from convicts" will be raised
and all forms of arn-uments inspired bv fears
of pef'uniary lo<;s will be employed.

With examples of successful operation to
point to. T predict that all obstacles will be
overcome. T expect to demonstrate to the
T^eirislature that road work by selected honor
men, who have first made good behind the
walls, is both feasible and profitable, and of
benefit to society and prisoners.

A very large percentage of my life prison-

ers are trustworthy. I sympathize with every
man who is doomed to die within prison walls.
F.very life prisoner hopes for an amendment
to the "Convict labor on public roads law," so
that he too may be eligible to share in its phil-
anthropic and useful provisions, and he hopes
that ultimately, after honorable conduct and
])erhaps even many years of road work, he may
leceive as his reward a commutation of his
sentence, or perhaps even a pardon at hands
of a Governor of Illinois.

The honor system has recently been intro-
duced for the benefit of the prisoners within
the walls. It contemplates rewards and en-
couragements for all who obey the rules
and are loyal and helpful. After a full ex-
planation of its benefits and obligations the
prisoners were permitted to sign pledges of
good conduct if they so desired. Out of a
possible 1408 I received 1251 signed pledges.
Three grades w'ere established. The signing
of the pledge placed the prisoners in the
first grade. New arrivals are first placed in
the second grade, but good conduct for thirty
days permits them to sign pledges and be en-
rolled in the first grade.

Whenever a prisoner in either the first or
second grade is punished for an infraction of
a rule, he is relegated to the third grade.

An "honor button" is furnished to every
prisoner in the first grade ; upon losing his
standing his button is taken from him, and he
loses the privileges that go with it.

Prisoners in the first grade are permitted,
at the suggestion of the Governor, to
write a letter once a week instead of once
every five weeks as heretofore. They are per-
mitted to receive visits from friends once a
week instead of once every four w^eeks as for-
merly.

Prisoners in second grade are permitted,
at the suggestion of the Governor, to write
once every two weeks, and to receive visits
once in two weeks.

Prisoners in third grade are. at the sug-
gestion of the Governor, permitted to write
once every five weeks, and to receive visits
once in four weeks.

Upon a showing of necessitv special writing
permits are obtainable on application to the
Deputy ^^''arden.

Selections of men for road work, away from

January 1, 1914

Tlio .TolM't Prison Viisi

llic prison, are made from prisoners who are
in the first grade.

A grade of "imhistrial efficiency" will
shortly be established. It will be extended to
prisoners in the first grade who are also high-
ly valuable to this institution by reason of
exceptional efficiency. This grade will carry
further privileges and advantages, the exact
nature and extent of which will be determined
soon. I believe that many will strive faith-
fully to make this grade, and to those who do
so I will extend every possible encouragement.
The greater the number who succeed the better
for all. The average of jirison work has always
been universally poor. I hope to improve the
work done at this prison by the methods out-
lined above

Many prisoners are expert tinkerers and the
novelties they make are frequently both at-
tractive and useful. Only first grade men will
be permitted to tinker, and then only after
working hours in their cells. I will do my ut-
most toward having their productions offered
for sale.

During this winter the benches will be taken
out of the chapel and we will hold a fair to
which the public will be invited. Among the
attractions the novelties will be offered for sale
and the proceeds will be credited to the ac-
count of the maker on the books in the office.

Applications from prisoners in the first
grade for the restoration of lost time by reas-
on of misconduct in the past will be consider-
ed by the Board of Commissioners, which un-
der the law, has the power to restore lost time.
Favorable action may confidently be expected
by those who can convince the Commissioners
that for a considerable period of time their
conduct has been flawless.

As a health measure, T jjcrmit recreation
on every working day. The weather permit-
titig, the prisoners are allowed one hour, fix-
ing the time from when they stop work until
they resume. This allows them forty-five
minutes at play. Tn my opinion it is very rare-

ly that work is so important that there should
not be reasonable lime for play.

At first neither my of^'ers or prisoners
knew what I meant by recreation in a peniten-
tiary. At the time, Mr. Henry Sims «^f Chi-
cago, who had served as Deputy Warden under
my immediate predecessor, Mr. E. J. Murphy,
lor eight years, was my Deputy Warden. ( 1 Ic
has since died, to the sorrow of us all.) Mr.
Sims was in thorough accord with my policies
and he loved to carry good news to the pris-
oners. He thoroughly enjoyed the new reg-
ime.

When the first company was marched out of
ils shop to the hastily improvised recreation
grounds, where some benches had been placed,
the guard in charge directed the men to these
benches and had them seated. Then he or-
dered them to sit still. At this time the Depu-
ty — who was swinging his cane vig-
orously, as we all remember him doing when
ever he was very happy — aj^proached and
looked the prisoners over very critically. He
saw that they were not at all sure that they
cared for that kind of recreation, even if the
sun was shining on them w'hile seated out
doors for the first time since they entered the
prison. He was happy over the message he
carried to them, but he could not repress his
whims for comical situations, so he continued
for some time looking them over. Soon he
smiled and said. "boys, you don't .seem to like
your recreation," and then he shouted, "boys,
everything goes except fighting!"

At that the men were on their feet and
shouts of joy came from every throat. These
ft'W words were the oj)cning to a new sort of
life, and carried i)erniission beyond the expec-
tations of even the greatest optimist. It was
the first time in the histor>' of the institution
liiat the men shouted for joy. So far as play
was concerned the "lid" was off.

Soon after a few balls and bats were pro-
vided and the great national game was played
for the first time within IVnitontiary walls Mi
Illinois. Within a few days clubs were organ-
ized and match games were played six days
cvcrv week. On a small space, not large
enough for one contest, three games were us-
uallv in progress. The fielders for the difTcr-
cnt teams were in each others way: the ground
was uneven, and there were rocks in r>hvu-

Tlie^Joliet Prison Post

First Year

dan.e, but ne\ ertheless many good games were
played daily.

When the weather turned cold, marching
around the prison yard by conii)aiiies was sub-
stituted for play. This is less fun but it is just
as healthy.

From November to April the prisoners will
\ icw mo\ing pictures in the chapel on every
other Friday.

All expenses for recreation and amusement
are paid for out of the prison library and
amusement fund, which is sustained wholly by
the sale of admission tickets to visitors viewing
the prison.

A plot of ground 420 feet long and 400 feet
wide adjacent to the prison has been rented at
three hundred dollars per year. It has been
fenced in and graded at an expense of two
thousand dollars. A grand stand costing one
thousand dollars will be built in the spring.
This enclosure will be used as a recreation
park. All these improvements are at the ex-
l^ense of the library and amusement fund.

During November, 1913, twenty eight pris-
oners were punished for misconduct after a
trial before the Deputy Warden. This is the
lowest record in over fifty years. The pun-
ishment consists of solitary confinement un-
der sanitary conditions. The diet is bread
and water; the beds are of wood. The length
of time depends upon the circumstances of
each case, but is usually from one day to one
week. Handcuffing men to the doors has been
abolished.

Upon release from punishment the prisoner
is taken to the clothing department and dressed
in "stripes," which he continues to wear un-
til I am satisfied that he earnestly desires to
obey the rules. By dressing culorits in stripes
I am able to separate the obedient prisoners
from those who have disobeyed, and then I
can easily control the treatment of both class-
es.

I am opposed to punishing all for the faults
of one or a few. By distinguishing those who
are undeserving. T ran continue liberal privi-
icfres to all the others. Discipline is main-
tained by rewarding s^ood behavior and by
punishment and segregation of offenders.

Once in every two weeks I meet all the pris-
oners in the chapel. Usually I am alone; some-
times Mr. William Walsh, my Deputy War-
den, is with me. No other officers are permit-
ted to be present at these meetings. Here I
lalk to the men on prison topics and when I
have finished each one who desires to do so
is permitted to speak and make known his
houbles regarding prison matters.

All officers are under instructions to be firm
and just. I require the application of sound
judgment in handling the prisoners. The of-
ficers must help the men in order to keep them
out of trouble. Willful misconduct must be
reported immediately — usually in writing — to
Vr.e Deputy Warden, who is also the disciplin-
arian of the prison.

The prisoners are receiving the best care
I can possibly give them in this antiquated,
broken-down and over-crowded prison.

Under my management the working hours
of the officers are longer than they were during
the former administration. \Mienever I see
a way to benefit the large number of prisoners
( who are not at liberty to leave) at the ex-
pense of time and labor for myself and my
officers, (who are here from choice) my in-
clination is with the prisoners.

I have no use for tale-bearers and spies.
Complaints may be made to me by any prisoner
at the regular meetings in the hearing of those
j^resent, but not in any underhanded way. I
I'eel that I am here to ele\ate the character of
the prisoners and not to debase them, which I
would do if I tolerated spies. As to the en-
forcement of discipline I feel that I do not re-
quire the help of prisoners. I shall be able to
manage this with the assistance of my officers.

Prisoners are permitted to help one another
in every legitimate way. I encourage the spirit
of fellowship along proper lines.

Newspaper reporters will be admitted at
reasonable hours on working days onlv: thev

Januar>' 1, 1914

The JolicC l^risoii I'ost

may talk with wliomsoever they desire. I feel
ihai the more the public know about this insti-
tution the greater will be the interest in it, and
that this will help the prisoners both while they
they are in custody and after they have been
released.

1 do not want the world at large, and par-
ticularly the people of Illinois, to believe that
these ideas are all my own. Some were copied
from other prisons or were suggested by Gov-
ernor Dunne, and all of them have been ap-
proved by him before being put into etTect.
I have been favored by the active support of
the Prison Board of Commissioners, consist-
ing of James J. McGrath of Ottawa, Illinois,
President, Charles \V. Faltz, Somonauk, Illi-
nois, Secretary, and Ralph R. Tilton, of Cat-
lin, Illinois. Mr. William Walsh of Chicago
is of great assistance to me as Deputy Warden.

I am anxious to point out that these changes
do not in any way rellect on any of my pred-
ecessors. I have accomplished that which, in
my opinion, they could not have done. This
is by reason of the change in public opinion.

if not done in the beginning no Warden can
make radical changes afterward. As he be-
gins so he must finish. I was convinced before
1 commenced my present duties that whatever
ri:dical changes I had to make must be made
at the outset, for the reason that after once
your atmosphere is created you must hew very
closely to the lines, from the moment your
first order is given until you are through.
As late as when my immediate predecessor,
Mr. E. J. Murphy, first took charge of this in-
stitution, the public were not ready to accept
these progressive steps in criminology, conse-
quently, even he had to start and work along
other lines. After having done that for several
vears it was an impossibility for him — as it
would be for anyone else — to radically change
the order of things.

I stepped in at an opportune time, when the
public were insistent on humane, progressive
ideas, and I put them into effect at once. I did
tliat by creating an atmosphere of confidence
early, and that atmosphere I hope to main-
tain.

I fullv realize t'.iat I am dealing with human

lacings and I propose to deal with them along
human lines. In doing that 1 expect, in the
\cry nature of things, to meet with many jars
and bitter disappointments, but I realize jubt
\. hat I will have to contend with.

1 am prepared, with the kindly aid ot the
Governor and the Commissioners, the assist-
ance of my efficient Dejjuty W^arden, and with
I he help of my officers to go through.

I feel that in general I am carrying cut the
ideas of my father, who was W arden here
from 1893 to 1897. He was not so fortunate
as I have been in that, in his day, the public
\*cre not ripe for this kind of prison reform.

Note — Mr. Allen became Warden of the Jol-
icL Penitentiary on April 2Gth, 1913.

"Uncle Cal," said a friend, "your brother
Wash's boy's been arrested in the city for
forging a check."

''Dar, dat's what comes o' dish yerc eddi-
cation." said the old man excitedly. "I got ten
chillun, but I give thanks fo' ter say as not one
on 'em won't never learn to read nor write." —
The Voter.

Social Agitator — "Isn't it a shame the way
they work the help in this store? Fifteen hours
a day, and the wages almost nothing!"
Companion — "WHiy do you trade here?"
S. A. — "Oh, they sell things so much cheap-
er." — Chicago Times.

Amongst men worthy of the name, the oc-
casion of speaking of another as a grafter or a
thief, is (1) When the accused is present. (2)
When the one making the charge can prove
it. (3) When the speaker can be held to ac-
count. (4) When some good can come from
the charges.

There is no load that will break a man down
so quickly and so surely as a load of revenge.
The man who tries to get even uith others has
few opportunities of satiating hatred, hut he is
all the time corroding himself. — William J.
Bryan.

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

WILLIAM WALSH
DEPUTY WARDEN

On "Four Months at the Joliet Prison"

(Inter\'iew by the Editor)

The reform measures so far intnxluceci at
the IlHnois State Penitentiary by Warden
Allen have already improved the character of
many of the prisoners who are confined in this
institution. There are some who have not
responded to humane treatment, but they too
will be benefited in time.

By improvement in character I mean that as
fast as the confidence of a prisoner is gained
he becomes somewhat more dependable and
next he begins to realize that kindness ex-
tended to him makes him feel more kindly to-
wards others.

I can safely say that at this time there are not
over twenty men in this prison who do not wish
the Warden well in all his undertakings, wheth-
er they themselves are afifected thereby or not.

The atmosphere here now makes it pos-
sible to manage the prisoners with a light hand
compared to what has in the past seemed
necessary.

In judging the prisoners I am guided mainly
by their general behavior, including their at-
tention to their work and also by what they say
to me whenever I talk with them. It stands to
reason that where a large number of men eat,
drink, play, work and sleep in a small enclosure,
it is not difficult for one in my position to know
in a general way what the feeling is, and also
what is going on. I know that there has been
great moral improvement in many of the
prisoners confined here.

I do not overlook the fact that this improve-
ment is due in a large measure to prudence,
and that every prisoner knows that his com-
fort and happiness lies in the continued good
will of Warden Allen and of the officers under
him.

Each prisoner knows that some one is go-
ing to be Warden and that, if Air. Allen
sliould leave for any reason he would be suc-
ceeded in office by another warden, and that
then they might not fare so well.

Granted that this has great weight with
ihe prisoners, I claim that the public, the of-
licials, from the Governor down to the guards
of the second class, and the prisoners are all
greatly benefited by the progressive reform
measures which have been recently introduced
in this institution.

Inhumanity, even when practiced in a pen-
itentiary, adversely affects the good traits of
character of all concerned in exact ratio to the
responsibility and intimacy of contact'.

The sun is a great purifier; in a prison it is
almost as beneficial towards elevating the char-
acter of prisoners as in improving their health.
One is dependent on the other.

A prisoner who, for a long period, only sees
tiie sun for a few minutes each day — which is
only when he marches to and from the cell
house, the dining hall and the shop, cannot in-
dulge in healthy thoughts. As time goes on
lie becomes less normal, and this inevitably
injures his character.

Prior to Mr. Allen's arrival here as warden
the prisoners who worked in shops were per-
mitted to enjoy a veiy restricted space in the
yard for three hours once a year. This was
every fourth day of July. They anxiously
looked forward to this event for six months,
then, during the following six months their
thoughts reverted back in fond remembrance
to those few hours. Note the difference ! Un-
der Warden Allen they play or march in the
sunshine every pleasant working day instead of
only once every year. It is impossible to make
any comparisons! The difference is too great!
Even as late in the year as at this time the pris-
oners are covered with a coating of tan in con-
sequence of outdoor exercise.

Immediately after the inauguration of daily
recreation the efficiency in the shops was re-
duced. For a long time Warden Allen said
nothing about it to the men. He knew that
they were so unsettled by their good fortune
ihat it was only reasonable to expect that all
work would sufifer temporarily.

After the prisoners had learned to accept
play as a part of the daily routine W^arden Al-
len told them, at a meeting held in the chapel,
what the results of daily recreation had been
to the industries, and he recalled to mind his
first promise to them, which was, that he would

January' 1, 1914

The JoIIet Prison Post

meet them half way if they would meet him
the other half. He asked if he had kept his
promise, and when an affirmative answer was
shouted back he said : "Well boys, from now on
I expect you to givenieasquare deal all around,
but at this time I particularly call your atten-
tion to the reduction in the w ork you are doing-
in the shops. You have embarrassed me in
more ways than one. Recently at a meeting of
\\ardens, where I was ad\ocating daily recrea-
tion as an important feature of prison reform,
I was asked how play had afTected the efficiency
in the shops, and I was forced to answer that
the w^ork was seriously injured by reason of the
introduction of recreation, and then, I had to
make excuses for you wliich I did not relish.
By placing me in this position you injured the
cause of prison reform, which cannot succeed
without the co-operation of prisoners."

The meetings held every two weeks, at which
the Warden speaks to the prisoners and then al-
lows them to talk to him about whatever any of
them may think about bettering conditions, are
fruitful of very good results. It is not so much
what Mr. Allen and the prisoners say that
counts, that too. is important, but insignificant
compared with the big thing, which is that the
prisoners believe that when he shows so much
interest in them, he must have their welfare
at heart. He gains their confidence and that
helps every officer under him. This atmos-
phere is particularly helpful to me in my posi-
tion as Deputy Warden and disciplinarian.

Reports bv officers involving misconduct of
prisoners are always made to me and they are
usually in writing-. When a complaint is made
I always send for the prisoner afTected and hear
what he has to say for himself. I tr\' to do my
duty by the institution, and at the same time I
desire to do full justice to every prisoner.

When a complaint is made against a man
and it is not very serious. I try a little heart to
heart talk and fatherly advice. Warden Allen's
treatment of him gives me the opportunity for
that kind of talk which I believe makes him
think. Having gained this it is but a step far-
ther to make him regret that he has caused any
trouble. 1

Prisoners appreciate kindly words and. as a
class, they resent sullenly all efforts at bulldoz-

ing. This is so in jails and, so far as my lim-
ited experience goes, it is so in penitentiaries.

I abhor all violence. During twenty-five
}ears service on the jKjlice force in Chicago I
r.ever used my club on anyone.

To me it appears that I am not here primar-
ily to exert my power — which in the matter of
ordering punishment is almost imlimited — in
ract, I use as little of it as possible, because the
less I use the more I have in reserve.

Being human it must be that I make mistakes
by excusing- men from punishment who have
violated the rules, but what of that? The man
uho fools me does not get beyond my reach.
Having fooled me he will behave himself if he
is at all smart, and that is what I desire. If he
is stupid, or thinks he is smart, he may, by
reason of the ease of his first escape, take cour-
age to again violate the rules.but if he does and
is caught at it he comes before me again. If,
meanwdiile, he thinks he has gained anything
over me, he is welcome to have indulged in that
delusion temporarily.

■ During the four months I have been here I
have only met two men who were obstinate
while in punishment. Each was kept in a sol-
itary cell until he was convinced that I could
wait longer than he cared to.

Under previous administrations prisoners
almost invariably lost time for every offense
when they were confined in the solitary cells.
This loss usually amounted to thirty or sixty
days for each offense. Since I came here, on
August 1st. 101. T. only two men have lost time.

T do not believe tliat a man lives, who can
handle any fifteen hundred angry men. who are
cowed, as easily as I can the same number if I
have their confidence,

The late Henry Sims of Chicago who was
iTiv immediate predecessor, had served as Depu-
ty Warden for eight years when he died. Sure-
ly, after his death, the prisoners could no longer
hope for leniency or favors from him. Yet to-
day he is held in fond remembrance by nearly
every prisoner who was at any time under him.

His death caused deep sorrow, and every
man who had credit for money in the office

The Jolic'^t Prison Post

First Year

subscribed liberally for flowers to be placed on
his casket. So far as I know this is the first
time anything like this was ever done in any
institution of this kind. The funeral services
held for him in the prison chapel were an in-
spiration to me by reason of the unmistakable
evidences of esteem and affection in which his
memory was held. The men regarded him
as the friend who had striven constantly
against great odds to improve their condition.
Shortly after his death I mentioned his
name at a meeting with the prisoners in the
chapel and the result was that they clapped and
cheered as if they desired to lift the roof off
the building. This occasion was very impres-
sive to me. I think it well worth while for
any Deputy Warden to establish for himself
such esteem. Such relations are a benefit to
the officials and prisoners as well as to society.

I hope in time to gain the esteem of the
prisoners confined here, but I believe I shall
never be able to equal the success of Henry
Sims in this respect. I know I can never sur-
pass him. He labored under disadvantages
which I am not compelled to contend with.

If anyone chooses to scoff at my ambition,
to w'in the esteem of men serving sentences for
crimes, I wish to say that I am here to guard
the prisoners and to make better men of them.
If I can teach them to think well of me as their
Deputy Warden I can do my full duty, other-
wise I can at best only hold my job.

These four months have been a new exper-
ience to me. I have learned to view many mat-
ters from a different angle, but the most im-
pressive of all to me is the newly acquired
knowledge, that there are very few positions
to which a man can bring more graces, than
to that of Warden of a prison.

"A synonym," explained the lad, "is a word
you use when you don't know how to spell the
one you thought of first." — Brooklyn Life.

Severe discipline has done untold harm, not
only to prisoners, but to society at large.

FATHER L. BREITENSTEIN, O. F. M.
Chaplain at the Ilhnois State Penitentiary

THE PRESENT SITUATION

I Inu-rvicw by the Kdilor)

The prisoners of the Catholic faith have ev-
ery opportunity for the observance of their re-
ligious duties at this prison.

]\Iass is said and a sermon is preached at
.^even forty-five eveiy Sunday morning. High
.Mass and sermon on great feasts.

General religious services for all who wisli
1(1 attend are held by me every other Sunday
morning at ten o'clock.

I give Catholic instructions during the win-
ter months four evenings in every week, hear
confessions every month, and give individual
instructions to the nrembers of my flock at all
times; besides I look after the welfare of the
prisoners irrespective of creed or religion.

The public at large is under the impression
tl'at when a man is sent to prison he ought to
undergo all kinds of punishments, forgetting
tiiat the greatest punishment that can be inflict-
ed on a man is to deprive him of his liberty,
and no matter how good the food, how kind
the general treatment in a prison, a place of
punishment it will always remain.

Punishment must always be administered so
as to atone for the offense, to heal and to build
up, or wliat people call it, to give a chance to
reform. This is — and I am glad to .state it —
the aim of the present administration.

The general improvement in the health of the
prisoners as the result of outdoor recreation,
milder discipline, wholesome food and better
treatment in every way is very marked. In con-
sequence the prisoners are in better spirits. As
a direct res.ult of this change I get better re-
sponse from them in religious matters.

T do not know of any institution where the
inmates get better medical care than in this
prison under the management of Dr. John P.
Pienson. the prison physician.

Those who do not reform now have only
ihemselves to blame, as everything possible is
being done to create an atmosphere to bring out
the good traits of character of the inmates.

Manv are the changes made under the ad-
ministration of Warden Allen, and they have
p11 proved beneficial from every standpoint.

I favor proeressive prison reform of the
Edmund M. Allen type.

Janiiar>' 1, 1914

The* Jc>Ii<'t Prison Vnsi

REV. A. J. PATRICK

CHAPLAIN
Of Illinois State Penitentiary

(Interview by Hit I-tditoi )

I atii in '^carty accord with all of the pro-
jjressive prison reform measures so far intro-
duced at this institution by Warden Edmund
M. Allen, and also with his plans for the future
so far as ht has disclosed them to me.

As to the results of his policies upon the in-
ner thoughts of the prisoner I, perhaps, am
Ihe best qualified to speak, because my re-
lations with the prisoners arc different from
those of any official. My position permits of
intimate and friendly relations with all the in-
mates; in consequence I have the inside track

to the feelings, thoughts and consciences of
tiiese people.

I meet them as their religious instructor;
the superintendent of the school and as libra-
iian; besides, I am their friend at all times.
I spend much time with the prisoners on their
recreation grounds and frequently act in the
capacity of umpire at their ball games

I did not come to this prison as a skeptic on
prison reform measures, but if I had I could
not have withstood the logic of Mr. Allen's
utterances and much less the unquestionable
evidences of the successful effect of his admin-
istration as seen by me during close observa-
tion.

Mr. Allen is looked upon by all the prison-
ers here, without a single exception, so far as
my observation goes, as the greatest friend
they, as a class, have ever had. and if I must
sav it, their number includes men of wide e.<-
perience in prisons everywhere in this country
and abroad. To them he is the foremost war-
den of the age.

It seems almost inconceivable that such
feelings can exist to the extent it prevails
here, when I bear in mind that Warden Allen
represents the state, which, at least temporar-
i'y denies to these men their freedom.

I have for many years been a firm believer
in prison reform, but now it is no longer a be-
lief with me. I have seen the results; I know
that Warden Allen's policies are right, and

that he will, in good time* prove this to all
; keptics.

His treatment of the men has compelled a
resptjnse which is remarkable. This is evi-
denced in many ways, and it is beyond my
powers of expression to give an adequate des-
cription of the con.sequences of his initiative
A<u\ endeavors.

The prisoners are fast improving in health;
(hey are more contented; many are trying to
.ill his approval for its own sake; they are
( vercoming their extreme peevishness; they
are^ more friendly to one another; they are
;iot as jealous as they have been; they are
iiiore peaceful; they are more obedient; in
.'-hort. they are-approaching the normal.

'J'he results enumerated cannot fail to fav-
orably iiilluence their future conduct. Many
who under an old fashioned prison adminis-
tration would be returned to freedom unfit for
;i natural life will succeed because of the new
thoughts he has instilled in them by his great
kindness and unlimited sympathy.

Many of these men were formerly accus-
lomed only to brutality in some form or other,
mostly among themselves, but sometimes at
the hands of officers of the law and citi-
zens. To some this is the first experience of
having constantly in their minds a man who
holds the scales of justice evenly by doing his
lull duty to his office and also to his wards.

Mr. Allen is constantly in the minds of his
prisoners and. coupled with it. is the thought
of his generous treatment of them. This
nnkes the application very personal and. as
water will in time wear away a stone, so must
the constant and kindlv thoughts which the
'-"isoners have for their Warden, soften and
i'upnn-e their characters day by day.

Tn Warden Allen's presence we are all small
fi'^ures by comparison. He overshadows us so
that, compared with his achievements, our un-
dertakings seem small, and may this be taken
into consideration when I mention my best
endeavors as one of his many loyal suppf)rters.

In my position as chaplain, and as a Prot-
estant clergyman. I preach to the men every
other Sunday morning. In my sermon-lec-
tures I aim to give them renewed hopes by

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

stimulating them to better tliinking and living.
At our weekly Sunday School I furnish good
teachers and do my best to encourage attend-
ance, attention and study. At our monthly
Volunteers' Prison League meetings I en-
courage these men to particularly forego pro-
fanity and urge them on to the determination
to lead honest, upright lives-

As superintendent of the school I direct the
studies usually taught in the public grammar
schools.

As Librarian I furnish the prisoners with
the best books which are procurable for their
wants.

As their friend I attempt general moral in-
structions and try to give them a living exam-
ple of a Christian gentleman. I treat the pris-
oners as my brothers and show them the bet-
ter side of life.

I umpire their ball games because I like
base ball and enjoy being with them, and I find
that my presence at recreation has a good effect
in checking profanity,

I reason that the more I interest myself in
their daily lives the stronger my influence with
them will be because of the confidence thus
gained.

The prison day school, which is under my
supervision, was started in October and will be
continued at least until May. It may be sus-
pended during the hot weather. As a day school
it is an innovation, as, previously, the prison
had known only evening schools, and these
were limited to two sessions ever}' week, of one
and one-half hours duration each. These were
held in one school room in each wing, where
fourteen classes recited at one time.

The new administration has provided four
school rooms, and every prisoner who so de-
sires may absent himself from work for one
hour per day in order to attend. This privi-
lege depends only upon good behavior in the
school and application to the studies.

This is the first time in the history of this
prison that education has been treated as of
greater importance than work.

The equipment of the school will compare
favorably from every standpoint with the av-
erage of public schools.

The school has five one hour periods, six
days per week, and only one class at a time re-

ceives instructions in a room. This elimin-
ates all confusion. The teachers are prison-
ers. There is no guard in the room during in-
struction, which permits the students to for-
get all about restraint excepting such as would
l^revail in a well managed school outside of a
|)rison.

The experience of the last three months has
demonstrated that the prisoners can manage
l)y themselves during classes, as there has not
l^een any occasion for official interference*.
I'he progress of the prisoners is very encour-
aging. This I attribute to causes easy of ex-
planation. (1) Out of fifteen hundred pris-
oners it is not difficult to select four as teach-
ers who are very competent. (2) The pupils
have over three hours per day to spend in their
cells before retiring. Not being able to go
about seeking amusement, it is natural that
they devote much time to study, and this,
coupled by daily instructions by competent
teachers under favorable conditions, is sure to
lead to gratifying results.

The enrollment is about three hundred and
twenty five, or over twenty per cent of the
prison population. I have great hopes that the
attendance will increase. Many of the pris-
oners who do not attend school would come
if it were not for the influence of those who
pretend to look down upon a growm man
studying like a child.

The opportunity is here for every man to
receive instructions in reading, writing, arith-
metic, geography, English and history. Any
man who shows sufficient aptitude and appli-
cation can at least obtain instruction up to a
point where he could readily pass an exam-
ination for entrance into High school.

On alternate Saturdays the scholars attend
stereopticon lectures on some interesting coun-
trv. Our first lectures were on the Philippine
Islands and China. This feature is of recent
introduction.

In general it has been noticed that the for-
eign born students, who know little or nothing
of the English language, and who are thus
handicapped, learn faster than our American
born men. This indicates that the earh'- school
training is better in the European countries
than in the L^nited States. To the foreigners
of recent arrival in this country the school is
of unusual value in that it gives them excel-
lent opportunity for acquiring knowledge of
English. The foreigners realize this and, al-

January 1, 1914

TIh» Joliel Prisiiii l*os4

most without exception, they try their utmost
to receive the maximum of benefit. Their ex-
ample in apphcation and improvement should
cliallen^e tlie ambitions of American b(jrn pris-
oners who sliould be unwilliufj to be out-
stripped.

Our enrollment ought to be doubled. No
prisoner should discourage any other from at-
tending, and those who do not come by reas-
on of this unwarranted interference should
stop heeding- it. A man should be proud to go
to school and should be ashamed of himself
if he remains ignorant when the opportunity
for securing an education is afforded him.
Instead of being ashamed to go to school
every ignorant man should be proud to show
that he has the manhood and the character to
desire to improve himself and, after commenc-
ing attendance, he should take particular pride
in his progress. Such ambitions are laudable.

In this day and age education is essential
to every man and woman and our school of-
fers advantages of inestimable value to nearly
all, but particularly to those who, by reason
(jf previous conditions and environment have
remained in ignorance. In these busy days of
the twentieth century the man who succeeds
must know more than he of the last century.
The work of the world is now moving very
fast and to him that works with his head as
well as w'ith his hands there comes the larger
and quicker returns by reason of that know-
ledge which can be obtained only by reason
of systematic study.

Studying the English language prepares
one to read and write intelligently and this is
necessary for every one. History and geog-
raphy qualifies us to understand more thor-
oughly the current events and furnishes the
proper foundation to enjoy the greatest books
of literature.

Arithmetic is not only indispensable on ac-
count of its value in our every day life, but its
problems furnish a means of developing the
mind and teach us to think and to reason.
There are many boys who can work examples
well, but when it comes to reasoning the
statement of a problem, they find difficulty be-
cause their minds have not been drilled to
think clearly.

The prisoner should look upon this day

school as a privilege and he should respond
accordingly. He should see in this opportun-
ity for education that the State does not desire
his downfall. By means of this school the
State shows its willingness to help its prison-
trs. The school costs mcjney. yet the author-
ities are glad to spend it. The one hour every
day during which the pri.soners are excused
from labor could be turned into money, but
ihe State prefers that the men should improve
their minds, and thus equip themselves for
success in the future.

Every prisoner in the instituti«jn should ap-
preciate the generosity of the State in provid-
ing a modernly equipped and efficient school;
;ie should do what he can towards its success
and should see in it a promise for the future.

Studying makes inij^risonment more hear-
c.ble in that it affords the opportunity to keep
the mind from dwelling too much on morbid
tiioughts, and also helps to pass the long hours
more rapidly and pleasantly.

W hat is good for the prisoner is good for
tile State. Progressive prison-reform measures
are dependable for general adoption upon the
recognition of this fundamental proposition.

DR. JOHN P. BENSON
PRISON PHYSICIAN

On Medical Treatment at the Illinois State
Penitentiary

(Inter\'iew By the Editor)

Considerations of health come first and fore-
most in a prison as well as outside of one.

The most important feature of prison reform
work is to treat all prisoners with as good care
as can be bestowed upon any patient in private
practice. Prevention of illness is my foremost
aim. We have unexcelled drinking water. All
prisoners, who are not disabled, exercise out of
doors excepting Sundays and holidays. Well
prepared, wholesome food is furnished in
abundance. The prisoners are well clothed and
the cell houses are ventilated as much as pos-
sible even though we have to work our heating
plants overtime in order to maintain proper
temperature. Sanitary conditions arc thor-

The Jollct Prison Post

First Year

oiighly looked after. Everything must be
clean.

Each prisoner has been given an aluminum,
collapsible drinking cup and no two men are
allowed to drink out of the same vessel except
in the dining hall, where all crockery and
glassware is scalded after each meal.

We have sick call at 7 :30 o'clock a. m. every
day in the week. All those who desire consul-
tation and treatment may come. After sick
call prisoners must obtain special permission
from their respective guards and a higher
officer. In emergencies regulations are dis-
regarded.

The hospital is well equipped and first class.
The maintainance is looked after. A modern
sterilizing plant for surgical work has just
been installed. The equipment in the operating
room is sufficient. The plumbing and appli-
ances are sanitary. The building has proper
sewer connections. There is a laboratory for
microscopic work and for purposes of diag-
nosis.

Two prisoners, who are licensed physicians,
act as my assistants and as head nurses.

Surgical operations are performed whenever
necessary. The diet is first class. Spectacles
are furnished to those who require them.

In the assignment of work consideration is
always given to the prisoner's physical condi-
tion. Those unable to work are not required
to perform any.

Editor's Note:

There are improvements now in progress
viith regard to the hospital. We hope to have
an interesting account from Dr. Benson for
publication in the February number.

December 22nd, 1913.
To the Editor;

Perhaps the Chicago Tribune does not
know of a community which will welcome the
quacks. If the Tribune will use its influence
up to a point where the quacks get credentials
making them eligible for this institution I can
promise, on behalf of our large and growing
community, that we will give these gentle-
men enthusiastic welcome.

Respectfully.

"Unanimous-"

CHRISTMAS 1913

By I'eler Van Vlissiiigen. a Prisoner

[•\illy two hours before time to get up this
morning the cell houses resounded with the
calls of the very early risers, who were deter-
iiiined that the late sleepers should arise. Such
indecorum is possible only on a holiday when
liie prisoners all know that they are allowed
every legitimate freedom.

Joe — in his little four by seven feet room —
called to Dick, who was on the same gallery,
and the exchange of greetings was the usual
'"Merry Christmas." By way of variation I
beard, "Harry, are you going to the show?"
and "Slim, what is for dinner today?" then
'Hurrah for Christmas!" and so on.

Within a few minutes after the earliest risers
liad decided that all must get up, the cell houses
rang with the exchanges of good natured re-
marks and kind wishes. Not a vulgar word
was spoken and not one suggestive remark in-
dulged in.

After entering the Dining Hall for breakfast
I noticed a large Christmas Tree — which had
been installed secretly during the night — at the
north end of the room. After all the men were
.seated the electric lights in the Dining Hall
were turned ofT and as curtains covered the
w indows the hall was momentarily in total
darkness. An electric button was turned and
ilie largest Christmas Tree I have ever seen
v.as illuminated by a thousand electric lamps
of all the colors in the rainbow.

At that the voice of Captain Michael C.
!\nne filled the room saying, "Warden Allen
\\ishcs you all a Merry Christmas!" Then
pandemonium broke loose and continued until
llie Captain called the men to order and sug-
gested that if they wished to cheer Warden Al-
len he would show them how to do it. Wait-
ing a moment for silence Captain Kane pro-
itosed three cheers for Warden Allen, which
brought the maximum response from every
ihroat. I have never experienced a sensation
in mv life equaling that moment. I realized "
tl\Tt. for the first time in many years the spirit
of Christmas was here, and that this day would
b"ft more men. at least a little, towards a better
life than anv previous day since the entrance
to this institution of its first inmate.

The Christmas Tree was the first one I have

January 1, 1914

Tli*» Jolicl l*risoii I'ost

seen since coming to the prison. I have attended
all sorts of occasions where this symbol of
good will was the silent feature; I have heard
Clermans sing "O Tannebaum." but I have
liever felt such surging at my heart as during
those moments. This unexpected reminder of
Christmas produced varying effects on the
prisoners around me. I heard one say, "This
is the lirst Christmas when I have not received
any mail from home and friends but that tree
makes up for it." Another remarked, "I can
hardly bear to look at it as it reminds me too
torcibly of what this day means in the world
outside." An old man serving a life sentence
bowed his head and prayed and when at last he
looked up his eyes were filled with tears.

The prisoners at once guessed that they were
indebted for this sympathetic attention to two
ladies who walk the prison yard in perfect safe-
ty among gun-men, murderers and forgers, be-
cause every inmate has great respect for both
the mother and the wife of Warden Edmund
M. Allen.

After breakfast those who desired to do so
attended Mass in the chapel. At half -past nine
the prisoners marched to the chapel to enjoy
the theatrical performance. They appeared a
laughing, happy lot today! No heads bowed
down; no surly officers. The chapel was soon
crowded and the prisoners viewed for the first
time the new, beautiful "back-drop" painted by
R. P. H. Wolle and John Rudnick. The men
were allowed as much freedom as they would
have in a theatre anywhere. Prior to the per-
formance and during the intermissions every
man spoke freely to those seated around him
Ix\k\ the officers had nothing to do except to
look on and enjoy the occasion as much as their
prisoners.

Chaplain A. J. Patrick first introduced the
artists who had painted the "back-drop" and
they were enthusiastically received. Both
w ished all a Merry Christmas and bowed them-
selves out amidst tumultous aj>plausc, which
indicated the prevailing good feeling. Then
the outside talent rendered the regular pro-
gramme which was thoroughly enjoyed. The
p/erformance lasted one and one-half hours and
at its ciOse the fourteen hundred prisoners re-
turned to the cell houses. There was no at-
tempt at the customary military formation: the

men walked out as they wished, all talking,
laughing and exchanging greetings. Some
walked with hands on the shoulders of their
companions without being pniliibited by the
j^uards. Every man returned to his place in the
cell h(nise promptly without directions from the
(officers.

At one o'clock all the prisoners went into the
Dining Hall and sat down to roast i>ork with
dressing, boiled potatoes and gravy, mince
pie and coffee. Eor the first time in the his-
tory of the institution the prison band played
in the Dining Hall during the meal and this
feature was thoroughly enjoyed.

During dinner I was seated beside an old
negro, who was born in slavery and who told
me that he had been here ten years and during;
that time he had "never seen such "doins." He
was enthusiastic over ever; tiuiig saymg h*
could not see how anyone could misbehave un-
der "these people."

I asked him when he was to be released and
he answered "in a year." (Juestioned as to
w hat he was going to do for a living when free
b.e told me that he had a good trade, that he was
a first-class whitewasher. and that he could still
work as good as any man with a pick and shov-
el. He oave his aee as seventv-iour and when
1 last saw him he was leaving the Dining Hall
singing softly.

After dinner I heard in' ■ ntinued. loud
"inn-rahs" emenating from the cell houses.
Upon going there I learned that llie prisoners
were rendering an impromptu demonstration
of their appreciation, shouting "hurralis" for
tiie officers. The guards did not attempt to
(,uell the racket.

During the afternoon all the prisoners were
allowed the freedom of the corridors in the
cell houses for one hour, which ended the fes-
livities. While the men were in the corridors
I questioned one of the guards. who has worked
Ikic for many years. I asked him what he
tliought of this kind of a Penitentiary Christ-
mas. He said that I should look at the men in
ihe corridors for his answer to my question.
He added that, as cell house keeper, it was his
(\uty to attend to the distribution of presents
l»'"tween p'-'''-^>'if^rc JT'^ hnrl never seen anvfhing

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

like it. The men who had money to purchase
oranges, apples, dates, nuts, etc., had so plen-
tifully supplied those without funds with the
good things wjiich were to be bought only for
this day that the result was that those who were
penniless had more than did those who had
purchased.

After the prisoners had returned to their
cells I learned from the Ca[)tain of the day that
in spite of the unusual occurrences the day had
passed without occasion to reprimand a single
prisoner.

During the evening the cell houses hummed
with the conversations carried on in low tones
between cell mates.

At nine o'clock, after the niyht bell had
sounded, the cell houses were silent. Christ-
mas Day at the Joliet Prison was at an end.
The memory of it will never fade from the
minds of many of the men who are experienc-
ing new emotions prompted by kind treat-
ment.

TOO TRUE

By A. Judson Booth, a I'risoner

Convicted men will have better opportunities
for reform if society will look upon prisoners
more kindly.

What they particularly require is the support
from family and friends. Many prisoners
have — if their crimes may be overlooked — been
good fathers, husbands, sons, brothers and
friends, and unfortunately for them and soci-
ety it happens too often that their good deeds
are forgotten and that they are judged solely
by the one conviction, and that, in consequence,
the prisoner finds himself deserted.

This, in many, engenders feelings of intense
disappointment and the result deters reforma-
tion.

The treatment of prisoners under severe dis-
cipline has resulted in debasement of nearly all
prisoners, and it has been a stain upon the so-
ciety which tolerated this system-

The system of control under severe disci-
pline attempted the repression of all natural
impulses and the substitution of abject fear.

WITHIN THE WALLS

O, is life a tangled problem,
PalC Mine?
Have you failed to read its message,

Or its purpose to define?
Are the throbs of life beyond us
Fraught with bitter mockery,
Or the sounding of a promise

Of a life that is to be, ,

PalO' Mine?

Do the open places call you,

Pal O' Mine ?
Do you crave for fragrant meadows

And the scent of forest pine?
Does it seem the forbidden Eden,

Or, in fancy now and then.
Can you see the roadway's turning
That will lead you back again,
PalO' Mine?

And does Memory bare the hidden,

Pal O' Mine ?
Do the old familiar faces

Pass in melancholy line?
Is faith lost as well as freedom?

Has the false displaced the true,
Or will handclasps grip the tighter

When the gates swing out for vou,
PalO' Mine?

Are the home folks very weary,

PalO' Mine?
Are you listening, vaguely waiting

For a more responsive sign,
Or as a simple benediction,

Does the ladened message fall?
Do you feel the load has lifted
At the sounding of its call,
PalO' Mine?

Oh ! Life's a knotty problem,

PalO' Mine?
And still we are the builders,

Tho' the planning is divine,
And hope is ever shining.

Everlasting as the stars,
And Love will find its entrance
Thru the barrier of bars,
PalO' Mine?

-By K. N. O.

January 1, 1914

Tln» Ji)!!!"! I'risoii l\>st

A Letter From Governor Dunne

December 9,191;i.
Hon. E. M. Allen,

Warden Juliet Penitentiary,

Joliet, 111.

Dear Sir:

I learn with much pleasure froni
yours of the Sth instant, that you expect to pub-
lish a newspaper in the penitentiary for the
benefit of the inmates of the institution, and
trust the same will prove a complete success.

While the law demands satisfaction by pun-
ishment of men who transgress its provisions,
the policy of those in charge of the men and
women in prison should not be vindictive in
imposing- unreasonable burdens upon the im-
prisoned.

During the idle hour or brief time which
elapses between labor hours and sleep, I see no
good reason'why a convict should not improve
that little time by reading that which will help
to educate him, keep him informed of current
events, and relieve the tedium of his restraint.

I hope the convicts will appreciate your
paper, and respond by strictly observing the
rules of your institution and by preserving
perfect discipline.

Very truly yours,

E. F. Dunne.

The improvement of the food served to
prisoners under the present management is due
to three causes; (1) The food now furnished
costs two cents per day per man more than it
did under the former warden. (2) Warden
Allen personally supervises the bill of fare, and
he displays good judgment in the selections.
(3) The food is better prepared and the ser-
vice is better.

The fact that the present administration
serves better food than the previous one did
only proves that, in this respect, the prisoners
have benefited by the change.

OPPORTUNITY

Hy Waller Mnloiie

They do me wrong who say I come no more,
When once I knock and fail to find )ou in;

I'or every day I stand outside your door
And bid you wake and rise to fight and win.

Wail not for precious chances passed away.

Weep not for golden ages on the wane,
Each night I burn the records of the day,

•At sunrise every soul is born again.

Laugh like a boy at splendors that have fled,
To vanished joys be blind and deaf and
dumb.

.My judgments seal the dead past with the dead
P>ut never bind a moment yet to come.

Though deep in mire, wring not your hands
and weep.

I lend mv arm to all who say I can.
No shame- faced outcast ever sank so deep

But yet might rise and be again a man.

.'\rt thou a mourner? Rouse thee from the
spell.
Art thou a sinner? Sins may be forgiven.
Each morning gives thee wings to flv from hell.
Each night a star to guide thy feet to
Heaven.

Mr. William J. Bryan was written to for a
contribution for publication in the first number
of this paper. He replied by sending the fore-
going poem, stating that it expressed his senti-
ments so well that he does not feel that he can
add anything to it. — Editor.

Some Age

One of our inmates, who is ninety-one >ears
of age, received notice from the General Ac-
C'»untant's office that the sum of one dollar was
sent to him by his mother and duly credited up-
on the books.

Under severe discipline good conduct, loy- Whoever commits a crime and complains

alty, efficiency, generosity and helpfulness of punishment is a "welsher." There must

were rewarded only by escape from punish- be punishment for crimes, and serious crimes

ment. calls for sc\ere punishment.

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

A Letter From Louis F. Post

Washington, D. C,
December 22, 1913.
To the Editor of The JoHet Prison Post :

No one could welcome your paper w ith
greater satisfaction than I do.

My impressions regarding papers of this
kind carry me back over a period of nearly fifty
}'ears. when an attempt was made — the first
attempt of the kind so far as I know — to pub-
lish such a paper from the State Prison of New-
Jersey, my native state. A former editor and
proprietor of the country weekly on which I
learned my trade as a printer, had been con-
victed of some offense — bigamy, I think it
was — and in consequence had been sentenced to
that prison. Being a printer, a pretty good
writer, and perhaps not so bad a man altogeth-
.•^r as the crime might imply he suggested be-
ginning reform in prison methods by the pub-
lication of a paper.

His suggestion was adopted but the venture
did not last long owing to the blind prejudice
which existed at that time against permitting
any freedom whatever to convicts. An outcry
arose (the echoes of which were heard from
one end of the state to the other) at this"wick-
ed" and "dangerous" liberty to "the criminal
classes" of allowing them to come in contact
with the outside world through the thick walls
of their prison by means of type and printers'
ink. It was really considered a dangerous
experiment by the good people of New Jersey
at that time.

Since then, as is quite generally known, the
publication of papers in prisons by the inmates,
though hardly as common as it ought to be, is
not altogether uncommon, and it is no longer
regarded as dangerous.

I am trusting that the experiment at Joliet
will go a point further than to prove that this
kind of reasonable liberty is safe. I hope it
will go to the point of proving that it is posi-
tively beneficial, alike to those who engage in
the publication of the paper, to the institution
from which it is published, and to the people of
the State as a whole — saying nothing of the
people beyond the State, whether in prison or
out of prison, who may be directly or indirectly
influenced. I congratulate the prisoners at Jol-
iet. and even more than the prisoners do I con-

gratulate the people of Illinois, upon the social
progress of which the new regime at the Joliet
Penitentiary is prophetic, and to which this
periodical gives testimony.

It is trite in these days to say that all bad
men are not in prison. It may be trite to say
that all good men are not out of prison- Rut
trite or not, and whatever the truth as to either
may be, I am sure that the nearer those in pris-
on come to be like those who are out, in respect
of the elevating associations they may enjoy,
the confidence reposed in them, the freedom ac-
corded them, and their consequent opportuni-
ties for industrial, intellectual and moral devel-
opment, the sooner will the world see thac there
are better ways of suppressing crim'e than by
vindictive penalties.

I wish I might say something in apprecia-
tion of the paper itself, but I can hardly do
so in advance. I can. however, extend to it and
to its editor and to all concerned in its publica-
tion, as well as to every one who mav find in-
terest in reading it, my very best wishes and
my earnest hopes for its good influence, both
without and within the walls of the prison at
Joliet. in promoting- a higher civilization than
any of us have ever known.

Very truly vours,

Louis F. Post.

Prisoners' Aid League

Auburn, N. Y., Dec. 21. — Thomas Mott
Osborne, chairman of the State Commission
for prison reform, announced today the for-
mation recently of the Prisoners' Aid league,
known among the convicts of xA-uburn prison,
where it has been informally tried during the
last seven weeks as "the pals," a name derived
from the initials of the league.

The society is composed of men from out-
side, acting- as a board of visitors, who without
sentimental impulses endeavor to bring the
human touch to the isolated men, advising
them in personal matters, keeping watch for
opportunities to obtain positions for men who
seek parole, and filling the place of relatives
among those convicts whose friends are unable
to come here to visit them.

John B. Riley, Superintendent of State Pris-
ons, is in accord with the purposes of the
league, which will be extended to all state penal
institutions in time, according to present plans.
— Chicago Tribune.

January' 1, 1914

The Jollc^t PriNoii PohI

THE GIFT OF ST. NICHOLAS

A Christmas Fantasy

*Tis said of the Saint on his errand of love,

Walls, turreted high, caug^ht his sight.
Gray, sullen and grim, looking darkly at him
Like a menace from out of the night;
And their shadows were faliin"-.
Like phantoms appalling.

'fc>>

In the flood of the moon's mellow light.

With interest awakened ; with zeal in his heart,

To the base of the towers he ran.

Looking up and around, bending close for a
sound —

For the voice or the laughter of man ;

Then with gift bag clutched tightly,

He scaled the walls lightly
As only a Santa Claus can!

A city of silence encompassed him 'round.

And it never had beauty or fame ;
For its people w-ere bent with the years the>
had spent
In the toiling forever the same ;
And his eyes softly glistened,
Ah ! No longer he listened.
For the city had spoken its name!

'Tt banishes rancor, for none may be told

Of its secret unless reconciled ;
And it bringeth relief where is doubting and
grief,
From the marts to the wilderness wild ;
'Tis in hovel and castle.
And Love is its vassal.
And it's carved in the soul of a child!"

He called to his reindeer and sped thru the
night,
For his journey was yet to be long;
There was much to be done ere the gladdening
sun
Unfolded tht rose-lights of dawn;

Ere the children awakened
With their faith all unshakened
In the message of Christmas morn.

Tn the bloom of the morning the turretted walls

Rose as ever so sullen and bare ;
Still the city enclosed in its silence reposed.
But contentment pervaded the air.
Thoughts mother-ward drifted —
The home latch was lifted.
For the Spirit of Christmas was there!

— W. L. T.

Saint Nicholas murmured, "Rest tranquilly
now.

Ye estranged from Society's fold ;
Retain faith in your soul and 1 elieve not the
whole
Of the message of life has been toM.
Lo! A gift at your waking
Shall be yours for the taking-
More delightful than tr'^asures of gold."

"And kingdoms have crumbled since freely it
came
Noble cities have gone to decay ;
For riches are frail, nor can armies prevail.
But its beauty and chastity may-
And the craftsman ne'er made it.
Neither barter can trade it.
And the world cannot steal it awav."

One year when the youngsters of a certain
Illinois village met for the purjKDse of electing
a captain of their basel)all team for the coming
season, it appeared that there were a number
of candidates for the post, with more than the
usual wrangling.

^^>ungster after youngster presented his
qualifications for the |)Ost ; and the matter was
slill undecided when the son of the owner of the
ball field stood up. He was a small snub-nosed
l.ul. with a plentiful supply of freckles, but he
glanced about him with a dignified air of con-
trolling the situation.

"I'm going to be captain this year." he an-
nounced convincingly, "or else father's old bull
is going to be turned into the field."

He was elected unanimously. — Chicago
News.

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

ARGUMENT AGAINST "STRIPES'
FOR PAROLE VIOLATORS

By George Williams, a Prisoner

I was very much pleased to hear Warden
Allen announce that after a prisoner had been
punished in the solitary for violation of the
rules, he would, as additional punishment, be
dressed in "stripes" until the Warden was sat-
isfied that the culprit intended to behave in
the future.

It pleased me, because I realized that, under
the present administration, it is to our advan-
tage to behave ourselves by observing the
rules of the institution.

Every prisoner I have spoken to likes this
rule for the reason I have given. Enough time
has elapsed under the new administration for
us to have adjusted ourselves to our new condi-
tions, and from now on the willful offenders
should be placed in a class by themselves, and
it should be easy to distinguish them.

Dressing a prisoner in "stripes" is one form
of punishment and those who misbehave de-
serve to be so clothed, but the efficacy of this
punishment depends upon the number who are
distinguished in this manner. If one-half of
the prisoners here were dressed in stripes
those wearing such clothing would not be pun-
ished nearly so much as would those, if only a
few men had them on.

If stripes are to be worn by culprits for vio-
lation of the rules within the walls why should
parole violators be dressed in the same way for
six months after his return to the prison?

Dressing one who violates the prison dis-
cipline in stripes will cause him to be more
careful, and it does good in that way. but does
it have the same effect on the parole violator?
He usually returns because he drinks alcoholic
liquors, or has committed a misdemeanor or
crime, or has had mighty bad luck. The knowl-
edge that he will wear stripes for six months
after his return to the prison will not keep an
alcoholic sober. If he has so little self-control
that the fear of going back to prison does not
keep him from drinking, the stripes will not.

He who violates the terms of his parole by
committing a misdemeanor or crime and thus
risks returning to the penitentiary will not
hesitate by reason of the striped clothing,
while he who fails by reason of mighty hard

luck usually cannot help it, and surely the pros-
pect of stripes is not going to influence his luck
favorably.

Is it not a fact that a parole violator gets all
that is coming to him by reason of his addition-
al detention in prison — which is seldom less
than one year?

Why should a parole violator be dressed in
stripes when a second timer who comes back
I;ecause he has committed a felony is dressed
in blue?

The points I wish to make are these: (l)If
dressing parole violators in stripes is discon-
tinued then the punishment by means of the
"stripes" for discipline violators will be made
more severe, because then only a few men will
be dressed in this way and they will wear the
garb for misconduct in the prison; then this
uniform becomes the badge of willful miscon-
duct within the walls; (2) Dressing parole
violators in stripes will not decrease the number
of such violators; (3) Parole violators get
iheir punishment by means of their imprison-
ment and they should not get two kinds of
punishment; (4) Parole violators, who usual-
ly come back for lijjht offenses, as compared
with felonies, should not be punished harder
llian the repeaters who come back by reason
of the commission of a crime so serious as to
carry a new penitentiary sentence.

I hope that in the near future the author-
ities will add to the manv improvements they
have made here bv dressing only those who
violate the rules relating to the discipline with-
in the walls, in striped clothing.

A Warning

Dec. 23rd, 1913.
To the Inmates of the Illinois

State Penitentiary:

My attention has been called to the fact that
some of the men take inwardly, for medicinal
]uirposes, the sulphur, which is used in the
broom shop, for bleaching broom corn.

This is a very bad practice, as sulphur in its
crude form, is harmful to the health if its use
is general.

Crude sulphur is not a pure drug like the sul-
phur which is used in medicine.

If any inmate is sick and needs medicine it
can always be obtained at the hospital.

Dr. J. P. Benson.

Prison Physician.

January 1, 1914

Tho Jolld l^risoii Post

ALLENS THE MAN

By George Williams, n Prisoner

We read that men of force and brain, that

presidents and kings,
By scravvhng down tlieir signature can thus

"accompHsh things."
A rather "nifty" sort of way it always seemed

to me.
To sit upon a pedestal and grin complacently !
So elsewhere must you turn your face, the

biggest man to pick ;
^'ou'll find its ever, ever he who turns the

biggest trick !

Chorus
And he is the man, remember boys,

Who put "Jolly" in Joliet;
Knocked out the sorrows and slid in the joys —

Say, how can a fellow forget!
Jolly is there with a capital "J"

Joliet without *'Jolly" looks queer any-
way;
O, Allen's the man, — beat the trick if you
can, —
Who put "Jolly" in Joliet!

'Tis an easy going sort of world, you have to

travel far
To find the one dissatisfied with conditions as

they are.
So when a man puts hustle on and makes

things fairly hum,
The world sits up and notices and says : "He's

going some!"
To find him in the common crowd — to label

him right quick
Pick out the man who's big enough to turn

the biggest trick !
Chorus : And he is the man, etc.

We read of fighters in the ring, of jockeys on

the mount.
Yet sometimes one must ever lose to take the

fatal count.
We're looking for the armored man — we love

to hear his name,
\\'ho's good at giving knockout blows — who

wins his every game !
\ chip indeed of a seasoned block, an "A-One"

fired brick.
Who's played his very greatest game, and

turned his bigeest trick !
Chorus: And he is the man, etc.

HENRY SIMS

By N. K. N,

1859-1913

To be with us
lie counted not on worldly lure

Or selfish gain; he sought and spent

The life worth while; 'tis ever thus
W ilh gentle men of faith and power.
Jhe ringing message of the hour

lie caught with all its lull intent;
O, favored state, when life implies

A sacrifice!

He knew there dwelt
Inherent good in every man ;
And tho' to duty sternly bound

Before Homes' altar fair he knelt!
Pure fellowship his richest find,
The swollen rapids of the mind

He quite ignored; but sought and found
The deei>er springs and so retained

The love first gained!

And we believe
Disease ne'er took him from our midst;

As well we know no wondrous skill

Could stay the gentle taking — leave —
Could keep the living breath within;
Ah! no; 'twas something more akin

To bitterness than human ill
That bade the tortured soul depart —

A broken heart!

What hopes and fears
Crowd in this fortressed acreage!

How earnestly he cased the grief

That fraught the narrow tale of years!
Tiiat Sympathy, with fruitful aim.
Within his heart enshrined became.

Is not alone our full belief ;
No — in the Somewhere of the mists

It still exists!

O, Joliet!
Fling not tiiy tragedy of life

To curious cars! Speak, speak to men

Of thv imperishable debt!
Of .nil ilio good that has been done —
Of .nil the plans that must be won :

The vagaries of How and When
Can ne'er impede: thou canst command

His outstretched hand !

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

"My Parole is Authorized"

A prisoner serving- an indeterminate sen-
tence receives what is usually called a "white
ticket" when the Parole Board decides that it
is willing to permit him to be paroled. The
prisoner who receives such a ticket always an-
nounces "I am paroled." Then if there is
delay about getting out he may be heard to
complain that he has been "paroled three
months" and still remains in prison.

What are the facts? The "white ticket"
simply means that the Parole Board has auth-
orized the Warden to permit the prisoner who
receives it to go out on parole as soon as cer-
tain provisions of the parole law have been
complied with.

The Parole Board cannot parole a prisoner,
ii can only authorize the Warden to do so.
The Warden paroles the prisoner when he per-
mits him to go out at the front door.

After the Parole Board has authorized the
Warden to parole a prisoner the Warden does
so as soon as certain features of the law are
complied with — and he cannot parole a pris-
oner until this has been done.

The parole law stipulates that, before the
Warden can parole a prisoner, suitable employ-
ment must have been found for hini with an
employer who is a citizen of this state, and he
must be a responsible person who can himself
furnish steady employment within the state.
Such employer must sign a document common-
ly spoken of in this prison as "parole papers."
The above statement does not cover all the
requirements of the law, but it substantially
states that which has a bearing on the subject
liere discussed.

It is the Warden's duty to use good judg-
ment in the matter of approving of the citizen
\\ho offers to sign the papers and of the em-
ployment offered, and this necessarily calls for
an investigation, which takes time.

This delay in being paroled, after the War-
den has been autliorized by the Parole Board
to admit the prisoner to parole, and before the
requirements of the law have been met. is the
ground for much complaint, particularly from
those prisoners who cannot produce a respon-
sible citizen to sign their papers.

If prisoners will stop saying "I am paroled,"

which is an inaccurate statement, and if they
will state the proposition right by saying "my
parole has been authorized," and if then they
will keep in mind what the Warden is, by law,
required to exact before he can release the pris-
oner on parole, there will not be so much com-
plaining.

Editor's note :
The parole law will be discussed more ex-
tensively in an early number of this paper.

WANTED A DENTIST

By John Brady, a I'risoner

As a class we are very poor. Very few of
LIS have more than pennies, and many have not
Lven these.

The state lays its strong hand upon us and
confines us for periods ranging from eleven
months to life. During this time we earn no
money.

No provisions are made for dental work, ex-
cepting the services of the visiting dentist, who
charges prices which would be reasonable out-
side of a prison. Where does this leave a man
with a tooth ache who has no money?

It is true that the prison ph\'sician will ex-
tract our teeth upon request, but it would only
be a step further to cut off our toes for corns or
ingrowing nails.

Many prisoners endure tooth aches for
'ears in the effort to retain their teeth until
they can reach a dentist after freedom is re-
o-ained. As there is not one prisoner in twenty
who can afford to employ a dentist, manv com-
nelled by insufferable pain submit to tlie ex-
traction of their teeth.

Deformed mouths are seen all around u=:.
Decaying teeth, and few or no teeth, ruin the
health, particularly in a place like this where
one cannot choose his food.

I do not know what action is necessary to
nrovide us with a prison dentist, but T do know
that we need a dentist here as soon as possible.

The 'Women's Prison

Very little is said in this issue about the
Women's Prison. This is by reason of lack of
time.

In the February number the Women's Prison
will be discussed.

January 1, 1914

The Joliet Prison Wtsi

NO CHRISTMAS GIFTS FOR ME

(By a I'rtsutier iti a State Prison)

[ wonder who will think of me,
Now- that Christmas time draws near,

When lights will glow upon the tree
And all the world is filled with cheer.

There'll be no Christmas gifts for me,
While living in this mansion grand

With walls so high ; it makes me sigh
To think what I must stand.

I do the best I can while here.

As I think of friends who once were true :
'Jhough I'll have no Christmas gifts with cheer

I can think of pleasant things I'd do.

r.ut here I am so sad and lonely,

Now behind the prison bars ;
Locked up in a felon's cell,

I cannot see the moon or stars.

I sit tonight, this song indite;

I know there're more than me
Who are alone so far from home;

No Christmas gifts they'll see.

There'll be no Christmas gifts for me,

Sadness in my heart doth dwell.
While the Christmas bells so sweetly ring,

To be locked up in a prison cell.

And so I think and look about;

I grieve, and think, and then I pray ;
I ask the Lord to take me out —

O Lord, dear Lord ! Take me
Away.

Oh, may kind friends now think of me,
When the Christmas time draws near.

When lights will glow upon the tree
And all the world is filled with cheer*

Wars may come and years may go ;

It is all the same to me.
I'll feel as if I had a Christmas gift.

The morning I get free.

Poets art- bnrn and there is no law against
it. — Editor.

i'eters Manufacturing Co.,

:JU4-310 East 22n(\ Street.

New York, December 23rd, 1913.
The Joliet I'rison Post,
I'JOO Collins St.,
Joliet, Ills.
Dear Mr. Editor; —

In reply to your circular letter
cf December 2Uth, received this morning, we
hasten to send you our check for $5.UU as a
general contribution; we have thought the
matter over and cannot see where an adver-
tisement in the Post would be useful, in our line
of business.

We wish the boys in the stone-bedrooms as
merry a Christmas as possible. Tell them, that,
for the new year, the best idea they can get
fixed in their heads is that there is no money
in anything in this world except honesty and
any man who has not got sense enough to
know that and win out by staying honest, can't
hope to win by being dishonest, for all dishon-
est men are fools.

It is a good deal like the man who cannot
run the hundred yard dash in ten seconds, be-
ing fool enough to bet he can run it in dvc
seconds, with his Life up on the bet.

Cordially yours,
Peters Manufacturing Co.
Wm. F. Peters,

Presdt.

No man was compelled to sign the honor
pledge or receive the honor button. We can
have respect for the few who did not sign, even
though we question their good judgment.

Having signed the honor pledge every pris-
oner should keep his jiromise unsullied, and
there is only one way to do that, which is to do
nothing you would regret to have the Warden
know about.

An editor who started about twenty years
ago with only fifty-five cents is now worth
.<»; 100.000. His accunuilation of wealth is owing
to his frugality, good habits, strict attention to
business, and the fart that an uncle died and
left him $00.000.— T^ansing. Mich. Pcniten-
liarv Bulletin.

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

Bill Dayton's Philosophy

"Fellow prisoner, its our duty to work to-
gether in harmony and constitute our best in-
tentions, in doing the right thing"; and to be
fair and square to the Warden and Deputy
\Varden — who are both working with all zeal
to better the conditions here, who are working
for our welfare.

What have we to kick about ? We get plen-
ty to eat and fresh air every day. Live up to
the standard of the Warden's policy and be fair
and square and things will run along more
smoothly, and in the course of time this insti-
tution will be the model prison of the world.
It cannot all come in a bunch — these good
things will be all worked out in time through
llie instrumentality of two men whose names
will ever live in the hearts of us all.

We should form and plant our best inten-
tions on good impregnable ground, and if we
do this, we have all to gain and nothing to
lose. It's the best policy to live up to.

If we ever expect to gain anything in this
world, we should do a little for ourselves, and
not be like a class of bigots who have no reas-
oning power and whose machinery is rusty —
like a side track in some little jerk-water town.

Stop and think for a moment and delve
down into the recesses of your heart, and
throw out what shouldn't be there and have a
right heart and then you can act right, work
well, sleep well, and your days will be more
contented ones, and your life far more happier.

Everybody can learn to know something
and know it well, even the ignoramous, regard-
less of his faults or what they may be.

Again we should break away from these
antagonistic differences that creep in on us at
times and get the best of us. We should not
get jealous of a fellow-prisoner just because
he gets a better job than we have.

Again we must have patience, and if we do,
we will derive a good deal more from holding
that key to the heart of indifference. The dif-
ficulties we meet with in this world are our
friends, for they sharpen our wits and cause us

U) struggle on with patience, and in the long
run we will gain that what's worth while.

You do not have to be a stool pigeon in this
prison in order to get a good job. It's the in-
dustrious individual who is given more consid-
eration, respected and thought more of, and
not the one who carries a hammer around with
liim to knock some one every time he sees the
opportunity. He does not get anything for his
"gab" — not under Allen's administration.
I'he knocker nowadays has a back seat on the
log train and is dead to this administration.

Men, be fair and square to the Warden and
Deputy. A square deal is all they want. We
are getting it and we should reciprocate their
kindness, and be men — a combination of men —
that the Warden and Deputy Warden will be
proud of, and in the end we will thank our-
selves and will be thought more of.

Let us do our part and be fair and square,
and let us give the two high officials a square
deal.

We are getting ours.

'BE MEN."

New "Back-drop" for Chapel

R. P. H. Wolle, the artist, and his assistant,
John Rudnick have just finished painting a
"back-drop" for the stage in the chapel. The
picture represents the marble staircase at the
Dearborn Street entrance to the First National
Bank in Chicago.

The painting, which is in water colors,
measures eleven and one-half by nineteen
feet, and it required three months time to com-
plete it.

On Christmas morning the prisoners viewed
it for the first time at the theatrical perform-
ance, and the artists were accorded an enthusi-
astic reception.

No matter how unfortunate Messrs. Wolle
and Rudnick may be in sojourning with us, the
inmates and the authorities are certainly to be
congratulated upon their work in the prison
studio.

"If a man kills another man is he always put
in jail, mama?"

"Not always. Sometimes he is paid by the
Government to do it; and if he can only kill
enough he will have monuments erected to
him." — Life.

Januar)' 1, 1914

The Joliet l*rIsoii Pos<

LETTERS FROM THE INMATES

December 27th, 1913.
To the Editor :

The month of December now drawing to a
close also marks the end of the year 1913,
the most eventful one in tlic history
of the Illinois State Penitentiary at Joliet
There are some of us who, looking at
the symbols numerating the fading year,
consider that we have been more or
less unlucky on account of the supersti-
tious fear that any day, or year, designated
and represented by thirteen is synonymous
with ill luck, but if there is or has been any-
thing unlucky with those mysterious figures
in connection with the conditions in and sur-
rounding- the fifteen hundred inmates of this
Penitentiary the writer has failed to locate
same and can produce only tidings of gladness
and joy from his fellow prisoners who have
partaken of many treats which were unknown
and unthought of by former administrations
at this prison.

If we can conscientiously say it was luck
when Edmund M. Allen was appointed War-
den of this institution then we should say that
the inmates were predestinated for better
times, for since Warden Allen stepped across
the threshold of this institution he has wrought
wonderful changes in its management to the
benefit of its inmates, and at no additional ex-
pense.

In the humble opinion of the writer, who
has had nineteen years experience, and seen
many vain and fruitless attempts at the re-
formation of fallen manhood that the present
method of handling men by appealing to that
which is good within them is the only proper
manner in jierforming a lasting good and of
securing the everlasting reformation of those
downtrodden men.

There is one poiiit I wish to bring out
forcibly r(?*garding the disciplining of men:
The inmate may unconsciously or impulsively
infract a rule and no serious ofTense committed
and be sorry for it the moment after. Give
this person a good plain talking to and if
the respon.se of ninety per cent is not that they

nre sorry then the writer believes that human
nature must be a deeper study than he claims
to have made.

Generally a prisoner can get the confidence
and secret thoughts of his fellows better than
the officers in cliarge, but in this institution
none have the confidence of the inmates as
much as Warden Allen. To him many of
them unburden their troubles and tell just
what is in their hearts and nearly every man
that the Warden has placed confidence in has
made good their word of honor.

The writer spoke to some of these men *be-
fore they left in the following vein: "Well,
Bill, be square with the Warden, and if there
is any secret move of a double cross on the
part of any of your crowd do not be afraid of
being called a "stool" by telling that man it
don't go; for, P>ill. I have l)een here a long
tune, and if you fellows make good that may
give others a chance in the near future of en-
joying God's air and sunshine on the out-
side."

Bill's answer was something like this: "If
there is a double crosser in this honor
l)unch of forty-five and he tries to spoil the
chances of men I leave behind I will not be a
bit backward about telling them so." So you
see, dear readers, that the year 1913, with
its trail of sorrows also brought abundant
j >y in having a man at the head of this institu-
tion who places confidence in a transgressor's
word.

It gives the writer pleasure, if he has to be
confined, to have as his .superior a man whom
all can look upon as his friend, and with all
ol 1913 luck let us hope that 1914 will be luck-
ier. Respectfully.

John Carey.

♦Referring to the forty-five honor men who were
sent to Camp Hope.

The married man who hesitates is bossed.

A rich young widow and her weeds are soon
parted.

Nothincr makes a man .so sad as to have a
!;irl jolly him.

The more friends a woman has the more she
' :is to talk about.

The man who follows his inclination never
gets very far from the bottom of the ladder. —
Chicago News.

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

December 24, 1913.
To the Editor :

Having served time here for more than
eighteen years I have seen constant improve-
ments in our conditions, but never so fast as
during the past eight months.

It will probably be in your province to write
of the more important recent changes and on
this assumption I wish to mention improve-
ments which you may overlook.

It is over eighteen years since any courtesies
have been extended to me by ladies, excepting
those visiting me. On July fourth last, the
Warden's mother and his wife and a number of
their lady friends came into the yard to serve
refreshments and how nice it was to be waited

on by ladies who tried to make us feel that they
enjoyed serving us.

We now have slippers in our cells so that
when we come home in the evening with tired
feet and, perhaps, wet shoes, we can put them
on. I do not believe this will put any additional
burden on the tax payers, as, by wearing our
slippers we save our shoes., which cost more.

'I'hen we have pencils and paper in our cells,
and what a help these are in passing the time.

On holidays we are permitted to leave our
cells and move about in the corridors of the
cell houses, where the air is much better than
in the cells.

No one who has not had the experience can
realize what it means for two men to be con-
fined on a holiday in a cell four feet wide, seven
feet long and seven feet high, with over half
the space occupied by a two story bed, and the
only relief from monotony is the short trips to
lIic Ciiapel and the Dining Hall. In the past
v/lien a holiday fell on a Monday, it meant that
we were confined in these cells from Saturday,
evening until Tuesday morning. How I have
dreaded these holidays. Now by reason of the
piivileges of the corridors they are robbed of
their terrors, and this at no expense to the state.

What a fine thing it is to have games, such
as checkers and dominoes so that one may play
with his cell mate and. to a limited extent, for-
'^et his troubles.

Under Mr. Allen, if two cell mates are antag-
onistic to one another, upon the request of
either, they are separated. How, in the past, it

has added to dislikes once engendered for two
cell mates who were 'uncongenial to be forced
to be in each others company for over fourteen
hours every day, and what deeply rooted
hatreds have resulted.

Then in the matter of clothing, what a lot of
ragamuffins we were eight months ago. I wore
l)rogans for many years and they hurt my feet
all the time, now I wear soft shoes, which, I am
informed, cost less money and wear longer.

Then, too, on dark Sundays and holidays the
electric lights are turned on in our cells and in-
stead of moping around in the dark we can read
and write and tinker to our heart's content.

Those of us who are of the Catholic faith
must not overlook the fact that, under Mr.
."-Vllen, we have Catholic services every two
weeks, and Mass every Sunday instead of once
a month. I feel confident that our Protestant
brothers rejoice with us over this.

Then, last but not least, another economy
and a humane improvement ; for over eighteen
>ears I, in common with the other prisoners
liave worn the same heavy coat in summer
which served in winter. Oh, on how many hot
days have I dreaded going to meals be-
cause I was under orders to wear that heavy
garment. This summer we have worn the thin
coats, made of shirting, every day and they cost
only about one-tenth as much as the winter
coats.

I say, long life to Warden E. M. Allen and
Deputy Warden William Walsh and to their
many officers who leave us alone so long as we
behave properly.

We are with the Warden and will by good
behavior and industry do our share towards
maintaining discipline.

Just let us know what you wish, Mr. Allen,
and at least ninety five men out of every one
hundred will respond without the occasion for
the use of intimidation or force on the part of
any of your officers.

J.C.

Severe discipline recognized no occasion
where one prisoner could legitimately help
another.

A prisoner must learn to criticise himself
l)efore he can reform. Finding fault with
others stands in the way of his reformation.

January 1, 1914

The JoIIot Prison Post

Dec. 23rd, 1913
'1 o the Editor :

The "Good Time Law" was intended as a
humane measure calculated to g'wc convicted
men the opportunity of having- their sentences
reduced as a reward for good behavior. Has
it worked out this way?

Judges and juries are usuall}- informed with
legard to the provisions of the good time laws
and prosecuting attorneys have been known to
call the attention of j,urors to its provisions.

It is safe to say thai; every judge and jury
knows that when a sentence is fixed at fourteen
years the good time law operates to cut it down
to eight years and three months ; or, to reverse
the proposition, when a judge or jury decides
to impose a sentence of eight years and three
months they fix the sentence at fourteen years
in order to get the desired results. If this
ii so the "Good Time Law" becomes in effect
a "Bad Time Law" because it enables prison
authorities to add to a prisoner's sentence for
infraction of rules.

So, after all, the good time law bestows no
benefit on prisoners who were convicted after
the law became operative.

George Williams.

Booth Tarkington, like most litterateurs,
writes a wretched hand. Of this he said in
New York recently :

"Once, when crossing to Naples, I sat in my
deck-chair with pad and fountain pen, at work
on a short story. A young Peorian stopped
before me.

" 'By gosh.' he said, T wish I could write as
well as you do.'

"I smiled, and the Peorian resumed his
promenade. The next time he passed me he
said again :

" 'Gee, what a hand! If I could only write
like that !'

"Again I smiled a flattered smile, and the
Peorian made another round of the deck.
Then he said a third time :

" 'Oh. if I could only write a hand like
yours!'

REPRINTS

said

Nettled a little by this third interruption, I

It tt

'WqW, what would you do if you could?'
'Go to China,' said the Peorian. 'and write
labels for tea boxes.* " — New Orleans States.

MISPLACED SYMPATHY

The Curse of Self-Pity

'Tis gu(Hl and noble to be kind ;
But charity should not be blind."

The human heart naturally craves sym-
pathy. The song we sometimes sing, "The
world is dying for a little bit of love," is a
true sentiment. The little child i)erishes with-
out it, and grown up folks will do better with
a little human sympathy now and then.

Jesus in Gethsemane, when all alone bear-
ing the sin of the world, sadly expressed his
heart hunger for sympathy when he said to his
sleeping disciples, "What, could you not watch
with me one hour?" And it would seem that
his conversation with the woman of Samaria
was prompted by this inner craving for sym-
pathy from the depths of the human heart.

Yet however good this may be, nothing is so
destructive to every atom of moral stamina and
self-respect, as misplaced sympathy. To sym-
pathize with a man when he has done a tla-
grant wrong or even a petty wrong for that
matter, is to invite calamity in its direct fomi
to his heart and life. It heli)s him to frame up
excuses for his wrong doing, and finally he is
justifying himself for having done the wrong.

Of course in a sense we sympathize with
every wrong-doer, in that we are sorry that he
v.as so short-sighted as to do the wrong, but he
should never be given the idea for a moment
that he is being sympathized with because he
has landed in jail. \\'hat he needs is to feel
keenly that all right thinking men and women
look with contempt upon his deed of wrong.
There needs to come to him a deep feeling of
remorse and shame for the sin committed. It
is absolutely necessary before any reform can
be accomplished, that he go through the agon-
ies of an offended conscience. The deeper the
grief so much sooner will the sin-stained life
be cleansed.

Too many folks in prison sit down to pity
themselves, when they ought to be pitying the
ones sinned against.

It ought to come very forcibly to their minds
that perhaps folks outside are suffering infin-
itely more than they who are in prison, be-
cause of the very sin they have committed.

The Jollet Prison Post

First Year

Forg-iveness is nearly always ready for the
wrong-doer if he owns his guilt, and begs par-
don. True, some people will never forgive,
but there is a great host who will. How con-
temptible it is for any one who is really guilty
to deny the fact. It only adds more shame
and humiliation to the already sin-burdened
life.

The writer was conversing with a prisoner
concerning his case. He very frankly but
humbly said :

"A man who does what I did desei*ves no
pity when he lands in prison." But somehow
you just could not help sympathizing with
him. It was in fact no misplaced sympathy.
Truly such a humble confession was evidence
of a strong manhood.

Sympathy then should never be doled out
like paregoric as a soothing syrup to the sinner.
Like that pernicious drug, it puts to sleep all the
finer qualities of manhood, and leaves the
wreck to drift on from bad to worse. — Lan-
sing, Kansas, Penitentiary Bulletin.

URGES CONVICTS WORK ON ROADS

North Carolina Delegate to Philadelphia Con-
gress Outlines Plan — Incentive Necessity

Philadelphia, Pa., Dec. 10. — The practica-
bility of using convicts in the construction of
public roads was discussed at today's session
of the American Road Builders' association,
and several speakers agreed inmates of prisons
should be so employed, both from a moral
standpoint and as a saving for the state.

Joseph Hyde Pratt, state geologist of North
Carolina, introduced the subject of convict
Libor. He advocated that prisoners in peni-
tentiaries be divided in three classes and that
they be given an opportunity by good conduct
to reach the first class. He favored the em-
ployment of prisoners in the construction of
public roads.

P. J. Wilson, state highway commissioner
of Virginia, one of the three eastern states
vxorking convicts on the roads, indorsed the
suggestions of Pratt.

"Starting on the principle that a convict
is merely paying a debt to the state, and that
if you treat him well he will respond," Mr.
Pratt said, "my idea is that the convicts should
be divided into three classes. The first group
should not have to wear stripes or any dis-

tinctive uniform, and should be put on hon-
or to do its stated share of work and not es-
cape. The second group should wear a dis-
tinctive unifonn but not stripes. The third
group should wear stripes and have their
heads shaved, if necessary,

"By paying the first group men more than
the second for their labor and the second more
than the third, you set up a natural rivalry
v\ hich will make all try to work their way into
the first group,

"Only when a man has proved he cannot be
trusted should he be dropped into the third
class and kept there. Even the worst prison-
er should have a chance to work his way back
into the select company of the honor men.

"A certain amount of outdoor work is
necessary for the health of prisoners. The
slate should not be vindictive and ruin his
health and starve his family while making
him pay the penalty of a crime. Jf used on
the roads the men should be paid fair wages,
with the actual cost of their keep subtracted
and should be paid a fair amount for over-
time or extra work.

"House the men well in sanitary, scien-
tifically constructed camps. Give them gooa
food, and see to it that the guards play square
V ith them.

"Personally, I believe long term men can
be trusted to keep faith. Encourage the fam-
ilies of prisoners to stick by them, to visit them
often and to write to them. Make it plain that
when they serve their sentence the state is wil-
ling to srive them a fresh start. Let the state
board of health have control of the camps. Give
the men books and magazines. The state win
1)6 a hundred times repaid, not only in new
roads, but in new citizens who will be a credit
to the community."

The Rev. Frank Moore, superintendent of
the state reformatory at Rahway, N. J., op-
posed the project.

"I do not believe it is fair to compel the
prisoners to work outside," he said. "Some
men would regard employment as prisoners
in the public view as so humiliating that the
harmful effect might never be overcome.

"I am also opposed to any state exploiting
convicts or making money out of their labor.
^^'hen a state exploits the convict it makes a
permanent criminal out of him."

— Chicago Tribune.

January 1, 1914

The Jolict Prison I»os<

THE "GUN-TOTER"

The gun-toter is as dang-erous as he is
foolish. He is datigerous and a constant
menace whether he be vicious or not. To il-
lustrate: A man ^oqs. out as a hiirlnvavman
and kills somebody deliberately, and another
goes out, not intending to do any harm, but,
because of having a gun in his possession, kills
a man. The motive inspiring both the deeds
are vastly different in fact and in law — but
which of the people killed is the most dead?

The daily papers tell every day of deaths oc-
curing at the bandit of the gun-toter. Why
not eliminate him? Who needs him in society
or anywhere else. Is he not a constant menace
to mankind.

W'e talk of the prohibition of the liquor
traffic — which is right and proper ; but can we
not slip in a word edgewise upon the prohibi-
tion of the "gun-toter?" You say "we have
laws on the subject" — then let us preach the
rigid enforcement of these laws!

But, best of all, why manufacture the miser-
able instrument of death at all. If it had not
been for the dangerous revolver, Lincoln. Gar-
field nor McKinley would not have been assas-
sinated — at least not so easily. The pistol may
be so easily concealed that the victim seldom
realizes he is in danger until the assassin has
fired the deadly bullet.

Many people are now serving terms in prison
who would be free had it not been for the dead-
ly revolver. Of what use is it? Can anyone
offer a reasonable excuse for its existence?

Then why not prohibit the manufacture and
sale of this detestable machine of death ? — Lan-
sing (Mich.) Penitentiary Bulletin.

The amount of rock quarried annually at
the Joliet Penitentiary amounts to about 87,-
500 cubic yards ; this, figured at seventy-five
cents a cubic yard, totals .$r>r).ri25.00.

It is all furnished, free of charge, for road
improvements upon ai)plication of the highway
commissioners of the various counties in the
state.

Severe discipline left room for neither gen-
erosity or good will on the part of the pris-
oner.

OL- MISTAH TROUBLE
or Mistah Trouble he come aruun' one day,
An' say: "I gAvinter git you, .so you better
run away !

1 like to see you hu.stle. Dat's dc wnv T I.t< my
fun;

I knows I kin ketch up to you, no matter how
you run."

I says: "Mistah Trouble, you have been
a-chasing me

Ever since I kin rcininilii-r. an' !'<(• tired as
I kin be;

So I'se gwinter stop right yere an' turn aroun'
a-facin' \ou

.\n' lick you if I kin. an' fin' jus' what von kin
do."

or Mistah Tnaible. he looked mighty
ashamed ;

He acted like a buckin' boss dat's suddenly
been tamed ;
An' den he turned and traveled off a-hollerin' :

"Good day,
I ain't got time to fool aroun' wif folks dat
acts dat way !"

— Washington Star.

^ ^ •©

If vindicti\eness is tiie underlying prmciplc
;)f prison detention, then Warden .Mien's prog-
icssive methods are all wrong.

Announcement

We |)rint in this issue the Constitution of
the United States, with amendments, aufl hope
that all the inmates of this institution will take
advantage of this opporttmity for i)erusal of
same.

This will be followed with the Constitution
of the State of Illinois in the succeeding issue.

Then the laws authorizing the parole of con-
victs in Illinois will Ix* presented.

With the I'^bruary number a series of in-
structive articles, explaiiu'ng to the iiunates of
this institution those fundamental principles
of criminal jurisprudence which directly af-
fect them, will begin.

The Editor

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

CONSTITUTION
OF THE UNITED STATES 1787— d)

We, the people of the United States, in order to
form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure
domestic tranquilhty, provide for the common de-
fense, promote the general welfare, and secure the
blessmgs of liberty to ourselves and pur posterity,
do ordain and establish this Constitution for the
United States of America.

ARTICLE T

Section i. All legislative powers herein granted
shall be vested in a Congress of the United States,
which shall consist of a Senate and Mouse of Rep-
resentatives.

Section 2. 1 The House of Representatives
shall be composed of members chosen every second
year by the people of the several States, and the
electors in each State shall have the qualilkations
requisite for electors of the most numerous branch
of the State legislature.

2 No person shall be a representative who shall
not have attained to the age of twenty-five years,
and been seven years a citizen of the United States!
and who shall not. when elected, be an inhabitant
of that State in which he shall be chosen.

3 Representatives and direct taxes shall be ap-
portioned among the several States which may be
included within this Union, according to their res-
pective numbers, which shall be determined by add-
ing to the whole number of free persons, including
those bound to service for a term of years, and ex-
cluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other
persons. ('2) The actual enumeration shall be made
within three years after the first meeting of the
Congress of the United States, and within every
subsequent term of ten years, in such manner as
they shall by law direct. Tho number of represen-
tatives shall not exceed one for every thirty thous-
and, but each State shall have at least one repre-
sentative; and until such enumeration shall be made,
the State of New Hampshire shall be entitled to
choose three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode Island
and Providence Plantations one, Connecticut five.
New York si.x, New Jersey four. Pennsylvania
eight, Delaware one, Maryland six, Virginia ten,
North Carolina five, South Carolina five, and Geor-
gia three.

4 When vacancies happen in the representation
from any State, the executive authority thereof
shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies.

5 The House of Representatives shall choose
their speaker and other oflicers, and shall have the
sole power of impeachment.

Section 3. 1 The Senate of the United States
shall be composed of two senator? from each State,
chosen by the legislature thereof for six years;
and each senator shall have one vote.

2 Immediately after they shall be assembled in
consequence of the first election, they shall be di-
vided as equally as may be into three classes. The
seats of the senators of the first class shall be va-
cated at the expiration of the second y^ar, of the
second class at the expiration of the fourth year, and
of the third class at the expiration of the sixth year,
so that one third may be chosen every second year;
and if vacancies happen by resignation, or other-
wise, during the recess of the legislature of any

State, the executive thereof may make temporary
appointments until the next meeting of the legis-
lature, which shall then fill such vacancies.

3 No person shall be a senator who shall not
have attained to the age of thirty years, and been
nine years a citizen of the United States, and who
shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of that
State for which he shall be chosen.

4 The Vice President of the United States shall
be President of the Senate, but shall have no vote,
unless they be equally divided.

5 The Senate shall choose their other officers,
and also a president pro tempore, in the absence of
the Vice President, or when he shall exercise the
office of President of the United States.

'i The Senate shall have the sole power to try
nil impeachments. \\'hen sitting for that purpose
they shall be on oath or affirmation. When the
President of the United States is tried, the chief
justice shall preside, and no person shall be con-
■v-irted without the concurrence of two thirds of th •
members present.

7 Judgment in cases of impeachment shall not
extend further than to removal from office, and dis-
nualification to hold and enioy any office of honor,
trust or profit under the United States, but the par-
ty convicted shall nevertheless he liable and sub-
ject to indictment, trial, judgment and punishment,
according to law.

Section 4. 1 The times, places, and manner of
holding elections for senators and renresentatives.
shall be prescribed in each State by the legislature
thereof: but the Congress may at any time by law
make or alter such regulations, except as to the
places of choosing senators.

2 The Congress shall assemble at least once in
-"very year, and such meeting shall he on the first
Monday i" Decomher. unless they shall by law ap-
point a diflferent dav.

Section ."5. 1 Kach Hnuse shall be the judge of
the elections, returns and onalififations of its own
members, and a maioritv of each shall constitute
a onnrum to do business: but a smaller number mav
adjourn from day to day. and may be authorized
to compel the attendance of absent members, in
= uch manner, and under such penalties as each
House may provide.

2 Kach House may determine the rule of its pro-
ceedings, punish its members for disorderly he-
havior. and. with the concurrence of two thirds, ex-
pel a member.

3 Kach House shall keep a journal of its proceed-
ings, and from time to time publish the same, ex-
cepting such parts as may in their judgment re-
quire secrecy; and the yeas and nays of the mem-
bers of either House on any question shall, at the
desire of one fifth of those present, be entered on
the journal.

4 Neither House, during the session of Congress,
shall, without the consent of the other, adjourn for
more than three days, nor to any other place than
that in which the two Houses shall be sitting.

Section 6. 1 The senators and representatives
shall receive a compensation for their services, to
be ascertained by law. and paid out of the Treas-
ury of the United States. They shall in all cases,
except treason, felony and breach of the peace, be
privileged from arrest during their attendance at' the
session of their respective Houses, and in going to
and returning from the same; and for any speech

Januarj- 1, 1914

The .T<>li<>l Prison I*<»s<

or debate in either House, they shall not be ques-
tioned in any other place.

2 No senator or representative shall, during the
time for which he was elected, be appointed to any
civil office under the authority of the United States,
which shall have been created, or the emoluments
whereof shall have been increased during such
time; and no person holding any office under the
United States shall be a member of either Mouse
during his continuance in office.

Section 7. 1 All bills for raising revenue shall
originate in the House of Representatives: but the
Senate may propose or concur with amendments
as on other bills.

2 Kvery bill which shall have passed the House
of Representatives and the Senate, shall, before it
become a law, be presented to the President of the
ITnited States; if he approve he shall sign it, but if
not he shall return it, with his objections to that
House in which it Shall have originated, who shall
enter the objections at large on their journal, and
proceed to reconsider it. Tf after such reconsidera-
tion two thirds of that House shall agree to pass
the bill, it shall be sent, together with the obiec-
fions. to the other House, by which it shall like-
wise be reconsidered, and if approved by two thirds
of that House, it shall become a law. Rut in all
such cases the votes of both Houses shall be deter-
mined by yeas and nays, and the names of the per-
sons voting for and airainst the bill shall he entered
on the iournal of each House respectively. Tf any
bill shall not be returned by the President within
ten days ("Sundays excepted) after it shall have
been presented to him. the same shall be a law.
in like manner as if he had signed it. unless the
Coneress by their adjournment prevent its return.
in which case it shall not be a law.

."? Every order, resolution, or vote to which the
concurrence of the Senate and House of Represen-
tatives may be necessary (except on a question of
adjournment") shall be presented to the President of
the United States; and before the same shall take
effect, shall be approved by him. or beine disap-
proved by him. shall be repassed by two thirds of
the Senate and House of Representatives, accord-
ing to the rules and limitations prescribed in the
case of a bill.

Section 8. 1 The Congress shall have power to
lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises,
to pay the debts and provide for the common de-
fense and general welfare of the United States; but
all duties, imposts and excises shall be uniform
throughout the United States;

2 To borrow money on the credit of the United
States;

3 To regulate commerce with foreign nations,
and among the several States, and with the Indian
tribes;

4 To establish an uniform rule of naturalization
and uniform laws on the subject of bankruptcies,
throughout the United States;

5 To coin money, regulate the value thereof, and
of foreign coin, and fix the standard of weights and
measures;

Tj To provide for the punishment of counter-
feiting the securities and current coin of the United
States;

7 To establish postoffices and post roads;

8 To promote the progress of science and use-
• ful arts by securing for limited times to authors

and inventors the exclusive right to their respective
writings and discoveries;

9 To constitute tribunals inferior to the Su-
preme Court;

10 To define and punish piracies and felonies
ccniniitted on the high seas, and offenses against
the law of nations;

11 To declare war, grant letters of marque and
reprisal, and make rubs lomcrninL' caiiturcs on
land and water;

12 To raise and suppuri armies, Ijut no appro-
priation of money to that use shall be for a longer
term than two years;

13 To provide and maintain a navy;

14 To make rules for the government and reg-
ulation of the land and naval forces;

ITi To provide for calling forth the militia to ex-
ecute the laws of the Union, suppress insurrec-
tions and repel invasions;

.r> To provide for organizing, arming, and dis-
ciplining the militia, and for governing such part
of them as may be employed in the service of the
United States, reserving to the States respectively
the appointment of the officers, and the authority
of training the militia according tP the discipline
prescribed by Congress;

17 To exercise exclu'sive legislation in nil cases
whatsoever, over such district (not exceeding ten
miles square") as may. by cession of particular States
and the acceptance of Congress, become the seat
of the government of the I'nifcd States, (3") and to
exercise like authority over all places purchased by
the consent of the legislature of the State in which
ihe same shall be, for the erection of forts, mag-
nyines, arsenals, dockyards, and other needful build-
ings; and

18 To make all laws which shall be necessary
and proper for carrying into execution the forego-
ing powers and all other powers vested by this
(Constitution in the government of the United
States, or in any department or officer thereof.

Section 0. 1 The migration or importation of
cnch persons as any of the States now existing
•ball think proper to admit, shall not be pro-
hil>ited by the Congress prior to the year one
thousand eight hundred and eight, but a
tax or duty may be imposed on such imporfntion.
not exceeding ten dollars for each person.

2,The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus
shall not be suspended, unless when in cases of re-
bellion or invasion the public safety may require it.

.•? No bill of attainder or expost facto law shall

l>e passed.

» No capitation, or other direct, tax shall be laid.
unless in proportion to the census or enunjcration
hereinbefore directed to be taken.

5 No tax or duty shall be laid on articles ex-
ported from any Slate.

ft No preference shall be given by any regula-
tion of commerce or revenue to the ports of one
State over those of another: nor shall vessels
nouna to. or trom. one State be obliged to enter,
clear, or pay duties in another.

7 No money shall be drawn from the treasury,
l)Ut in consequence of appropriations made by law;
and a regular statement and account of '^e re-
ceipts and expenditures of all public money shall
l)e published from time to time.

8 No title of nobility shall be granted by the
Lrited States: and no person holding any office of
profit or trust under them, shall, without the con-
sent of the Congress, accept of any present, emolu-
ment, office, or title, of any kind whatever, from any
king, prince, or foreign State.

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

Section 10. 1 No State shall enter into any
treaty, alliance, or confederation; grant letters of
marque and reprisal; coin money; emit bills of cred-
it; make anything but gold and silver coin a tender
in payment of debts; pass any bill of attainder, ex-
post facto law, or law impairing the obligation of
contracts, or grant any title of nobility.

2 No State shall, without the consent of the Con-
gress, lay any imposts or duties on imports or ex-
ports, except what may be absolutely necessary for
executing its inspection laws: and the net produce
of all duties and imposts laid by any State on im-
ports or exports, shall be for the use of the treasury
of the United States; and all such laws shall be sub-
ject to the revision and control of the Congress.

3 No State shall, without the consent of Con-
gress, lay any duty of tonnage, keep troops, or ships
of war in time of peace, enter into any agreement
or compact with another State, or with a foreign
power, or engage in war, unless actually invaded,
oi in such imminent danger as will not admit of
delay.

ARTICLE II

Section 1. 1 The executive power shall 1->e vest-
ed in a President of the United States of America.
Tie shall hold his office during the term of four
years, and, together with the Vice President, chosen
for the same term, be elected, as follows:

2 Each State shall appoint in such manner as
the legislature thereof may direct, a number of elec-
tors, equal to the whole number of senators and
representatives to which the State may be entitled
in the Congress: but no senator or representative,
or person holding an office of trust or profit under
the United States, shall be appointed an elector.

(4) The electors shall meet in their respective
States, and vote by ballot for two persons, of whom
one at least shall not be an inhabitant of the same
State with themselves. And they shall make a list of
all the persons voted for.and of the number of votes
for each; which list they shall sign and certify, and
transmit sealed to the scat of the government of
the United States, directed to the president of the
Senate. The president of the Senate shall, in the
presence of the Senate and the House of Repre-
sentatives, open all the certificates, and the votes
shall then be counted. The person having the great-
est number of votes shall be the President, if such
nun-vber be a majority of the whole number of elec-
tors appointed: and if there be more than one who
have such majority, and have an equal number of
votes, then the House of Representatives shall im-
mediately choose by ballot one of them for Presi-
dent; and if no person have a majority, then from
the five highest on the list the said house shall in
like manner choose the President. But in choos-
ing the President, the votes shall be taken by
States, the representation from each State having
one vote; a quorum for this purpose shall consist
of a member or members from two thirds of the
States, and a majority of all the States shall be nec-
essary to a choice. In every case, after the choice
of the President, the person having the greatest
number of votes of the electors shall be the Vice
President. But if there should remain two or more
who have eoual votes, the Senate shall choose from
them by ballot the Vice President. (5)

3 The Congress may determine the time of
choosing the electors, and the day on which they
shall give their votes; which day shall be the same
throughout the United States.

4 No person except a natural born citizen, or a
citizen of the United States, at the time of the
adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the
office of President; neither shall any person be elig-
ible to that office who shall not have attained to the
age of thirty-five years, and been fourteen years a
resident within the United States.

5 In case of the removal of the President from
office, or of his death, resignation, or inability to
discharge the powers and duties of the said office,
the same shall devolve on the Vice President, and
the Congress may by law provide for the case of
removal, death, resignation, or inability, both of the
President and Vice President, declaring what officer
shall then act as President, and such officer shall
act accordingly, until the disability be removed, or
a President shall be elected.

6 The President shall, at stated times, receive
for his services a compensation, which shall neith-
er be increased nor diminished during the period for
which he shall have been elected, and he shall not
receive within that period any other emolument
from the United States, or any of them.

7 Before he enter on the execution of his office,
he shall take the following oath or affirmation: —
"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that T will faith-
fully execute the office of President of the United
States, and will to the best of my abilitj% preserve,
protect and defend the Constitution of the United
States."

Section 2. 1 The President shall be commander
in chief of the army and navy of the United States,
and of the militia of the several States, when called
into the actual service of the United States; he may
require the opinion, in writing, of the principal of-
ficer in each of the executive departments, upon
any subject relating to the duties of their respec-
tive offices, and he shall have power to grant re-
nrieves and pardons for offenses against the United
States, except in cases of impeachment.

2 He shall have power, by and with the advice
and consent of the Senate, to make treaties, pro-
vided two thirds of the senators present con-
cur; and he shall nominate, and by and with the
advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint am-
bassadors, other public ministers and consuls,
judges of the Supreme Court, and all other officers
of the United States, whose appointments are not
herein otherwise provided for. and which shall be
established by law: but the Congress mav by law
vest the appointment of such inferior officers, as
they think proper, in the President alone, in the
courts of law. or in the heads of departments.

3 The President shall have power to fill up
all vacancies that may happen during the recess of
the Senate, by granting commissions which shall ex-
pire at the end of their next session.

Section .3. He shall from time to time give to the
Congress information of the state of the Union, and
recommend to their consideration such measures as
he shall judge necessary and expedient; he may. on
extraordinary occasions, convene both Houses, or
either of them, and in case of disagreement between
them with respect to the time of adiournment. he
may adjourn them to such time as he shall think
proper; he shall receive ambassadors and other pub-
lic ministers; he shall take care that the laws be
faithfullv executed, and shall commission all the of- .
firers of the United States.

Section 4. The President. Vice President, and
all civil officers of the United States, shall be re-

January 1, 1914

Tli<» .Tolit'i Prison l*os<

moved from office on impeachment for. and con-
viction of, treason, l)ril>ery, or other liiyli crimes
ind misdemeanors.

ARTICLE III

Section I. Tlie judicial power of the United States
shall be vested in one Supreme Court, and in such
inferior courts as the Congress may from time to
time ordain and establish. The judges, botli of the
Supreme and inferior courts, shall hold their offices
during good behavior, and shall, at stated times,
receive for their services, a compensation which
shall not be diminished during their continuance in
office.

Section 2. 1 The judicial power shall extend
to all cases, in law and equity, arising under this
Constitution, the laws of the United States, and
treaties made, or which shall be made, under their
authority; — to all cases affecting ambassadors, oth-
er public ministers and consuls; — to all cases of ad-
miralty and maritime jurisdiction; — to controver-
sies to which the United States shall be a party; —
to controversies between two or more States; —
between a State and citizens of another State :(6) —
between citizens of different States; — between citi-
zens of the same State claiming lands under grants
of different States, and between a State, or the cit-
izens thereof, and foreign States, citizens or sub-
jects.

2 In all cases affecting ambassadors, other pub-
lic ministers and consuls, and those in which a
State shall be party, the Supreme Court shall have
original jurisdiction. In all the othf-r cases before
mentioned, the Supreme Court shall have appellate
jurisdiction, both as to law and to fact, with such
exceptions, and under such regulations as the Con-
gress shall make.

n The trial of all crimes, except in cases of im-
peachment, shall be by jury; and such trial shall be
held in the State where the said crimes shall have
been committed; but when not committed within
any State, the trial shall be at such place or places
as the Congress may by law have directed.

Section 3. 1 Treason against the United States,
shall consist only in levying war against them, or in
adhering to their enemies, giving them aid and com-
fort. No person shall be convicted of treason un-
less on the testimony of two witnesses to the same
overt act, or on confession in open court.

2 The Congress shall have power to declare the
punishment of treason, but no attainder of treason
shall work corruption of blood, or forfeiture except
during the life of the person attainted.

ARTICLE IV

Section 1. Full faith and credit shall be given in
each State to the public acts, records, and judicial
proceedings of every other State. .And the Con-
gress may by general laws prescribe the manner
in which such acts, records and proceedings shall
be proved, and the effect thereof.

Section 2. 1 The citizens of each State shall be
entitled to all privileges and immunities of cit-
izens in the several States.

2 A person charged in any State with treason,
felony, or other crime, who shall flee from justice,
and be found in another State, shall on demand of
the executive authority of the State from which he
fled, be delivered up to be removed to the State
having jurisdiction of the crime.

3 No person held to service or lal)or in one-
State, under the laws thereof, escaping into anoth-

er, shall, til I i(iihr(imtn.i- I'l .111^ law or regulation
• herein, be . discharged from such service or labor,
but shall be delivered up on claim of the party to
whom such service or labor may be due.

Section .1. 1 New States may be admitted by
the Congress into this Union; but n«» new Slate
shall be formed or erected within the jurisdiction
or any other State; nor any State be formed by the
junction <if two or more States, or parts of States,
without the consent of the legislatures of the States
concerned as well as of the Congress. ,

'■1 The Congress shall have power to dispo>< oi
and make all needful rules and regulations respect-
ing the territory or other property belonging to the
United States; and nothing in this Constitution shall
be so construed as to prejudice any claims of the
Lhiited States, or of any particular State.

Section 4. The United States shall guarantee to
every State in th's Union a republican form of gov-
ernment, and shall protect each of them against in-
vasion; and on application of the legislature, or of
the executive (when the legislature cannot be con-
vened") against domestic violence.

ARTICLE V

The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Hous-
es shall deem it necessary, shall propose amend-
ments to this Constitution, or. on the application of
the legislatures of two thirds of the several States,
shall call a convention for proposing amendments,
which, in either case, shall be valid to all intents
and purposes, as part of th's Constitution, when
ratified by the legislatures of three fourths of the
several States, or by conventions in three fourths
thereof, as the one or the other mode of ratification
may be proposed by the Congress; Provided that
no amendment which may be made prior to the
year one thousand eight hundred and eight shall in
ai:y manner affect the first and fourth clauses in the
ninth section of the first article; and that no State,
without its consent, shall be deprived of its equal
.•suffrage in the Senate.

ARTICLE VI

1 .Ml debts contracted and engagements entered
into, before the adoption of this Constitution, shall
be as valid against the United States under this
Constitution, as under the Confederation.

2 This Constitution, and the laws of the United
States which shall be made in pursuance thereof;
and all treaties made, or which shall be made, un-
der the authority of the United States, shall be the
supreme law of the land; and the judges in every
State shall be bound thereby, anything in the Con-
stitution or laws of any State to the contrary not-
withstanding.

3 The senators and representatives before men-
tioned, and the members of the several State leg-
islatures, and all executive and judicial officers, both
of the United States, and of the several States, shall
be bwund by oath or aflirmation to support this
Constitution; but no religious test shall ever be re-
quired as a qualification to any office or public
trust under the I'nited States.

ARTICLE VII
The ratification of the conventions of nine States
shall be sufticient for the establishment of this Con-
stitution between the States so ratifying the same. (7)
Done in Convention by the unanimous consent of
the States present the seventeenth day of Septem-
ber in the year of our Lord one thousand seven

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

hundred and eighty-seven, and of the indepen-
dence of the United Stales of America the
twelfth. In witness whereof we have hereunto
suljscribed our names,

Go: Wasliinston —

Presidt. and Deputy from Virginia
New Hampshire Delaware

John Langdon Geo: Read

Nicholas Gilman Gunning Bedford Jun

Massachusetts John Dickinson
Xathaniel Gorham Richard Bassett

Rufus King Jaco: Broom

Connecticut Maryland

Wm. Saml. Johnson James MclUnry

Roger Sherman Dan of St. Thos Jenifer

Danl. Carroll

New York -.. . .

Ai J u u Virgmia

Alexander Hamilton John Blair

New Jersey J^'"^s Madison Jr.
Wil: Livingston North Carolina

David Brearly Wm. Blount

\\ m. Paterson Richd. Dobbs Spaight

Jena: Dayton H" Williamson

Pennsylvania , „ , South Carolina

u ,. , ,• J- Rutlcdge

H. l-ranklin Charles Cotesworth

Thomas MifBm Pinckney

Robt. Morns (.,^^^,^^ Pinckney

Geo. Clymer . g^,^,^^
Thos. Fitzsnnons

Jared IngersoU Georgia

James Wilson William Few

Gouv Morris Abr Baldwin

Attest William Jackson

Secretary

Articles in addition to, and amendment of, the Con-
stitution of the United States of /Vmerica, pro-
posed by Congress, apd ratified by the legisla-
tures of the several States pursuant to the fifth
article of the original Constitution.

ARTICLE I (8)
Congress shall make no law respecting an es-
tablishment of religion, or prohibiting the free ex-
ercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech,
or of the press; or the right of the people peace-
ably to assemble, and to petition the government
for a redress of grievances.

ARTICLE II
A well regulated militia, being necessary to the
security of a free State, the right of the people to
keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.

ARTICLE III
No soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in
any house, without the consent of the owner, nor
in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by
law.

ARTICLE IV
The right of the people to be secure in their per-
sons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreason-
able searches and seizures shall not be violated, and
no warrants sliall issue, but upon probable cause, sup-
ported by oath or affirmation, and particularly des-
cribing the place to be searched, and the persons or
things to be seized.

ARTICLE V
No person shall be held to answer for a capital.

or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a present-
ment or indictment of a grand jury, except in cases
arising in tlie land or naval forces, or in the militia,
when in actual service in time of war or public
danger; nor shall any person be subject for the
same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life
or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal
case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived
of life, liberty, or property, without due process of
law; nor shall private property be taken for public
use without just compensation.

ARTICLE VI
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall en-
joy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an im-
partial jury of the State and district wherein the
crime shall have been committed, which district
shall have been previously ascertained by law, and
to be informed of the nature and cause of the ac-
cusation; to be confronted with the witnesses
against him; to have compulsory process for ob-
taining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assist-
ance of counsel for his defense.

ARTICLE VII
In suits at common law. where the value in con-
troversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of
trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried
by a jury shall be otherwise re-examined in any
court of the United States, than according to the
rules of the common law.

ARTICLE VIII
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor exces-
sive flnc= imposed, nor cruel and unusual punish-
ments inflicted.

ARTICLE IX
The enumeration in the Constitution of certain
rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage
others retained by the people.

ARTICLE X
The powers not delegated to the United States by
the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States,
are reserved to the States respectively, or to the
p("ople.

ARTICLE XI (9)
The judicial power of the United States shall not
be construed to extend to any suit in law or equity,
rnmmonced or prosecuted against one of the United
States by citizens of anotlier State, or by citizens
or subjects of any foreign State.

ARTICLE XII (10)
The electors shall meet in their respective States,
and vote by ballot for President and Vice President,
one of whom, at least, shall not be an inhabitant
of the same State with themselves; they shall name
in their 1)allots the person voted for as President,
and in distinct ballots the person voted for as Vice
President, and they shall make distinct lists of all
persons voted for as President and of all persons
voted for as Vice President, and of the number of
votes tor each, which lists they shall sign and cer-
tify, and transmit sealed to the seat of the govern-
ment of the United States, directed to the president
of the Senate:— The president of the Senate shall,
in presence of the Senate and House of Represen-
tatives, open all the certificates and the votes
shall then be counted; — The person having
the greatest number of votes for President

January 1, 1914

TIm" J(»li(>( I'risoii Pos(

shall be the President, if such nunil»t'r be
a majority of the whole number of elec-
tors appointed; and if no perst»n have such major-
ity, then from the persons having the highest num-
bers not exceeding three on the list of those voted
for as President, tlie House of Representatives shall
choose immediately, by ballot, the President. But
in choosing the President, the votes shall be taken
by States, the representation from each State having
one vote; a quorum for tliis purpose shall consist
of a member or meinbcrs from two thirds of the
States, and a majority of all the States shall be
necessary to a choice. .\iid if the House of Rep-
resentatives shall not choose a President whenever
the right of choice shall devolve upon them, before
the fourth day of March next following, then the
Vice President shall act as President, as in the
case of the death or c>ther constitutional disability
of the President. The person having the greatest
number of votes as Vice Prcsidnt shall be the Vice
President, if such number be a majority of the
whole number of electors appointed, and if no per-
son have a majority, then from the two highest
numbers on the list, the Senate shall choose the Vice
President; a quorum for the purpose shall consist
of two thirds of the whole number of Senators, and
a majority of the whole nuinber shall be necessary
to a choice. But no person constitutionally inelig-
ible to the office of President shall be eligible to
that of Vice President of the United States.

ARTICLE XIII (11)

Section 1. 1 Neither slavery nor involuntary
servitude, except as punishment for crime whereol
the party shall have been duly convicted, shall ex-
ist within the United States, or any place subject
to their jurisdiction.

2 Congress shall have power to enforce this ar-
ticle by appropriate legislation.

.ARTICLE XIV (12)

1 All persons born or naturalized in the United
States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are
citizens of the United States and of the State
wherein they reside. No State shall make or en-
force any law which shall abridge the privileges or
immunities of citizens of the llnited States; nor
shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty,
or property, without due process of law; nor deny
to any person within its jurisdiction the equal pro-
tection of the laws.

2 Representatives shall be apportioned among
the several States according to their respective
numl)ers, counting the whole number of persone in
each State, excluding Indians not taxed. Rut when
the right to vote at any election for the choice ot
electors for President and Vice President of the
United States, represntatives in Congress, the ex-
ecutive and judicial officers of a State, or the mem-
bers of the legislature thereof, is denied to any of
the male inhabitants of such State, being twenty-
one years of age, and citizens of the Ignited States,
or in any way abridged, except for participation in
rebellion, or other criine. the basis of representation
therein shall be reduced in the proportion which
the number of such male citizens shall boar to the
whole number of male citizens twenty-"'"' v<-ar-; of
age in such State.

3 No person shall be a senator or representa-
tive in Congress, or elector of President and Vice
President, or hold any ofTice,civil or military. tmder
the United States, or under any State, who. having

previously taken an oath, as a member of C-
or as an ol'licer of the United States, or as a . r

of any State legislature, or as an executive or judic-
ial otTicer of any State, to support the Constitution
of the United States, shall have engaged in insur-
rection or rebellion against the same, or given aid
or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress
may by a vote of two thirds of each House, remove
such disability.

4 The validity of the public debt of the United
States, authorized by law, including debts incurred
for payment of pensions and bounties for services
in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not
be questioned. Rut neither the United States nor
any State shall assume or pay any debt or obliga-
tion incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion
against the United States, or any claim for the loss
or emancipation of any slave; but all such debts,
obligations and claims shall be held illegal and
void.

5 The Congress shall have power to enforce
by appropriate legislation, the provisions of thi
article.

ARTICLE XV (13)

Section 1. The right of citizens of the United
States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the
United States or by any State on account of race,
color, or previous condition of servitude.

Section 2. The Congress shall have power to en-
force this article by appropriate legislation.

ARTICLE XVI (14)
The Congress shall have power to lay and col-
lect taxes on incomes, from whatever source de-
rived, without apportionment among the several
State's, and without regard to any census or enum-
eration.

I : This reprint of the Constitution exactly follows the text of

that in the Dcp-irtmcnt of State at Washington, save in
the spelling of a few words.

2: P.irtly superseded by the 14th Amendment.

3: The District of Columbia, which comes under these regu-
lations, had not then been erected.

•1 : The following paragraph was in force only from 1788 to
1S03.

.I: Supcrseiled by the 12th .Amendment.

0: See the 11th Amendment.

7: .\fter the Constitution had been adopted by the Conven-
tion it was ratified by conventions held in each of the
States.

S: The first ten .Amendments were adopted in 1701.

n: Adopted in 1708.

10: Adopted in 1804.

II : Adopted in 18«V..
r.»: Adopted in IWW.
Kt: .\dopted in 1870.
Ur Adopted in lOH.

^ ^ ^

Severe discipline has returned prisoners
lo .society worse in character instead of better,
and less able to earn a livinc: by honest en-
deavor than they were when they entered pris-
on.

The proqress of prison reform is slow but
i| !«; irresistible.

The Joliet Prison Post

$50.00 REWARD

First Year

ESCAPED CONVICT

JERRY O'CONNOR, No. 2630
Alias Wm. Rodders, Alias Wm. Mulvihill

Received Sept. 24, 1912, Chicago, Cook County, Robbery, Etc.

Record: 4 terms Joliet, III., Penitentiary; one term Pontiac, 5 years.

Age, 36. Height, 5 ft. 1 1 ^^ in. Hair, Chestnut M. Eyes, Yellow green slate.
Weight, 178.

Remarks: Woman in short dress on left fore arm. Se 3 L palm 3d F. and
ph. Left hand.

Bertillon: Height, 8 1-7; Head Lgt 19-7; Left foot, 27-9; Outer arms, 82; Head
width, 15-7; L. M. Fingers, 12-6; Trunk, 97-6; Right Ear, 6-2x; L. L. Finger, 9-6;
Forearm, 48-5; Eyes, G. R. Slate; Complexion, M. D. K.

Escaped from Illinois State Penitentiary December ist, 1913.

Arrest and telegraph EDMUND M. ALLEN, Warden, Joliet, 111

January 1, 1914

The Jollet Prison I'osl

JOHN MURPHY, President P. J. MNSKKY, Svvntnry

THOMAS KASHKK, Vice President

MURPHY, LINSKEY & KASHER

COAL

CO.

Braidwood and Poiitlac, Illinois

MINERS AND SHIPPERS OF

Original Wiliniii^ton Coiil

From BraidM'ood Mine

Pontiac Coal

From Poiitiiic Mine

Mine at Rraid>vood

on Chicago & Alton
Riiilroad

MAIN OFFICE

BRAIDM^OOD, ILL.

]\Iiiie iii Pon(ia(* on
Illinois (Central, Wa-
bash and (^hicaji^o Ai:
Alton Railroads

r,, , , (Chieajiio I I M

A^'^ *•*"»"'«• (Interstate (Ml L

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

^ . C. Holmes & Co.

I Incorporated)

WHOLESALE DEALERS IN

Fresh, Frozen and Smoked Fish

Oysters in Seasor
735 West Randolph Street

Telephones: Monroe 180 Ai

CHICAGO

itomatic 30108

Geo. M. Scholl, Pres. and Mgr. Waller T. Werner, V. Prcs.
J. W. Gouger, Secy.-Treas.

The Michels Company

WHOLESALE

CONFECTIONERY
AND CIGARS

• • •

T- , , \ Bell 396

Telephones: • ,„,^^.Stale 1036

203 Washington Street

JOLIET. ILL.

Joliet Trust
ana Davmgs JDank

WE PAY

Will Move to
Its Ne-w Quar-
ters m tne Baroer
Building, 114 N.
Cmcago St., Joliet
III, Jan. 1, 1914

Interest

LUSSKY WHITE & COOLIDGE l.c.

IMPORTERS AND JOBBERS OF

UPHOLSTERY GOODS AND
....CABINET HARDWARE....

69-71 WEST LAKE STREET

CHICAGO

January 1, 1914 Tll<» Jolll't PriSOIl PoHt 39

RESULTS SUPREME

USE

TOUSEY VARNISHES

Manutacturea by skiUea workmen tor every orancn
or Manufacturing industries. f}] A complete nign-
grade line of Arcnitectural Finisnes, varnish in
colors; Japans, Enamels and Stains

TOUSEY VARNISH COMPANY,

EleventL Floor McCormick Building

332 SO. MICHIGAN AVENUE CHICAGO

PRISON SUPPLY CO.

34 TO 42 SO. FIFTH AVENUE

CHICAGO, ILL.

JOHN W. GIBBONS

SALES AGENT

WOOLENS

OFFICERS' BLUE UNIFORM CLOTH

INMATES' CADET GREY
CLOTH FOR DISCHARGED INMATES

TRIMMINGS

T-. ^. , . r, , We solicit your business and

Jbstimates and Samples —-—AND TOOI S

* AINU iU»^i-o would be pleased to corres-

Sent on Request. Every kind of Trimmings and ^^^ ^j^h you.

^^^::^—^^^-^-^^^^^^--—— Tools used in the Tailor Shop —

The Only Exclusive Supply Company in the United States Dealing Direct With State Institutions

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

FEDERAL LEATHER CO.

30 EAST 42nd STREET
NEW YORK

EATHER

for furniture,
ca rs, c a r-
riages, walls
and screens.

Spanish-Venetian Leathers,
decorated and illuminated, em-
bossed, tooled and plain Leather
and Brass Nails.

WORKS: NEW ROCHELLE

I. B. Williams
&i Sons

MANUFACTURERS OF

Oak Tanned Leaf her Belting

Bound Leaiher Belting
Cut and Side Lace Leather

14 N. FRANKLIN STREET

TELEPHONE MAIN 1665

CHICAGO

AGENTS IN ALL PRINCIPAL CITIES

FOR

Hardware, Cutlery

Stoves
Plumbing and Heating

SEE, WRITE OR PHONE

Bush dz
Handwerk

115-117 JEFFERSON STREET
JOLIET, ILLINOIS

Januan 1, 1914 Tll<» .loliot l^riSOIl Post 41

NATIONAL ANILINE &
CHEMICAL CO.

CHEMICALS

FOR ALL PURPOSES

157-159 W. Austin Ave. CHICAGO, ILL.

American Hardwood

Lumber Co.

NORTH MARKET AND WHARF

ST. LOUIS, MO.

YARDS

ST. LOUIS - MISSOURI
BENTON - ARKANSAS
NEW ORLEANSXOUISIANA
NASHVILLE - TENNESSEE

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

When In The Market For

Chair Dowels,
Telephone Pins
and Brackets

Let Us Serve You With Your
Requirements

VICTOR PETERTYL, Manufacturer

TRAVERSE CITY, MICHIGAN

ORGANIZED 1875

The Thomas
Lyons Co.

Broom Corn Dealers
and Supply House

For all kinds of Broom Manufact-
lE liurers' Supplies

ARCOLA l ^: ILLINOIS

CAPITAL

$150,000.00

SURPLUS AND
PROFITS

$275,000.00

Joliet National Bank

JOLIET, ILLINOIS

January J, 1911

The .Tolu-I Prison I*<>k(

We Give

bi ft Hi

Green
Trading
Stamps

With Every
Purchase

iU U'l JH

iu BL-jn ^

Exchange
for them
You can

get
Beautiful
Premiums

of All Kinds

Free

The Boston Store

Joliet^s Biggest, Busiest
and Best Store

THIS STORE IS YOUR FRIEND. It has made
conditions which saves you money on everything you
eat, wear or use for the home— and it is not receiving
justice at your hands unless you throw it all the busi-
ness you can.

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

ons

Broth

ers

Lumber and Fuel Co.

WHOLESALE AND RETAIL

LUMBER AND COAL

^olh "VeUphona V^o. 17
WASHINGTON ST. and YORK AVE. JOLIET. ILL

Daniel Webster said:

"Deal with the man who does
the most business. You will
find there's a reason jor it. "

Buchanan-Daley Co.

Lumber and Coal

JOLIET -:- -:- ILLINOIS

R. E. GANNON

COAL

CAIRO

ILLINOIS

When Opportunity Presents
Itself Speak a Good Word for

The P. E.

Holstrom Co.

Wholesale Grocers

JOLIET. ILLINOIS

When You Get Out Trade at

Bray s Drug Store

104 Jefferson Street
JOLIET - - ILLINOIS

FIRST NATIONAL BANK

of JOLIET

The

Oldest, Largest

and Strongest

Bank in Joliet,

Illinois

J. O. Gorman
& Co.

HEADQUARTERS FOR ALL KINDS OF

Tobaccos and Fruits

JOLIET - - ILLINOIS

WERDEN BUCK

BUILDING
MATERIAL

511 and 513 WEBSTER ST.

BOTH PHONES 215

JOLIET, ILLINOIS

January' 1, 1914

The Joliet Prison Post

I jOLiirr FuisoN fost

Is Gotten Out for the I'lihllslierM hy

S. A. BREWSTFR

& SON

114-16-18 Clinton Street

•Toilet, Illiiiol;^

They Do All Classes of
COMMERCIAL PRINTING

Ksf iiiiut(*s
Kreely Kurnished

W. Freeman & Co.

Wholesale Potatoes and Fruits

Car Lois a Specially

Chicago T>hone 618

105 S. JOLIET STREET

N. W. Phone 859

JOLIET, ILLINOIS

Union Wrapping Machine

A DEVICE FOR

Sealing and Wrapping Bread

EVERY BAKER SHOULD HAVE ONE

For Full Particular* AddicM

l^nioii Wriii>|»iii6 Mii«-liiiie Co.

JOMKT. ILLINOIS

The Famous Watertown
Extension Table Slide....

WATERTOWN
TABLE SLIDE
= C0.=

WATERTOWN
WISCONSIN

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

THE CLIPPER"
STEAM TRACTION

THE ^^CLIPPER

BLAST HOLE DRILL

Is made in many sizes and types to be driven by Steam, Gasoline, Com-
pressed Air or Electric Power. This sinnple, economical and long lasting
Machinery is used by the leading cement manufacturers, stone producers
and railroad contractors of the present day. It will cut the cost of get-
ting out stone to the very lowest notch.

It is at once the most effective, economical and durable Blast Hole Drill
in the world.

Used in the stone quarry at the Illinois State Penitentiary, at Joliet.

THE CLIPPER"
GASOLINE TRACTION

MADE ONLY BY

LOOMIS MACHINE CO

TIFFIN, OHIO

THE CLIPPER"
GASOLINE TRACTION

EFFICIENT

DURABLE

THE

LIFE— WALRATH
POWER BROOM MACHINERY

BROOM SEWING MACHINE WHISK SEWING MACHINE

HURL CUTTER WITH SIZER ATTACHED

CORN SIZING MACHINE SCRAPER WITH FAN

IRON FRAME WINDER CLIPPER WOOD FRAME WINDER

SEND FOR FULL INFORMATION

LIFE & WALRATH CO.

SYRACUSE. N. Y.

January 1, 1914

The •Toli€»l Prison I'ost

HE Prisoners at the Jol-
iet Prison are permitted
to tinker in their cells.
The novelties they make
are usually both attractive and use-
ful. The prices vary from twenty-
five cents to three dollars. These
novelties are on exhibition and sale
in the Warden House.

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

IOC

3ac

3DC

IDE

DCZIC

jai

jnc

DCUC

T"T 7E assume that you have read this
number of The Joliet Prison
Post. The inmates of the Illinois State
Prison, represented by the force in the
Newspaper Office, will do their utmost to
publish a paper of merit.

If you approve of the tone of this
publication, you are respectfully requested
to send to the Joliet Prison Post, One
Dollar, in payment of six months subscrip-
tion.

Address:

The Joliet Prison Post

1900 Collins Street, Joliet, Illinois

jnnc

3DC

DCZIC

DDE

IDE

THE JOLIET
PRISON POST

VOL. I.

JOLIET, ILLINOIS, FKBRUARY 1, 1914.

No. 2

EDITORIAL

The Whipping Post in 1914

From the accounts published in the Seattle
(Wash.) Times, the Springfield (Ohio) Sun
and other newspapers we learn that Governor
Charles L. Miller of Delaware approves of the
law now in force in his state which provides
for the punishment of certain classes of offend-
ers by publicly whipping them with a lash on
their bare backs; exposing them to the public
gaze while locked in pillories and then by con-
fining them in uncomfortable jails for long
periods.

He favors the infliction of all three modes
of punishment each to the fullest extent of the
law and asks to have these methods given the
widest possible publicity in order to inspire fear
and thus reduce crime in Delaware.

He is of the opinion that all punishment is
to prevent crime and remotely to cure the
criminal, and that the Delaware method re-
duces the extent of crime in that state.

He is convinced that the contempt, ridicule,
humiliation and punishment which, in his state,
is visited on convicted men and women, has a
good effect and that prisoners are "whipped
curs" after the Delaware authorities are
through with them.

According to Governor Miller this method
of punishment is very popular with the judici-
ary and the populace of his state.

He informs us that once in a while some
half drunken loon enters a house at night, and
when arrested and convicted he gets all that
the State of Delaware lias to give in the shape
of punishment.

The Governor asserts that hysterical women,
weak men, bullies, cranks and blackguards
from all parts of the United States have writ-

ten to him demanding that he prohibit whippitig
and pillorving in his state.

It may be that torture, humiliation and con-
finement in uncomfortable jails for \fmg per-
iods reduces crime in Delaware, but if that is
the only object why stop at these half way
measures? Why not make a thorough job of
it by executing all prisoners after they have
been thoroughly and publicly lashed, pilloried
to the fullest extent of the law and confined
in jails of the Delaware type for long periods?
Such a program migiit prove even far more ef-
ficacious in preventing crime.

Delaware is the only state in the union which
finds the whipping post and the pillory neces-
sary, consequently, the following questions
seem pertinent:

1. Is Delaware the only state in the union
that knows how to punish crime properly?

2. Are all the other states behind the
times by not inflicting public whii)pings at a
whipping jx>st ; by refraining froqi pillorying
and by attempting to conserve the liealth of
their prisoners; by aiming to provide some
comforts for the inmates of their jails, re-
formatories and fKMiitentiaries:

3. Is punishment for crime oi greater im-
portance than the redemption of the criminal.''

4. Does the state of Delaware do its full
duty towards its sister states by looking upon
prevention of crime within its own borders as
the important matter, and by treating the cure
of crime as of secondary consideration, while
it permits its criminals to move to other states
and encourages such removals by means of vis-
iting unusual punishment up<">n offenders
against its laws?

5. Wbat would be tiie result it all the
states in the union passed laws similar to those
now in force in Delaware?

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

Published Monthly By The

BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS AND THE WARDEN OF THE

II.I,INOIS STATE PENITENTIARY, JOUET, II,L., U. S. A.

Address:— THE JOLIET PRISON POST
1900 Collins Street _ _ - Jolibt, Illinois

Single Copy Ten Cents

Yearly .Subscription One Dollar

Canadian and Koreign... One Dollar and Hifty Cents

EDITED BY A PRISONER

REPRODUCTIONS PERMITTED UNCONDITIONALLY

Application for entry as Second-Class Matter at the Post Office at
Joliet, Illinois, pending.

6. Do the people of the state of Delaware
take into consideration the futures of the men
and women who are made to feel that they are
"whipped curs?"

7. Are the professional lashers of Dela-
ware brutalized by the exercise of their calling?
If so, how about the members of the commun-
ity who hire the work done and look upon the
agonies of the criminal at the whipping post
and in the pillory?

8. What is the effect on the officials of the
jails by reason of their constant contact with
prisoners who are detained in uncomfortable
jails for long periods?

9. Are there no good and sane men and
women amongst all those who have written to
Governor Miller urging upon him that he pro-
hibit cruel and unusual punishment in his
state ?

10. If Delaware is wrong in its treatment
of criminals what is the remedy ?

11. Does the infliction of corporal punish-
ment in Delaware call for an amendment to the
Constitution of the United States so that this
one state may be deterred from a continuance
of its present practices?

Medical Care.

Can anyone who has not experienced prison
life have any conception of the state of mind
of an ailing prisoner in a prison where medi-
cal attention and proper care is considered as
of secondary importance to the discipline and
work?

Many ailing persons outside of prisons suff(,r
for the want of proper medical attendance
through poverty or ignorance, but when they
stop to consider it they find that it is under cir-
cumstances more or less of their own making.

In prison the thoughts go to a different channel.
Prisoners, if they think clearly, blame them-
selves for being in prison and feel that their
imprisonment is a just punishment, but they
believe that neglect is unwarranted in view of
the fact that they are not in a position to do
anything for themselves. There is only one
official prison physician for prisoners to go to
and if he neglects them they have no other re-
course; consequently, neglect in medical care
in a prison always results in discouragement
and discontent.

There is nothing that will appeal to prison-
ers more heartily than intelligent and sympa-
thetic medical care, and the official prison phy-
sician who lives up to his obligations towards
his patients as a man and a doctor should, be-
comes an object of admiration and esteem to
the prisoners in the institution.

Health as a Cure for Criminal Tendencies

In those institutions which have so far not
responded to the reform movement, a term in
prison generally means shortening of life for
the inmates and it follows that those who out
live their sentences are usually injured in
health when released.

It is difficult to understand how society gains
by this, as a man who is released from prison
must have food, shelter and clothing, and if he
is in good health he stands a better chance of
earning a living honestly than if he is in poor
healtii, and in consequence is unable to secure
employment at living wages.

There may be differences of opinion as to
the kind of punishment to be meted out to of-
fenders against the law, but there can be no
such difference with regard to the harm done
to society by setting free a lot of prisoners
whose healths are undermined ; no one will con-
tradict this.

It follows that persons convicted of crime
must either be executed or cared for with due
regard to their health ; there is no other alterna-
tive.

As no community cares to increase the list
of crimes for which executions may be had,
there can be no doubt that the health of all
men and women must be conserved. All gov-

Februar>' 1, 1914

The Joliet PriHoii Poh4

ernments which ni.'iiiitain prisons in which the
health of their inmates are injured, are remiss
in their duties; and when ever a government
fails in the performance of its obligations, dis-
respect for the law is created by reason of the
bad example set by the government. Under the
old order there are many men who accepted as
inevitable in their cases a life of several con-
victions with the monotony broken by an oc-
casional vacation from prison. Many men
wlio after their release would have re-establish-
ed themselves if they had left prison in good
health, have incurred subse(|uent terms because
tiiey left prison irreparal)l\' ruined in health
after having served their first sentence.

It would have been different in manv in-
stances if the men had left prison in good
health.

Few men who have served one term in a
prison desire to commit crimes, and thus take
the risk of being returned; nearly every man
who is healthy in mind and body at the time of
his release leaves the prison hoping that he will
succeed by honest endeavor.

% %

A Penitentiary and Publicity

When prison authorities announce publicly
that "newspaper reporters will be admitted at
reasonable hours on w^orking days only, and
that they may talk with whomsoever they de-
sire." there can be nothing to conceal from the
public in that place, and a warden who can
make and live up to tiiis statement nuist be
sure that the prisoners are satisfied with the
treatment he accords to them.

Equality of Prisoners

The promise made by our Wartlen that he
will shortly establish :in itulu>trial elViciencv
grade fttr prisoners in the lir.sl gra»le who are
valuable to the institution by reason of excep-
tii'iial efViciency. knock> into a cocked hat the
pernicious talk about all pris<jners being e(|nal.

It may be almost accurate to claim that all
prisoners should start even when thiv enter
prison; but inside of a i)rison as will as out-
side ilistinctions will pre\ail.

The prisoner who cur.ses and is vulgar and
lewd in his conversation is not the e(iual of him
whose conversation is clean and wholesome.
The scandal monger is not the eijual of the
man who speaks kind words. He who makes
trouble for the officers is not the ecjual of the
prisoner who ol)eys the rules and who does his
best to be helpful. The prisoner who neglects
stock entrusted to his care is not the eijual of
the one, who recognizes and lives up to his
duties towards dumb animals, who are wholly
dependent upon him. The uneducated man
who does not avail himself of the benefits of
the school and thus proclaims that he is willing
to wallow in his ignorance is not the e<}ual of
an uneducatetl man who. by attendance and
application, tries and overcomes his educa-
tional deficiencies.

The prisoner who gives the Warden his word
of honor and then is placed in a i)osition to
easily make his escape, ami then runs away is
not the e(|ual of the man who stands fast by his
[)ledge in spite of all temptations.

The warden who makes such announcement
knows there is nothing wrong in his prison,
otherwise he would invite disaster, as report-
ers can outdo detectives or investigating com-
mittees in getting at the facts.

If prisoners could be asked what kind of a
prison they preferred, one open to reporters or
one closed to every one who could be kept out.
they would be a unit for the prison which ad-
mitted the representatives of the press, and
there is an obvious reason for this. Was it
ever necessary in a properly managed iniblic
institution to make secret of what was going
on?

There is as nuich difference between prison-
ers as there is amongst free men, and it is al-
ways he of the lowesn order who insists that all
prisoners are equal.

Modern prison reform I)cc«miics an im|K)Ssi-
bility if the ecjualitv of all |)risontT< is con-
ceded.

The Spirit of 1914

A year ago the majority of the prisoners at
this institution were a nervous lot of men.
They were (|uarrelsome and nearly every man
was sure that every other man in the prist»n
was demented, and he was not at all confident
that he himself did not have a cracked brain.
One could safely tell any inmate in the prison

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

that he was crazy, as that was the only propo-
sition he would agree to ; anything else was
likely to be disputed. All conversation be-
tween prisoners a year ago was forbidden ex-
cept so far as the business of the institution
made it necessary between those men holding
clerical positions and between cell mates while
in their cells and the main reason for the pro-
hibition against conversation was that speak-
ing led to fighting.

If on any day a year ago the men had spoken
with one another, as they do now, there would
not have been enough handcuffs in the institu-
tion to shackle the men confined in the solitary
for fighting. The spirit of 1914 permits the
usual conversation between men, and we be-
lieve that there is less quarreling amongst the
fifteen hundred inmates confined in this prison
than there usually is amongst that same number
of men of average intellect outside of prisons.

What Tinkering Means to Prisoners

During the winter months prisoners are
locked up in their cells at half past four in the
afternoon and during the summer months the
inmates reach their cells an hour later. They
retire at nine o'clock. On Sundays and holi-
days they are in their cells nearly the entire day
in addition to the evening hours. It will read-
ily be seen that they average about five hours a
day in their cells before it is time to retire. The
cells are well lighted, each having an incandes-
cent electric bulb. It has always been a problem
with prisoners what to do with their spare
time, as few men care to read five hours per
day even if enough reading matter is available.

Within the past few rwonths the authorities
have permitted the prisoners to tinker in their
cells. This enables them to occupy their time
at work requiring skill, and the trinkets and
novelties which they manufacture are after-
wards sold, and the amounts realized placed
upon the books in the ofiice to the credit of the
producer of the articles.

The actual money realized is trifling com-
pared with the time expended ; a prisoner who
earns one dollar per week in his spare time is
fortunate. This seems small pay, but prison-
ers have few expenses, consequently what

would seem trifling to a citizen looks large to
a prisoner. With the money earned he can
buy some necessities and luxuries, such as
tooth powder and brushes, which are sold at
cost in this prison and he can subscribe for
newspapers and magazines.

A prisoner who serves a long term may ac-
cumulate enough money to aid him towards
establishing himself after his release. Many
will doubtless send money home to their fami-
lies after the system has been in vogue for a
sufficient length of time.

The busier a prisoner is kept, so long as
work does not become drudgery, the better he
is off.

Many Governors Favor Road ^Vork

According to a compilation of their discus-
sions recently issued by the national commit-
tee on prison labor, twenty-five governors favor
the working of prisoners on roads. These
governors advocate this system because of the
healthful nature of such work, and that men
employed in this way can more readily find em-
ployment elsewhere when released; added to
these reasons are the benefits of good roads to
the public.

Gov. Oddie of Nevada who was instrumen-
tal in securing the passage of legislation in his
state providing road labor for prisoners is one
of its most enthusiastic supporters. He says,
"There is no question but that the passage of
this law has had a wholesome effect on the
prison system, in my state and that it has been
the means of giving a new start in life to a
large proportion of the discharged and paroled
men."

Gov. Hanna of North Dakota, Gov. Cox of
Ohio, and Gov. West of Oregon maintain that
outdoor work is to be considered a privilege to
be earned only by good conduct.

Gov. Mann of Virginia testifies to the ef-
ficiency of the prisoners when employed on
roads and gives figures to prove the economy
of such work.

Gov. Hunt of Arizona is in favor of paying
25 cents a day for road work to prisoners say-
ing that the splendid work done by prisoners
on roads entitles them to some compensation.

February 1, 1914

The .loliot Prison Post

The consideration given to convict road work
and the honor system by the governors is an
indication of the importance attached to the
matter by the people throughout the country.

The Atmosphere at JoUet

Before the advent of the present administra-
tion any prisoner who was known to be favor-
able to the officers was at once dubbed a stool
pigeon by the prisoners in general. There need
not be any foundation whatever for the appela-
tion because the true meaning of tlie word
stool pigeon is almost unknown in this prison,
but the statement will answer to illustrate the
sentiment which existed and which has been re-
placed by an opposite feeling.

The only men who were with the officers
were those who were intelligent enough to "get
by" under the former rules and discipline. It
was fashionable to be sullenly against the ad-
ministration, and many of the prisoners who
gave the subject thought made the mistake of
thinking that the inmates constituted a class
where this spirit was a natural characteristic of
nearly every man.

It is different now. One seldom hears a
prisoner say a word against the administration.
As we look around in the Dining Hall and note
the expressions on the faces of the inmates,
we see a large number of men who seem to be
at peace with themselves and with one another.
Adverse criticism of administration methods is
no longer encouraged by the inmates.

Trusties Who Remain

There are at present ninety-nine trusties at
this prison. Forty-three prisoners without a
guard over them are employed outside of the
walls, upon the farm and as runners. Thirty
men are stationed at Camp Hope, near Dixun,
lllinios. Twenty are employed during the
evening inside the walls after the wall guards
have (juit work. Three work all night as fire
guard and three watchmen are employed out-
side of the walls and remain on duty all niglit.
Most of these prisoners are under long or life
sentences. This is about as it has been for the
last nine months since Mr. Allen became War-
den.

In all two trusties have escaped; not one of
the others has made an attempt to.

Why Wc Have Printed the Constitution

We printed tiie Constitution of the United
States in our January iiuml)er for two reas-
ons: (1) Every man should know at least
the fundamental principles of the government
under which he lives, and frequent reading of
the Constitution is educational and helpful.
(2) Until recently there were a number uf ora-
tors in this prison who claimed to know every-
thing in and about the Constitution and who
could point out to any prisoner just why the
latter's conviction had been obtained in viola-
tion of the Constitution. Knowing that no one
could disprove their positive asserti(jns, these
"attorneys," in order to appear right, placed
into the Constitution everything which they
found necessary to support their arguments.

We have deemed it worth while to attenijn
to put a stop to this irresponsible talk ant! find
that the mere furnishing of a copy of the Con-
stitution to each inmate has had the desired ef-
fect. The talk about the Consittution has
ceased because the man who speaks of it now is
addressing men who have a way of checking
up his statements. There were far too many
"constitutional lawyers" in this prison, many
of whom had never read the Constitution.
They have been put out of business and it will
prove of benefit to the inmates because, it in-
jures men and w(jmen when they are led to be-
lieve that they have been illegally convicted,
when such is not the case.

We shall not attempt to disprove the many
mis-statements which have been made with the
regard to provisions of the Constitution as the
copy of that document is in the hands of every
inmate, and speaks for itself.

Those prisoners who now think that they are
in this prison in violation of the provisions of
the Constitution of the United States, or who
are worrying about others whom they think
are so situated, are invited to write to us re-
garding tiiese cases, and we will publish all
legitimate discussion and inquiries, reserving
the right of editorial comment.

Here's True Prison Reform

Tiiere are many prisoners in this institution
who do their utmost to help make the War-
den's administration successful and in doing
this, at the same lime earn the app'ov-il of
their fellows.

The Jollet Prison Post

First Year

Boys Behave

The prisoner who thinks that good conduct
while "in prison does not have a tendency to
shorten his sentence is mistaken. No wiiere on
earth is good conduct more recompenced than
in a well conducted penal institution.

Wardens do not advertise their influence
with pardoning boards, but they freciuently
have great power. They know better than
anvone who the men are that help make prisor
r(uitine run smoothly and as they are human it
stands to reast)n that their good will and es
teem can be gained by helpfulness, and that in
consequence when the opportunity presents it-
self they will give the applicant for a pardon or
a parole a helping hand.

When a prisoner's outside record is bad it
frequently happens that the warden cannot
overcome it, but even 'in those cases the prison-
er will be repaid for good behaviour and help-
fulness by reason of the job he earns and the
privileges he is allowed.

An inmate who thinks that in his position he
can successfully "buck" the officers, who have
the i»ower of the entire state behind them, is an
ignorant fool.

Not At All Forced.

It may S(nind paradoxical, but it is never-
theless true, that a well meaning and intelli-
gent prisoner has a greater interest in the wel-
fare of the prison where he is confined than
any officer can possibly have. There is almost
no limit to the hold a warden has upon his
prisoners and an inmate with brains will recog-
nize this on the instant. If the warden uses
his power humanely he will get a response
which is impossible elsewhere.

The secret of using the power humanely lies
in treating the inmates as men.

Take Your Choice.

There is as much difference in the situations
of inmates of a prison as there is between the
rich and the poor outside of prison.

The inmates who, by good work and obe-
dience, gain the confidence of the officers are
like the rich, while they who shirk their work
and disobey the rules may be compared with
the poor.

Punishment

Under severe discipline the prisoners' minds
dwelt too much on the solitary cells which are
usually spoken of as "the hole." They realized
that the detection of trifling infractions of the
rules, and some times an accident, would land
them there. Some became hardened to pun-
ishment, others were in constant dread of it,
and undoubtedly the fear of punishment did
more harm than even the actual sufferings in
the solitary cells.

Under the present management this dark
cloud has been removed and none of the in-
mates give the "hole" a thought. This more
than anything else is responsible for the peace
of mind which now pervades this institution.

The prisoners know that now no man is con-
demned to the solitary unless he wilfully
breaks the rules, and as few care about doing
that, the "hole" is now more of a memory than
a reality.

Discipline at the I. S. P.

Occasionally we read in a newspaper that
discipline has been destroyed in this prison by
the present management. This may be true
and it may not be true, depending entirely upon
the interpretation given the word "discipline."

If it means unnecessary punishment, then it
has been destroyed. If it means general good
conduct on the part of the prisoners under just
enough and not too much restraint, then it has
been installed recently.

Wherever discpline has been destroyed in
a prison the inmates will suffer first because of
the aggressions of the stronger against the
weaker. The general run of prisoners want
discipline, and until they begin to complain of
lack of discipline it may safely be assumed that
order is maintained.

Honor System in Nebraska

The honor system was introduced at the
Nebraska State Prison a year ago. It has
worked out very satisfactorily to the Warden
and the inmates.

Prisoners are often given permission to
leave the prison without guards and remain
away for three weeks at a time working for

February 1, 1914

The Joliot Prison Post

farmers, contractors and others. Every pris-
oner has kept his word by returninj^ to the
prison on time and handing over to the warden
his earnings. When their time expires this
money will he returned t(^ them. They earned
nearly $40,0()( ).()() during the year.

The payroll at the prison has been reduced as
a result of the honor sy.stem as a smaller num-
ber i»t guards are now re(|uired.

The prisoners have been shown that societv
is not altogether opposed to them, but is will-
ing to trust them, and give them a chance to
show that they can be trusted, and the prison-
ers have responded by working for their own
interest and that of the institution, the two be-
ing inseparable.

Why Jerry O'Conner's Portrait Was Published

The honor system has drawbacks to those
who think that a progressive warden is neces-
sarily an easy mark, and also to those who
think that a s([uare deal is a one sided ar-
rangement to be taken unfair advantage of.

The honor system has two sides, it contem-
plates making life as nearly normal for the
l)risoners as it is possible to make it in an in-
stitution of this kind and it intends that pris-
oners shall live up to their word. Jerry O'-
Conner gave his word of honor to Warden
Allen and it was accepted, the man was trusted
and he immediately took advantage of his op-
portunity and walked away. This was a direct
attack upon the Honor System — Jerry O'-
Conner tried to save himself at the expense
of the officials and every prisoner in the world.

Under the circumstances it was deemed
necessary to print his portrait with an offer of
a reward for his capture and it was the inten-
tion to continue the advertisement for all time
or until his apprehension. He is with us again,
so that his portrait will no longer be published.

It is perhaps timely to say that this is the
policy of The Joliet Prison Post and that
every prisoner who attacks the honor system
will receive the attention of this paper.

Those prisoners who have not signed the
honor pledge or who have not run away while
acting as trusties will not arouse the initiative
of this paper by making their escape.

INTERVIEWS

DR. JOHN P. BENSON

THE OFFICIAL PRISON PHYSICIAN
On Medical Treatment at the I. S. P.

(Interview by the Kditor)

In endeavoring to keep abrea>l with the
humanely progressive policy of the present ad-
nunistration, strong efforts have been made to
Muprove the hygienic and sanitary C(jnditions
and to raise the .standard of healtJi to a much
higher plane than it has been in the past.

Although confronted by a big handicaj) in
the crude unsanitary and ventilatir.n ideas of
the ante-bellum days which can be cc^rrected
only by a new modern prison, I believe we have
in a great measure checkmated the spread of
tuberculosis in our midst. Among the few
measures that we have initiated in our attempt
to minimize the number of its victims, one of
the most imixjrtant is the segregation of those
so afflicted. Of course, under present condi-
tions, it is impossible to segregate them com-
pletely. Plans are under advisement t(j pro-
vide a suitable building for their needs, where
they may sleep and eat apart from the other
men.

At present the tuberculous men do not cell
with those free from the disease. They are
not allowed to eat at the same table with
healthy men. They are given outside emphty-
ment and light work in the ojxmi air. These
men are permitted to have milk at their meals
and all receive as good medical treatment as
they could obtain outside of the walls.

As was mentioned in the previous issue of
The Joliet PrisiMi Post each man is provided
with his own drinking cup, which we all know
is an ounce of prevention in checking the
ravages of this disease.

We furnish each cell house every day with a
sufficient (|uantity of salts to meet the demand>
of the men. They can be supplied each morn-
ing before breakfast uikhi making a reijuest of
their keeper. Heretofore they have been re-
ceiving them at the regular sick call hour after
breakfast, a custom not consi.stent with projK'r
medication.

Since 1 have assumed the position of Prison
Physician many changes have been made in the
hospital and I can safely say that ours now
ranks on a par with those outside. I have as
my assistants two regularly licensed i)hysicians,
inmates who have been faithfully "on the job"

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

and who have given me excellent support in my
efforts to raise the medical department to a
proper standard. We now have a modern
operating room, equipped up to the minute
with new instruments and other apparatus ; we
have installed a tine new sterilizing plant in
which we can properly sterilize all parapher-
nalia utilized in a modern operating room.

We also have a well equipped surgical dress-
ing room where from twenty to twenty-five
surgical cases are treated daily. More
operations have been done in the past
few months than in the past few years, and
more requests from inmates for opera-
tions have been received than can be performed
in the next two months.

We have equipped a new laboratory diag-
nosis room where various microscopical and
other analyses are made daily. Nearly all
medicines dispensed are compounded and put
up in the hospital. A new feature introduced
lately is the administration of Salvarson (606)
for specific disease. While the state has made
no appropriation for its use among the inmates
I have undertaken to administer it to men who
need it at the cost price of the drug.

In conclusion I wish to state that while I be-
lieve the many changes that have taken place
in the medical department has wrought con-
siderable good for the health of the inmates, I
attribute much of the success to the psychic
influence brought about by the revolutionary
changes that have occurred under the present
administration. Health is governed largely
by our emotions. Where a few months ago
one was met everywhere by long faces, embit-
tered feelings and innumerable tales of woe,
now cheerful, smiling, health glowing coun-
tenances greet us on every hand. Privileges
hitherto unknown ; kind words scattered here
and there, the honor system recently initiated,
whereby a man is given responsibility and
placed upon his honor all have engendered in
the men feelings of self-respect and self-de-
pendence. Their troubles no longer assume
gigantic shapes; they are lead to believe that
they can become useful members of society and
life has taken on a different meaning. This, I
believe, all tends towards the maintenance of
good health.

[Note — Pen, ink and paper cannot adequately
portray the beneficial improvements in the
medical department, which have resulted from
the efforts of Dr. John P. Benson and his two
able assistants — Editor.]

MISS MARIA S. MADDEN

MANAGING MATRON

Of the Woman's Prison

(Interview by the Editor)

Until sometime in November 1896 the fe-
male inmates of the Illinois State Penitentiary
at Joliet were confined on the upper floor of
the Warden House. During that month the
prisoners were moved to the present prison,
which is of substantial construction and can
almost be pronounced modern. There are one
hundred rooms for the inmates — built against
two outside walls, and they are ten feet long,
seven feet wide and nine feet high. Each has
a double sash window to the outside and is
equipped with electric light, running water
and a toilet, and all are entirely free from
objection from the standpoint of health. The
building is well lighted and is kept in good re-
pair. It is as clean as any of Uncle Sam's Men
of War, and it is needless to state that the usual
prison odor is never in evidence. Adjoining
the prison building is a yard one hundred and
twenty feet wide by two hundred feet long,
surrounded by a high stone wall; this yard is
provided with settees and a platform for danc-
ing.

There are at present confined sixty-one in-
mates, twenty-five being white women and
thirty-six negroes. Each woman has a room
containing a single iron bed, a small dresser, a
comfortable chair and two or more rag car-
pet rugs on the floor. Each prisoner attends
to her own apartment. In every room one will
see the woman's touch in the shape of decora-
tions of various kinds.

This women's prison is more like a board-
ing school than a prison, except for the fact
that the women work instead of study. There
is only one shop, and there rattan cane seats
are woven, which is very light work. The
women who do not work in the shop are em-
ployed in the laundry, at house work, around
the building or at sewing. The laundry work
is done for the two administration buildings,
and the sewing consists of the making of sheets,
pillow cases, table linen also for the two ad-
ministration buildings and clothing for the
women prisoners.

The laundry work averages 20,000 pieces per
month washed and ironed. Much of the iron-
ing is done by hand. With a credit of two

February I, 1914

The Joliet PriHoii 1*<>m<

cents for plain clothes ami ilirec cents for the
starched pieces our credit amounts to from five
hundred to seven hundred dollars per month.
The cookinj^ For the inmates is d(»ne in the
kitchen of the men's prison.

The inmates are classifietl in three grades.
Upon arrival a prisoner is placed in the second
jj^rade. where she remains fctr thirty days; ii'
durin.tj this time her conduct is g(»otl, she is
promoted to the first grade. Third grade is
for willful offenders against the prison disci-
[)line; hut there are no women in this graile at
present. Prisoners in the first grade are per-
mitted to write and to receive visitors once a
week. Prisoners in the second grade are per-
mitted U) write and to receive visitors once in
two weeks. Prisoners in the third grade are
permitted to write letters and receive visits onlv
once in four weeks and they are harred from
recreation while in that grade. Recreation is
permitted at least three times per week in per-
iods of one hour each and oftener when the
work permits of it. During warm weather the
prisoners go to the yard for their recreation,
w hile in cold weather it is held indoors. When
the yard is used, the women dance upon the
platform, and they run. jump and play base
ball with soft balls and light bats.

Recreation indoors consist of conversation
and dancing to the music of a Victor X'ictrola
or piano.

In the matter of writing letters and receiv-
ing visitors reasonable exceptions in favor of
the inmates are made whenever neces.sarv.
There is no punishment for women other than
the loss (jf privileges and confinement to their
rooms.

Each prisoner is permitted to draw fnnn the
l)ris(Mi library two books per week, and they
are permitted to pass these books around
amongst themselves, under my direction, dur-
ing the week for which the books have been
drawn. They are also permitted to subscribe
for newspapers and magazines, and there is
no limit placed upon the number (»f letters
which thev mav receive.

A school has been recently started. There
are so far but two classes, one being for those
who cannot read or write, of whom there are
seven in the pri.son and all voluntarily attend.
The other class is for women with slight edu-
cation, and the lessons are arranged to suit

the individual. There are two teachers, both
inmates. Classes are held d.'iily except Sun-
dav from four o'clock until five o'clock P. ^t.

In the matter of medical care everything |>os-
sible is being done both in preventive care and
treatment. ( )ur hosj)ital consists of .i iK'auti-
tul light and ;iiry room, in which there are foui
beds, and which has every convenience, in-
mates during their stay in the hospital receive
every attention and our facilities are such that
they have better opportunities for recovery
than in most homes. A trained nurse is al-
ways in attendance t(j assist the ofllcial pristm
physician who visits the prison once {x-r day
and oftener when necessary.

The relatives and friends of some of the
women are very staunch in their sui)jK»rt of
them as evidenced by frec|uent letters and visits,
while other prisoners seem entirely deserted.

I have never been able to comprehend how
people can be cruel enough to desert those of
their own f^esh and blood who violate the law.
but it is frequently done. My woman's instinct,
augmented by my long experience as a Matron
in a prison, forces me to state that if a rela-
tive of mine or even a friend should ever incur
a prison sentence, no matter how hiileous the
crime might be I would not desert such person
and I would consider my support particularly
necessarv during the period of incarceratittn. If
mv statement should be read by any of those
relatives and friends who are neglecting a
prisoner who is imder my care. I fervently urg**
that they can help me in my work of reforma-
tion bv resuming their interest in such pris<»ner
and give eviilence thereof by writing letters to
her and by visiting her regularly during her
years of sorrow.

In the past we have had eight life prisoners
and seven of them have by reason of goo<l con-
tluct in the prison earned commutations of their
sentences. (~)ne unfortiniate woman dietl short-
ly after her arrival here. Her death was caus-
ed bv fretting. My cxiK'rience prompts me to
say that I am opp-ised in life sentences for
women, Infcause of the constantly depressing
effect of such sentences.

[Xote — Miss Madden has been Matron of
the Women's Prison for over twentv-two
years. — Editor.]

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

EDITOR'S COLUMNS

Big Jim's Pardon

There has been a mahcious story circulated
about how "Big Jim" obtained a pardon. A
scandal monger who knows the real facts has
purposely started a false story, and as "chick-
ens come home to roost," he and all his dis-
ciples will be given an opportunity to see in
print just how far from the truth they have
traveled.

Big Jim was helped by a fellow prisoner in
this way. Long before the result of the elec-
tions, held in Nov., 1912, was known, this fel-
low prisoner asked permission of the former
authorities to help Jim in having his case pre-
pared. Consent was given and accordingly an
attorney was secured for Jim, who, without any
remuneration whatever, went to work and pre-
pared the papers in his case and obtained re-
commendations from former officials as to
Jim's standing with those officers. One of
them who unqualifiedly recommended Jim for
a pardon was former Warden R. W. Mc-
Claughry.

The petition with the letters of recommenda-
tion were filed with the Board of Pardons.
That was the status of the case when the pres-
ent Warden came into office.

Soon after his arrival the fellow prisoner
asked the Warden's permission to continue his
efforts for Jim, and he was told to go as far as
he liked. This gave him courage to ask for
permission to circulate a petition for the sig-
natures of the officers still employed in the
prison who had known Jim over one year, and
consent was obtained. The petition when cir-
culated was signed by every officer with the ex-
ception of one in the prison, and it was for-
warded to the proper authorities. Many of
the officers who signed the petition certified
that they had known Jim over twenty years.

The attorney who had prepared the case was
requested by the prisoner friend to Jim, not to
appear before the Board of Pardons, on the
theory that there was nothing that he or any at-
torney could say that would interest the Board,
as all arguments which could be made in be-
half of Jim were embodied in the petition for a
pardon and in the recommendations filed with
the papers in the case. There was no political
drag, no underground work of any kind. The
case was submitted entirely on the evidence in
the documents filed, and Governor E. F.

Dunne, on the recommendation of the Board
of Pardons, granted a pardon.

[Note — Space is given to this subject and
this explanation is made so that for all time an
end will be put to the malicious story which
had been so actively circulated, and also to
serve notice on scandal mongers that within
the past two months something has been started
in this prison which will ever be used when it |
seems necessary to put the members of the \
Ananias club to shame. — Editor.]

The New Chaplain

The appointment of Rev. L. Breitenstein to
parochial work at Platte Center, Nebraska, has
brought the Rev. Edward Lunney to us as our
Catholic chaplain. i

He comes to us with his heart full of com- '
passion for the inmates of this prison. He
brings to bear on his task profound wisdom,
tact and diplomacy resulting from many years
study and experience.

The advent of the new chaplain has come
at a time when conditions are such as to give
his abilities wide scope for the advancement
of his charges, owing to the atmosphere which
prevails throughout the institution.

To the inmates his coming presents an occa- j
sion for them to taste the joys of giving pleas- '
ure to another by conducting themselves to-
wards him so that Father Edward will look
upon his stay amongst us as the most satisfac-
tory period in his life's work.

Father Edward appears to be a younger
man than his age shows, but has had the ex-
perience of many years successful church work.
He was born in Los Angeles, California, in
1870 and there acquired the early training for
his theological education, which was completed
at that educational-place of many widely known
Rev. Fathers, the Franciscan Seminary in St.
Louis, Missouri.

His first allottment after graduation was as
Professor at St. Anthony's College in Santa
Barbara, California, and was followed by ten
years parochial work in Sacremento, San Fran-
cisco and Los Angeles. During the past Five
Years he has served his church as Professor at
St. Francis' College in Quincy, Illinois.

While heretofore having had very little ex-
perience and knowledge of conditions existing
in penal institutions the Rev. Father stated,
upon being interviewed, that he was delightful-
ly surprised in perceiving the atmosphere of

February 1, 1914"^

The Joliet Prison Post

good will pcTvading this prison as he expected
to find gloom and discontent prevailing.

He is impressed by the willingness of the
prisoners to listen to him and by their exem-
plary conduct in chapel during services. He
is much pleased to encounter so much p,»liteness
and kindness both amongst the officers and the
inmates. — Editor.

Regarding the Parole Law

We have received several contibuti(«ns re-
garding the operation pf the parole law. This
.subject cannot be discussed at this time. In an
early numi)er the law relating to the parole sys-
tem will l)e printed in full. After that has ap-
peared, the columns of the paper will be open
to legitimate discussion of the parole law, but
we will not publish letters or articles written
on this subject by prisoners who have not read
the provisions of that law.

Those who have contributed articles regard-
ing the parole system may submit new copy af-
ter the acts have been published. — Editor.

Dumb for Twenty Years

The St. Louis Post Dispatch is authority for
the story that one Jasper W. Rainey, served
twenty years time at the Kansas State Peni-
tentiary at Lansing, and that after the first day
of his imprisonment he never spoke until a few
days ago, when he met Mr. Samuel Seaton,
l)rivate secretary to Governor Hodges, to whom
he made an appeal for a pardon.

LTpon meeting Mr. Seaton in the corridor of
the pris(jn, Rainey fell on his knees and with
copious tears coursing down his cheeks he
croaked rather than spoke, "Please let me out.
My record is clean, they'll all tell you so."

Governor Hodges investigated and found
there was only one mark against Rainey and
that was for a minor offence, and. after as-
suring himself that he would be cared for by
relatives he issued a parole.

After his release Rainey talked freely to all
comers, shouting at the top of his voice and
>eemed to desire to make up for lost time.

[Note — A person who refrained from using
his voice for twenty years would probably be
unable to resume speech at pleasure, so it seems
likely that Rainey talked to himself when out
of the hearing of others, and as he was employ-
ed in the fields outside the walls he had oppor-
tunity to do this. — Editor.]

Governor Dunne at Pontiac

Governor Dunne, accompanied by iiis wife
and one of his sons, inspected the Illinois State
Reformatory for boys at Pontiac Saturdav,
January 17th.

He made a short adih\ >> in ihe mmaus. He
lold them that the institution was foimded to
reform those sent to it, and not for vengeance;
that wrong doing must be ininished, and that
the courts are conducted on the princi[)les and
elements of righteousness. He asked them if
they were willing to do their |)art to make go»H|
records. He told them that the admini>tratir»n
is anxious to get them started right and that
they would be regarded by the officials as hu-
man beings with souls that need help.

[Note — We hope to have Governor Dunne
and his family with us soon. — Editor.]

All Wrong

The Prison Post is a new publicaiion sUirud
by the convicts of the Joliet prison. It is
edited by an ex-Chicag«j banker with plenty of
preachers on the staff, but has to be printed out-
side because there are no printers inside. — Ob-
server, Petersburg, 111.

[Note — The foregoing item is published as
an example of newspajx^r inaccuracies. The
Joliet Prison Post is edited by a former real
estate man, there is no preacher on its staff, it
is printed outside of the prison because the Re-
publicans left no money in the state treasury
for the Democrats, consequently the pri.son
authorities could not purchase a printing outfit,
and there are enough printers in this prison at
this time to publish twenty papers like The
Joliet Prison Post. — Editf»r.]

Above all things a prison guard should be
an able l)odied man, fitted by physi<iue and con-
dition to perform daily the work recjuired of a
soldier in the regular nrniv while in active
service.

^ ^ ^

A prison guard should conduct himself when
off duty as well as when on duty, in such a way
as tt> inspire sentiments of respect for his moral
principles and character.

^ ^ ^

Under severe discipline the rule was that,
where a few officers must control many pris-
oners, it was necessary to control them through
intimidation or by force.

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

INDIVIDUAL CONTRIBUTIONS

THE SHYSTER LAWYER
By George Williams

A Prisoner

One of the many afflictions that beset a pris-
oner and from which he has Httle protection, is
the shyster lawyer. The money he takes from
the man behind the walls and his relatives is
enormous. He preys upon the ignorance of
his victims and he has no conscientious scruples
whatever. The pitiful results of his operations
never bother him.

He is generally a good talker, and to hear
him tell it he has unlimited influence with the
Governor, the Board of Pardons, the Warden
and anybody and everyliody that might possibly
be of aid to the prisoner in securing his release.
All he has to do is to give the order and the
whole legal machinery of the state will be
turned upside down.

His biggest assets are a glib tongue and
plenty of cheek, and what he does not know
about law he makes up for in "bunk." He is in
evidence from the prisoner's arrest up to the
time of his^release. He can secure a pardon,
a commutation of sentence, a "parole," a good
job inside the prison or anything the prisoner
desires, and all he asks for is a stipulated sum
in advance to be used for "expense money."

All the information regarding his prospec-
tive client he is looking for is his financial
resources. If the amount is satisfactory the
Shyster obtains an interview with him, and af-
ter ascertaining his requirements he assures
his client that "there is nothing to it;" all he
(the shyster) has to do is to whisper in the
judge's ear and "you'll be on the street next
week." The prisoner naturally inquires what
the lawyer's fee will be, and the shyster usually
names a sum two or three times as large as the
prisoner can command. Even when the
amount the victim can procure is small, the
shyster is willing to accept the case.

After securing the money — and forgetting to
give a receipt — the shyster generally visits the
relatives and friends of the prisoner and, by
means of his usual tactics, obtains from them
all the money he can. After he has obtained
all that it is possible to collect, he usually for-
gets all about his client until he hears he has
more money.

Many men are here for long terms, and in
only a few cases is there any possible chance

of obtaining their release legally; but it is a \
curious fact that about ninety per cent of these
men believe they have a good case and could
get out if they had only a competent lawyer to
fight for them. The shyster knows and takes
advantage of this condition of mind, and when
a proposition is put before the prisoner or the
prisoner's relatives and friends that his release
can be obtained only through Mr. Shyster's in-
fluence or legal ability, it can be readily under-
stood how easy and how pitiful it is for him
to rob his victims.

Many prisoners in penitentiaries are illiter-
ate and both they and their relatives are very
poor. This swindling by ~ the shyster causes
untold suffering in many instances; not only
this, but it is positively cruel to many of the
prisoners' mothers, wives and children who are
dependent on the prisoners' support to raise
false hopes when the shyster knows well they
can never be realized.

The shyster is reasonably certain that he will
never be called upon to account for his ne-
farious operations as his knowledge of the law
and the character and ignorance of his victims
furnish many loop holes by means of which he
can escape if called to account. ,

There have been many complaints made of '
this class of confidence men but they never ac-
complished anything. It seems almost impos-
sible to establish any means of protection
against his operations.

A shyster lawyer is a disgrace to any com-
munity, even a penitentiary. He is without
doubt a despicable, cheap grafter. He is on
the same level with a quack doctor and a poor
box thief.

[Note — The Bar Association would get rich
pickings if it would send investigators to pris-
ons to make inquiries regarding the conduct of
lawyers who must of necessity be under sus-
picion. — Editor. ]

TWO HUMANE IMPROVEMENTS

By Peter Van Vlissingen

A Prisoner

At the suggestion of Governor E. F. Dunne
the inmates of this prison who are in the first
grade have been recently given permission to
write one letter every week instead of writing
once in five weeks.

The value to the prisoners of this humane
improvement can hardly be understood by any
one unacquainted with prison life.

Februan' 1, 1914

The Juliet Prison Post

Under the former regulations, when a pris-
oner wrote to some one who loved him that he
was ailinjj^, he could not again rejKirt his con-
dition for five weeks and the suspense which
ensued can only be partially understood.

Under the parole law a prisoner may re-
ceive a sentenc. the minimum term of which is
one year and the maximum term is life. The
prosecuting witnesses and the States Attor-
neys are permitted to he heard before the Pa-
role Board. They have freedom to act and
consequently can make their protest against
the prisoner as strong as the situation war-
rants, while the prisoner was seriously ham-
l>ered by his lack of opportunity to write often
enough to be able to get letters, as to his pre-
vious character and to enlist the legitimate sup-
port of his friends. The result was frequent-
Iv unfavorable to the prisoner and he was
usually honestlv convinced that he served more
time because he could not adequately corres-
pond with those who might help him.

Somehow it was overlooked when the in-
determinate sentence law went into effect that
a prisoner sentenced under its provisions had
occasion to write letters, which did not exist
under the old law, which provided for a definite
sentence. Then a prisoner fought out the en-
tire question of the length of his sentence at
the time of his trial, but under the parole or
indeterminate sentence law the important ques-
tion as to how many years a prisoner must re-
main in prison is determined after he is in the
penitentiary.

Prisoners frequently lost their friends be-
cause they could not answer letters which were
received. As a result of the prisoner's silence
he was in time forgotten, or at least he lost the
active interest of his correspondents.

The prisoner's present writing privileges
gives him a much better opportunity to keep
in touch with his lawyer, relatives and friends,
and that may effect his time favorably. The
new order went into effect November first.
1913, and the figures furnished by the prison
Superintendant of Mails are interesting. Dur-
ing September, 1913, the prisoners sent out
1275 letters and received 3133 letters. Dur-
ing October the outgoing letters numbered 1418
and the number of incoming letters was 3349.
In November, 5109 letters were mailed by
prisoners and they received 5396 letters.

The other suggestion of the Governor's was
that the prisoners be permitted to receive visits

once every week instead of once in four weeks
which was formerly the rule.

A visit is an event in a prisoner's life and
this new regulation has done much towards
making them more contented and ha.s helix-d to
create the good atmosphere which prevails in
this institution at this time.

^ ^

THE NOVELTIES WE MAKE

By W. R.

A Prisoner

The establishment of the making and selling
of novelties by the inmates of this institution
is a boon to the prisoner who has a mechanical
or inventive mind and to the ones who find the
time they are in their cells to be moncjtoiujus
and mentally tiring.

This has only been in vogue for the past
\\\it months and is not generally known to the
outside world.

When the present administration itiaugu-
rated this system, they had a manifold purjxjse
in view at its creation; knowing that it would
give incentive to the men and arouse their am-
bition to become industrious with the hojH.' that
they would retain that spirit after their release;
it would furnish every man a chance to make
some money to not only indulge in what small
luxuries are permissable but to have something
when released beside the ten dollars allotted by
the State; to afford an opportunity and ojx'n
ui) an outlet by which those men, who are gift-
ed with some talent, could develop whatever
ability they possessed^dong the lines best suit-
ed to their purpose.

This system is called the 'Honor Industrial
Department." and is attainetl by the men
through their good conduct, and ui)on admis-
sion they are given a card signed by the Deputy
Warden permitting them to tinker in their cells
in the evenings and to have such tools and nia-
terial as needed, which are furnisheil by the in-
stitution ; but when they are unobtainable in
here it is permissable for the relatives or
friends to bring or send the required articles, or
where the inmates have funds they are allowed
to buy them at cost price through the Purchas-
ing Agent of the prison.

These novelties are for side to the general
public and are to be fi>und in the V^isitor's Re-
ception Room in the Administration buddnig
of this institution.

The intrinsic value ol the trinkets lies m the

workmanship.

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

Ninety per cent of the proceeds emanating
from the sales of these articles are placed on
the books of the institution to the credit of the
maker, the remaining ten per cent is retained by
the institution to cover the use of the material
which had been furnished by the State.

Since the inauguration of this department
the gross receipts amount to three hundred and
thirty-one dollars and ninety-five cents. This
may not seem large to one on the outside yet it
means a great deal to those inmates who had
not a penny to their credit.

The department is still in the infant stage,
but it is growing fast and it is the hope and in-
tention of the Warden to make the display one
of the best of its kind in the country, and hav-
ing that in view and to get the public more
familiar with this "Infant Industry," he con-
templates holding a Bazaar some evening dur-
ing the latter part of the Easter season and in-
vite the general public to attend.

HIGH LIFE IN PRISONS

By George Williams

A Prisoner

Many newspapers and individuals through-
out the country are complaining about the
"mollycoddling" of prisoners. They seem to
think that the modern prison is a very nice
place where all of the desires of the imnates
are gratified, and that prison life is a path of
roses. This erroneous impression is gained
through the instrumentality of writers who are
discussing a subject they have little accurate
knowledge of.

Men in this prison, especially after a holi-
day often read of the splendid things they were
given to eat and what joyous times were had.
Fanciful menus and gay times exist only in the
minds of the imaginative writers.

On days like Christmas, Thanksgiving and
the Fourth of July we have splendid meals and
joyous times, but outsiders do not seem to take
into consideration that the terms "joyous" and
"splendid" as used in describing these events
are only comparative. For instance, last
Christmas we had roast pork, dressing, mashed
potatoes, coffee and pie. This meal compared
to what we usually get is splendid, but some
newspapers in describing this Christmas dinner
publish a bill of fare that would make a first
class hotel fearful of an exodus from its hos-
pitality to penitentiaries.

As a clearer illustration of the way prison-
ers are "mollycoddled" it will probably sur-
prise many to learn that during the months of
November and December 1913 the cost of feed-
ing the men averaged less than sixteen cents a
day per man. This statement will be better ap-
preciated by an extract from an article from
the St. Louis Globe Democrat of January 1st,
which says: "The Missouri Sheriffs' Associa-
tion, which adjourned here today, will ask the
next Legislature to give sheriffs a greater al-
lowance than fifty cents a day for boarding
prisoners. This sum was fixed by statute
many years ago, according to Sheriff Ben
Goodin of Cole County, when bacon which now
sells at twenty-five cents a pound sold for seven
cents and other items of jail provender could be
had at propportionately low prices."

If the sheriffs in Missouri find it hard to
board prisoners on fifty cents a day it does not
require much thought to imagine how the pris- .j
oners in Joliet fare on sixteen cents a day. It '
should not be forgotten that jail prisoners are
seldom incarcerated for more than three
months w^hile penitentiary inmates are con-
fined for periods of from one year to life.

If these persons who fear that prisoners are
being treated too well were to board with them
at this prison for a month or two they would
change their views. The greatest obstacle in
the path of prison reform is ignorance on the
part of the general public regarding prison
methods.

[Note — On last Thanksgiving day the cost
of feeding each man at this prison was twenty-
five and nine one-hundredths cents and on
Christmas day the expense was twenty-four |
and twenty-five one-hundredths cents per man.
In both cases this cost was for the three meals,
breakfast, dinner and supper. — Editor.]

THE PRISON PEST

By Charles M. Potter

A Prisoner

The most troublesome persons who exist
among us are the chronic kickers with the
eagle eyes. Considering their scarcity in num-
bers they make about ten times as much noise
and create about one hundred times as much
damage as their number should entitle them to.

They consider it their duty to look at exist-
ing conditions and daily happenings with m(;r
bid and pessimistic views.

February' 1, 1914

The Joliet Prisuii PohI

Their eagle eyes are always alert for some
act on the part of an official or a fellow pris-
oner to serve as the foundation for a story in-
tended l)y circulation to spread discontent and
ill feeling throughout the institution.

Not a day passes but what some little event
occurs that enables these "publicity agents" by
the exercise of their vivid imaginations to
spread some tale wherein an innocent person
is held up to ridicule or contempt. It reciuires
but little effort on the part of these trouble
makers to concoct a "yellow" story out of some
ordinary occurrence which rivals the best ef-
forts of lurid writers on the "Ananias Ga-
zette."

Making a mountain out of a mole hill ; crit-
icising the actions of all, and circulating false
rumors that might have a tendency to disrupt
the brotherly spirit and good will that now pre-
vails in this institution is their specialty, and a
scjuare deal is their war cry. They do all in
their power to make themselves and others be-
lieve that they are getting the short end of the
deal. By their knocking and their general dis-
regard for the feelings, reputations and charac-
ters of others they show that they do not know
the rudiments of a square deal.

For our own good we ought to humanize
this small number by turning our backs to
them whenever they begin to talk to us.

They are incapable of seeing good in any
proposition no matter how meritorious it may

be.

The honor system, opportunity and a square
deal is being given to all of us by the present
administration, and the chronic kicker with the
eagle eye, by the exercise of his degenerate
talents is doing more harm than all other pris-
oners combined. We are thankful that they
are few in numbers, but what a noise those few
do make !

only make their sufferings harder by trying to
enlist their sympathy for your real or fancied
iiardships.

it is not manly to take advantage of affec-
tion freely offered you, by causing unfounded
and unnecessary grief to your relatives and
friends, by complaining. How much better it
is to be cheerful in your letters and in cc^iver-
sation. so that mother, wife, family and the
friends who either receive your mail or visit
you, will be cheered by your account of your
life instead of crushed by reason of exagger-
ated recitals of your hardships.

By J. S.

A Prisoner

In letters to your relatives and friends, and
when you receive visitors at the Usher's office,
do not complain unnecessarily about prison
life, but show that you can take punisiimenl
uncomplainingly.

Bear in mind that in many instances those
you have left behind and who are without
blame, are suffering through you and that you

By George Taylor

.\ Prisoner

The prison reform movement, which at this
time is almost general in most all civilized
countries, has attained proportions which give
definite assurance that within a short time
prison life in general will be made milder.

In the past, punishment has generally been
advanced into the foreground, and reformation
has been deemed as of secondary considera-
tion. This plan has not worked satisfactorily
as evidenced by the constantly increasing num-
ber of inmates in prisons. The increase lias
been out of proportion to the increase in popu-
lation.

This being so, it was only a question of time
when the advance guard of prison reformers —
inspired by humanitarian motives — would be
joined by the many who desire the general pro-
tection of society and the advancement of jK-ace
and dignity of all government.

The combination of these two forces lias
brought about an incessant and assertive agi-
tation for new methods in prison administra-
tion, and while there is no consensus of opinion
as to what measures should be adopted, it is
definitely known that civilization is willing to
try milder methods in the treatment of all of-
fenders against the law. with reformation as
the main object, and punishment as of second-
ary imi)ortance.

What the results will be remains to be seen,
but tile experiences of the last few years have
given ample reasons to hope that the new
methods, as illustrated bv the present adminis-
tration at the Illinois State Penitentiary at
Joliet will produce better results to the prisoner

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

and state than did the plan of severe punish-
ment and the consequent dehumanizing of

prisoners.

The next few years will cast much light on
the subject of the proper treatment of crim-
inals and it will soon be known which should
be given first position in prisons: — punishment
or reformation ; in the end, what is for the gen-
eral good will be adopted.

There are many who see far enough into the
future to realize that the best brand of prison
reform, which has so far been suggested, or
placed into operation, will, at best only im-
prove the situation, and that, for the ultimate
cure of crime it will be necessary to go further
back, and that is to the source.

This brings us to the education and care of
children and youths, industrial conditions, the
policing of communities, the detention after ar-
rest and the administration of justice.

[Note — Local reformers, who are striving
for immediate and lasting results should pro-
vide a way for communication in privacy with
all prisoners, immediately after their arrest and
until after trial, and they should proceed on
the theory that in some cases, even the entering
of a plea of guilty is not conclusive evidence of
guilt. — Editor]

COMMENTS BY INMATES

TWENTY YEARS AND THEN SOME

We hail with joy the publication of The
Joliet Prison Post as it may give us an oppor-
tunity to send a message to the world from our
dreary cells.

We have been in prison since the fifteenth
day of November, 1893, and if the verdict of
the jury and the sentence of the court is carried
out we will remain here until God calls us to
our final account.

The law has said that we are guilty of the
foulest kind of crime; "burglary in the night
with weapons." We are supposed to have been
surprised in the act of burglary and in order to
save our miserable bodies we are further sup-
posed to have killed two men and to have ser-
iously injured a woman.

Burglary in the night, two men shot to death
and a women seriously wounded by a revolver
ball and the men who were found guilty were
not even hanged ! Only a life sentence !

The law has said that there were three of us
and that on the night of the fourteenth of No-
vember, 1893, we entered the home of James

Prunly and his family and that we there and
then killed the said James Prunty, his son
Peter Prunty and wounded his daughter,
whose first name we have forgotten.

There were supposed to be three of us, and
now we are two, one James Warren having
died of consumption within three years of our
joint conviction. He was not as strong as we.
On his death bed he whispered these last words
to his mother, 'T am innocent and so are Mc-
Nally and Kurth."

None of us ever saw James Prunty alive or
dead. All three of us saw Peter Prunty at the
hospital before he died and though he was
rational he did not identify us.

On the evening after the murder we were
all three taken to the Prunty home for identi-
fication and Mrs. Prunty and her two daugh-
ters said, "they are not the men." Two weeks
later we were taken back to the house for iden-
tification and then the members of the family
said, "they are the men," and we were subse-
quently convicted upon the evidence of wit-
nesses wdio had at first pronounced us innocent.

Each one of us was promised leniency if he
would confess and we all refused to do so.
This is strange in view of the fact that we were
only slightly acquainted with one another and
we all faced the gallows.

We wonder who the men are who committed
the crimes and what sort of cowards they are
for allowing us to endure this living death.
God have mercy on them !

We were tried in the Criminal Court of Cook
County before the Honorable Henry \'. Free-
man and, we submit herewith a letter which
will speak for itself:
"Illinois Appellate Court
Chamber of

Mr. Justice Freeman

Chicago, October 27, 1909.
Mr. Charles Kurth,

Joliet Penitentiary, Joliet, 111.
Dear Sir:

I believe a wrong was done you by the ver-
dict of the jury and the sentence of the Court
imposed upon you and McNally. Both the ver-
dict and judgment were justified by the evi-
dence, but at the same time I think the evi-
dence which procured the conviction was work-
ed up by the police and was not truthful, al-
though I did not dream of such a thing at that
time. Yours truly,

(Signed) Henry V. Freeman."

February 1. 1914

The .loliet Prison PohI

W'c know that our word cannot be taken by
anyone because the law has said that we are
murderers, so we must content ourselves to re-
fer those, who may be inclined to help rijjht a
wron^ for information to Mr. J. Kosenbaum.
417 Postal Telegraph lUdg.. Chicai^o ; Mr. joiin
McMahon. Lake \ ilia. 111.; Serj^eanl (ius
Weber, formerly of the Chica^M) Police force;
Mr. John M. Haynes late Captain of Police in
Chicago, he now lives on a farm in Michigan,
antl Francis Sullivan, formerly secretary to
Judge Cutting of the Probate Court in Chicago ».
We crave an investigation of our case by the
Bar Association of Chicago.

Charles Kurth
Thomas McNally

I have a few words to add on my own ac-
count. The day after my arrest I was brought
to the office of the Maxwell Street Police Sta-
tion before a number of people some of whom
were newspaper reporters.

I was greeted bv a gentleman, who said:
"Why hello Tom" 'l answered "HELLO" he
said "then you know me Tom McCall" I an-
swered "I do not know you and my name is
not Tom McCall" he answered "yes you are
Tom McCall of the Pacific Slope, a train rob-
ber and confidence man," and I have forgotten
what else he said I was.

Another gentleman came up io me and said,
"Vou are the fellow who sold me $10,000.00
worth of stock and then jumped off the train."
Then two other gentlemen stepped forward and
remarked that I was the man whom they had
'chased through the train. I wonder how it
happened that all these people from the Pacific
coast were in Chicago and ready to identify me
so soon after my capture.

Then the first speaker said. "Tom we missed
you for a few years," and another gentleman
who claimed to be an official from the Bride-
well stepped forward and looked me over and
said, "Yes he has been with us for a few years."
1 had never seen any of them before and have
never seen any of them since, but a good news-
paper story had been started and an atmos-
phere favorable to our conviction had been
created.

The .moving pictures of today are made to
appear real in just that way.

That dav I became Thomas McNally. alias
Tom McCall. I was never on the Pacific
Coast. I was never in the Bridewell and I
had never used the name Tom McCall.

The next day and for a l<»ng lime after I
reatl in the pajx-rs that 1 was Tom MrCall the
train robber, etc., etc., etc.

1 was tried by a jury of men who probably
had read the papers and at my trial not a word
of evidence was introduced as to all the hocus-
pocus 1 have described. 1 served in the army
of the Potomac and was honorably discharged.

Yours Iruly.

Thomas McNall\
Alias Tom McCall
Since Nov. 15, 1S*M

[Note — 1 have seen the original letter writ-
ten by Judge Freeman which is herein (|uoted.
— Editor.]

January 22. 1^>14.
To the Editor:

A penitentiary conducted on reform lines
should have one shop where there is an abund-
ance of hard work. The prisoners employed
there should be the ones who look upon a well
meaning warden as a good sort of man to take
advantage of.

In this shop should be gathered all the pris-
oners who willfully violate the rules and, who,
instead of making life easier for their fellows,
are always trying to make it unpleasant for
them.

A prisc^n has its percentage of undesirables
as viewed from the prisoners' standix)int, and
these men should be segregatetl.

B. D.

January 28. 1014.

To the Editor:

There is one just criticism which can be
passed on the Warden of this prison, and that
is that he always thinks about the prisoner^
first and the Warden afterwards.

In the interest of the prisoners he should re
verse the order. ^'- ■'^•

January Jh. P'14

To the Editor:

I have been in this prison over sixteen years
and have yet to see a prisoner abuse a dog, cat
horse, or "a bird, while I have .seen them save
their meat for dogs and cats; I have seen them
protect horses entrusted to their care, and I
have seen them leave the shelter of a building
to go out into a iKUiring rain to save sparrows
from being i>ounded to death by the elements.

J. b.

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

January 24, 1914.
To the Editor:

In these days of big happenings and new
departures in prison administration, when the
skeptic world is acquiring for the first time
that fuller knowledge for which it has been
groping since the dark ages, it is the privilege
of your paper as well as its pleasant duty to
touch on the aesthetic side of the lives of its
inmates.

Men do not come to penal institutions with
the expectation of living happily during their
term of imprisonment. It is even doubtful
whether the new arrival of to-day entertains
any hope that unusual effort. will be put forth
in his behalf except covering those matters in
which it is compulsory to do so under the laws
of the Board of Health; even these matters
have been woefully neglected by many institu-
tions in the past.

To-day the searchlight of inquiry can reveal
the new life within this prison. Its warden is
not drawling upon his reserve energy in an en-
deavor to create happiness amongst the boys,
but he is successfully bringing to their atten-
tion those things which must and do appeal to
their better senses; then he takes a back seat
and awaits results. He believes that the prob-
lem of contentment within these walls must
largely be solved by the men themselves. If
they are looking for such, those special in-
fluences are ever at work which can gratify
their desires; if they remain callous to these
influences, it must be inferential that they are
quite content to remain within their hard and
conservative shell — and still the administration
has done its duty by them.

The result of this policy allows for an open-
ing to reveal to a still doubting world a most
pleasant picture of idle-hour life at Joliet. The
orchestra of fourteen pieces is well drilled by a
competent musician, and has caused much
favorable comment from the many visitors who
have heard it.

Two choirs are supported, Protestant and
Catholic, and numbered among them are solo-
ists of unusual ability.

The library is another medium for the en-
richment of the mind, and the great majority
of the men delight in taking advantage of this
opportunity offered. The chapel at services
is always crowded, and not infrequently prom-
inent men in public life will offer their ser-
vices on these occasions; the subjects, covering
the entire range of right thinking and clean

living, are warmly appreciated as is testified to
by the applause given.

The school is another important factor for-
the uplift of many men here. Special lectures
are given from time to time on subjects ap-
pealing not only to those accustomed to the re-
finements of life, but also to that great major-
ity who reap the peculiar benefit by such in-
struction through lack of early training and
proper environment.

Amongst the pleasures of lighter vein may
be mentioned the ever popular "Movies."

All this must strengthen and expand. If the
men at Joliet crave for that which is inspiring,
instructive and entertaining, it reflects an
healthly and perhaps a new spirit in prison
life ; and so far as this prison is concerned, the
achievement of these good ambitions in many
individual lives here has proved conclusively
that human nature is much the same every-
where. N. C. E.

January 27, 1914.
To the Editor :

From second term men who had served their
full time at first conviction, as well as from
those who have been returned to the peniten-
tiary because of violation to their parole pledge,
there comes a note of protest not altogether
unreasonable.

Men have been heard to say: "I attribute my
second fall to the fact that when I was first
released and stepped out into the world, I had
but ten dollars in my pockets; this amount
could not keep body and soul together very
long in the attempt to adjust myself."

It is difflcult at all times to succeed in the at-
tempt of putting ourselves in the places of other
people, thus clearly seeing the picture from
their special viewpoint. But even those hav-
ing no previous experience in matters per-
taining to social reform, or even those disin-
terested in'such matters, would forsee, that a
strong temptation threatens the prisoner who
enters the world under these trying circum-
stances after undergoing a long period of con-
finement.

Among the many benevolent institutions of
the land, there are several whose aim and pur-
pose it is to step in at this psychological mo-
ment of a man's life, and meet the emergency.
The efficiency of these institutions as well as
their general usefulness cannot be questioned,
as statistics will prove.

But there are always a large number of men

February 1, 1914

The Joliet Prison Vnsi

who display a decided rt-scinnient towards af-
tiliatiii^- themselves with these intiiiences.
Prisoners will believe, laboring under a sense
of false pride, that they would be stooping to
charity ; others, excited and nervous over the
prospect of being a free man once again, will
welcome no obstacles in their path which they
believe might curtail, even to a limited extent,
the full freedom so long desired ; others again
offer no tangible reason at all for their inde-
pendent attitude, and. curiously, these men are
more prone to avoid the helping hand.

These men know, presumably, their own
minds ; certainly no one can make them em-
brace the opportunity which thev mav be of-
fered. Looking at the matter, then, from their
own peculiar and perhaps eccentric angle,
there is a certain excuse, though not justifica-
tion, for this falling into the mire after prison
doors have swung outward.

What can be done to ameliorate these con-
ditions without resorting to legislation? We
might propose the organization of a society,
the officers of w'hich, or proper committees,
would be duly advised when a full term man
was about to receive his discharge. The pris-
oner can then be personally approached under
pleasant conditions; it would be often, doubt-
less, a warfare between stubbornness and tact
— but the latter would probably win the day.
In numerous cases, such an approach would be
welcomed fervently by even old offenders.

S. P. E.

January 18, 1Q14.
To the Editor:

I desire through the columns of the "Post"
to record my testimony in behalf of the humane
and generous administration of affairs under
the present management, and my attestation is
made chiefly from a comparison of the present
and former administrations. I know whereor
I speak, for I have been here before, and I am
qualified to say truthfully, that the prisoners
today have more privileges, fewer reports f(M-
violations of rules, less punishment, and at the
same time there is a better and higher degree
of discipline maintained than was ever before
known in the history of the institution. Ot
course, men are sometimes punished severely,
but it must be remembered that there are fif tee-i
hundred men confined here for every crime on
the calendar. These men cannot be handletl
with kid gloves; stronger measures are abso-
lutely necessary to control them. This only

applies to a few of the inmates. Ten or fifteen
of the number confined here are the ones who
receive nearly all of the punishment, and in
ninety-nine per cent of the cases these men ab-
solutely force the authorities to extreme
measures.

This is not written at the suggestion of any-
one connected with the institution; neither is it
done because I am a favorite with the officials.
I am but a shoe shop man. have served every
day of my sentence at hard labor. I have
never asked a favor or had occasion to fear the
frowns of anyrmc in authority, but 1 write be-
cause I believe the management deserve a word
of praise for their efforts in behalf of those
placed in their keei)ing and this praise should
come from those who are the recipients of the
increased privileges and comforts, which are
allowed and accorded to us.

In conclusion let me say that at least one
man who wears the gray appreciates the gen-
erous allowance of privileges and is ever ready
and willing to say a word in defense of those
now in charge of the Northern Illinois State
Penitentiary. D. K., Shoe Shop No. 3.

January 22. 1014.
To the Editor:

The prisoner who submitted in the January
number the argument against striped clothing
for parole violators, deserves to be congratu-
lated upon his subject as well as on the weight
of his argument. He would have won out only
for one thing and that was, before the paper
was off the press. Warden Allen ordered the
wearing of striped suits by jxirole violators dis-
continued.

A Warden can give an order and have it car-
ried out (juicker than a printer can pro<luce a
finished magazine, and 1 can only advise the
contributor to look around and sec if he can
point out something else which can be improved
upon. The chances are that the Warden will
beat him to it every time. A prisoner's handi-
cap is too great.

Keep up the good work, (ieorge ; you prob-
ably made the Warden hustle at that. Any-
way, striped suits have disappeared except for
those who arc convicted of di.sobedience of
prison regulations E. G.

January 27, 1914.

To the Editor:

The promise made to us by those in author-
ity that life in this prison will be made as near-

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

ly normal as it is possible to make it in an in-
stitution of this kind, is the foundation of mod-
ern prison reform methods. There is so much
that prison officials can do to lighten the bur-
dens of prisoners, that when they do their best,
the results are beyond estimation.

Whenever such a promise is lived up to, the
prison is robbed of its horrors and the pris-
oner's loads are lightened so that we can bear
up under them, and this lifts the fog which in
the past has enveloped us so that we can again
look hopefully into the future; and as we can
now see farther, we can look forward
to the time when we shall again enjoy freedom.

J. M.

January 25th, 1914.
To the Editor:

When the prison authorities invite the co-
operation of prisoners it follows that we are
looked upon as men. and that being the case in-
centive to respond will result and with it hope
of recognition and reward for successful
efforts.

This opens the way for friendly competition
between prisoners, and that brings us to condi-
tions similar to those in the world outside, and
when we clearly understand that, we realize
that in this prison life is worth living and that
it is worth our while to exert ourselves and do
our best, thus winning the respect and earning
the reward which should result everywhere
from successful endeavor. B. E.

January 24, 1914.
To the Editor:

Out-of-door employment for prisoners takes
a heavy load off their minds. Fresh air means
more to prison inmates than it does to citizens.
Sweeping sidewalks are the best positions in-
side prison walls and that is why such jobs are
facetiously called "politician jobs."

A. C.

January 20, 1914.
To the Editor:

Somehow I have been given a new meaning
to the word "Convict." Formerly to me, it
was the prisoner who wears a scowl on his
face which distorts his features, delineates re-
bellion, and who barely suppresses his mum-
bled snarl. Don't be a convict. Instead be
the one who works and plays, because God
gives you strength of mind and body with
which to do it.

Many will say, O, the poor women! Now,
please do not pity us. for pity is mockery.
Just give us a kindly smile, a kindly word, a
generous tolerance of our weaknesses — which
even the strongest men possess.

There are so few women in this prison,
(and I would that there were less,) that we
are daily, yes almost hourly, undergoing veri-
table dissection ; being analyzed ; given mental
caricatures; silhouetted against the cause in
our imprisonment; oftentimes scorned, and
sneered at or openly censured while if the true
nature or characteristics of the individual were
known, it might be proven to be absolutely and
directly opposed to that criticism.

I doubt if there is one here who cannot re-
call a question asked at her preliminary trial:
"Is this your first offense?" Now, if this is
our punishment for an offense, shall we not the
better fortify ourselves against other punish-
ment by making it our aim to see some good in
every one, in every thing, in every day, in every
hour, and in ourselves?

According to Law's precedure we are de-
prived of liberty. That is directly against hu-
man nature, yet we still have left what ever
good there was in us ; and why not adopt such
habits, as nearly as possible, as will strengthen
our good points?

Inmate, Women's Prison.

To the Editor : January 21, 1914.

Here are a few lines from the Women's
Prison, heartily thanking you for the "Post,"
and to say a word in congratulation of its
birth.

May it live long and prosper and may its
pages be an inspiration to all who sojourn be-
hind the walls.

I believe I voice the sentiments of all here in
saying that we enjoyed reading it, although we
were a little disappointed at not having our in-
nings in the first number. ,

We too have Deputies over here who should
come in for a share of praise, and we desire to
thank them for the privileges that we have re-
ceived since they came to us for we appreciate
the kindness by them shown to us.

The male inmates are not the only ones who
have benefitted because Mr. Roosevelt knocked
the Republican party into a cocked hat.

Wishing you success in your undertaking of •
reformation on a humane plane, I am. Sir,

Respectfully,
M. S., Women's Prison.

February 1. 1914

The Joliel PriNon Post

MISCELLANEOUS

SOMEBODY'S FRIEND

Written for The Joliet Prison Post

Somewhere, somewhere in the world
Somebody's eyes there are which wait
My troubled face to contemplate;

With sympathy aflame, and still
Unflinching eyes that strangely dare
The mystery of my soul to bare.
To seek the good if good is there —

To scan the purpose and the will.
I'm watching, as my way I wend.
To find them shining in a friend

Somewhere in the world.

Somewhere, somewhere in the world
Somebody's sturdy hand I know
Would clasp my own in weal or woe ;

Lingering there as tho' loath to leave,
With pressure firm that seems to give
The hope to win, the wish to live,
A love and longing to forgive —

A fresh desire to achieve.
I'm watching, as my way I wend,
To .see it reaching from a friend

Somewhere in the world.

Somewhere, somewhere in the world
Somebody's smile wtnild light for me.
Feeling the heart with its golden key —

Threading a path to its mystic core !
( )nly a smile ? — 'Tis golden speech
Telling what wise men fail to teach ;
Touching where caution fails to reach —

Only a smile and nothing more.
I'm watching, as my way I wend.
To see it flooding from a friend

Somewhere in tlie W(jrld.

Somewhere, somewhere in the world
Somebody's ear would there incline —
Somebody's voice would welcome mine.

Bearing the message I need to-day.
Telling of life without the sin.
Teaching tiie pilgrim's way to win,
(iiving the plan to now begin —

Calling me onward, else I stray.
I'm listening, as my way I wend.
To hear it sounding from a friend

Somewhere in the world.

One time, somewhere in ilic world
I held the hand that I would prize;
I knew the smile, the quiet eves —

lalleth IJK' voice as an empty song.
O, constant friend! I left vour side,
Ufxjn my strength alone relied.
Choosing the i)athway, white and wide;

And now I groix.- for the something
gone,
Still watching, as my way I wend.
To find and hold another friend

Somewhere in the world.

L. T. W .

^ ^ ^

VOICES THROUGH THE SPACE

Written for The Joliet Prison Post

'Tis calling at the waking hour, far distant.

yet so near.
The voice that whispers through the space the

love-tale in my ear;
Amid the evening silences its sweet complaint

is breathed,
And through the golden promise brought is
hope of life conceived:
"Pear wanticrcr, I'm callimj \ou.

Dear heart, return
Where love is ever first ami last.

Ami home liylits burn.
Tile journey 7ce must plan ane^v,

With faith secure
To bear the load, to meet the blast
Ami still endure."

How (|uickly then my answer comes! 'Tis but

a simple word,
Yet somewhere down the fields of space 1 know

it will be heard ;
For someone sits the weary ilay an empty chair

beside,
And sets the watch-light in its place when falls
the even-tide:
"Beloved, Tm coming bye and bye.

And at your hnee
Will marvel at the f^atient love
Wliicii summoned me;
The gentle courage icliicli could vie

With stress and trial;
The faitii ichich brought the vision of
The life 7corth ichile!"

A. L.

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

GRAFTERS
By Spike Hogan

A Prisoner

Written for The Joliet Prison Post

In the life of every grafter

There are girhcs, wine and huighter ;

Yet there's something missing after

One has Hved it very long.
You may snatch the cream and honey
And the "other fellow's" money,
But its just as true as funny

You will wish you wasn't born.

You're an all-round good fellow

When you have the "green and yellow ;"

Voices round you glad and mellow,

And the hand grips good and strong.
But the grafter is a boozer,
There's a girl-one can't refuse her ;
You awake, a grumbling loser.

Girl and "friends" and money gone.

Though no ties of friendship bind them.
It is rarely hard to find them;
You're in front of and behind them

In the city's madding throng.
Can you tell me what survives by,
What a lonely kid derives by
Being Grafter, sot and wise guy? —

That's the problem of my song!
[Note — He knows, but will not tell —
Editor.]

AN APPEAL

By William Richards

A Prisoner

Written for The Joliet Prison Post

Just a thought is born within me as I ply my

pen along;
'Tis no selfish boon I'm craving — I would rc;c-

tify a wrong.
For the world seems all against us, ever shuns

the one who falls,
All unknowing there is goodness in the man

behind the walls.

Bear my message to the people who gaze at us
from afar.

That we're weak and only human-prone to er-
ror as they are.

Though we've w^andered from the pathwav
midst the happy fields of men,

We are hoping for a welcome when we face the
world again.

THE PLEA

Written for The Joliet Prison Post

To the ends of the earth I am sending

The plea all too feebly I make.
To the pitiless and the unbending.

That their reason and mercy awake.
The decree of the people has fenced us

Around with these towering walls.
But why should their hearts turn against us-

Why outcast the fellow who falls?

Not for sympathy's tears are we praying,

For the lesson was given to learn ;
We are counted, we know, as the straying,

But are weary and long to return.
So a welcome we crave to receive when

Swing the gates of the cold prison wall,
That the suffering eye may perceive then

There are friends in the world after ail.

There's a God looking down from above us.

But my plea is not sent to His throne,
Who, all knowing, all seeing, can love us

And who counteth us still as His own ;
With the pulse of the world I'm contending.

As its borne from the gray prison walls.
The plea I too feebly am sending:

Do not outcast the fellow who falls !

C. E. R.

Free Copies for Prisoners

Each prisoner received a copy of the Jan-
uary number without cost, and the same will be
done with regards to the February issue. The
expense of the copies distributed to the in-
mates is borne by the Library and Amusement
fund and it is the intention of the authorities
to continue this indefinitely, but discontinuance
is to remain optional.

For the present prisoners will be permitted
to mail their copy to any address in the United
States and the prison authorities w^ill pay the
postage. To do this the inmate should hand
his paper to his keeper who will write the name
and address, of the person to whom it is to go,
legibly on a slip of paper and then send both
to the office of the Superintendent of Mails.

Under no circumstance should the name and
address or anything else be written on the paper
as this is against the rules. Inmates are not
permitted to pay for any paper or to subscribe,
nor yet to pay for the subscription of a friend.
In no way will the prisoners or any one of them
be permitted to pay any money to The Joliet
Prison Post. The Editor.

February 1, 1914

Tlio Joliet Prison Post

WORDS OF CHEER
From William A. Sunday

From an Address to Prisoners

Boys, you can live down your past. D.on't
think that when you get out everybody will
avoid you like a hobo avoids a woodpile. You
can live down your [)ast just as surely as oth-
ers have. You'll find influences that'll help
you go square, or you'll find influences that
will pull you back with the old gang, if you let
them.

A man can live down his past if he'll meet
squarely and firmly the influences that drag-
ged him down. It's up to you whether you go
straight after you leave these doors, or whether
you go back to the old life. It's the love of
Jesus Christ that will keep you right.

How far are you men here in the pen on the
Ohio from the time you knelt at your mother's
knee and said, "Now I lay me?" None of you
are here because you obeyed the Bible are you ?
If every man obeyed the Bible there would be
no prisons on earth, there would be no electric
chairs, no uniformed police.

I believe nothing blocks the way of a man to
hell like the loves of a wife and child. And
nothing can put courage into a man like little
arms about his neck. Men, when you get out
of here you've got to go straight. You can
win if you only try. You'll find people to help
you out if you really want them to. That's
what I've come for to try and encourage you
so you won't go back to the old crowd when
you get out. This is my rest day, but if I can
do anything to help you I'm mighty glad to do
it. Men, let Jesus lead the way and you won't
go far wrong.

I don't know anything about the circum-
stances that brought you here, but every man
him.self knows how his foot sl.ppcd.

The devil can make more promises and
fulfill less than anybody else in the world.
When you leave these doors say, "Good-bye
pen, good-bye bean soup, good-bye iron bars,
good-bye old uniform they can make rags of
you if they want to. but I'm going to leave vou
orever.

It is the duty of prison authorities to reduce
by education, the accumulation of ignorance
which prevails amongst inmates in prisons
everywhere, and in those states which by laws
forbid compulsory education oi prisoners the
laws should be changed.

They Require a Light Rein

Some prisoners need just a little more re-
straint than society can enforce. This is il-
lustrated by the trusties who arc helpful and
lead moral lives in prison, yet some wtuild fail
it there were no prison restraint.

Some men, who as trusties, would re!u>e
whisky if it was offered to them would ^>cnA
their last cent for it if they were free to pur-
chase it.

Those men are not firm enough to be inde-
pendent and tlu-y are too good to be kepi in
prison.

Going Some, But True

No one realizes the responsibility placed
upon him quicker than does the prisoner. The
higher officials in prison are usually good
judges of character and when they trust a pris-
oner they go farther in extending their confi-
dence than employers.

January 20, 1914.
To the Editor:

Ye Editor says in the January number the
prisoner who looks only for sympathy in this
paper will be disappointed.

Sure, we know that; you will find "sym-
pathy" in the dictionary.

Anonymous. Women's Prison.

From The Governor of Illinois.

Springfield, January 15, l'>14.
To the Editor:

I have read with nuich interest the first is-
sue of The Joliet Prison Post and am mucii
pleased with its appearance and contents, and
hope that the prisoners will profitably employ
some of their leisure time in reading and con-
tributing to the paper.

Yours very truly,

E. V. Dunne.

From the Governor of Kansas.

Topeka. January 14, 1914.
To the Editor;

I have received a copy of The Joliet Prison
Post and have read the interview with Warden
Allen with a good deal of interest.

We have been following the same mode of
procedure as to the care of the prisoners in this
state for some time past.

Geo. H. Hodges.

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

From the Governor of Idaho

Boise, Idaho, January 20, 1914.
To the Editor:

I am thorouglily in sympathy with all that
is contained in the interview with Warden
Edmund M. Allen which appeared in your
January number.

I believe that prisoners are human and that
much may be accomplished through an appeal
to their sense of manhood, honor and respon-
sibiHty. I have no doubt that Mr. Allen is
accomplishing a great work for prison reform,
and I trust that the methods which he is em-
ploying will soon find favor throughout the en-
tire United States.

Vours very respectfully,

John M. Haines.

From the Governor of Connecticut.

Hartford, Conn., January 13, 1914.
To the Editor:

I am in favor of the extension of the prin-
ciple of outdoor labor for convicts and I have
recommended legislation in that direction by
this State. It must, of course, always be re-
membered in dealing with prisoners that they
are in prison partly for i)unishment, partly for
the deterent influence on others and partly
with the hope of reformation. The depriva-
tion of liberty is a serious part of their punish-
ment, and of its deterent influence.

Vours very truly,

Simeon E. Baldwin.

Severe discipline encouraged enmity between
prisoners on the theory that prisoners who
hated one another would keep the authorities
informed with regard to infractions of the
rules.

PRESS OPINIONS AND REPRINTS

A Credit to Joliet Prison

,The first number of the Joilet Prison Post,
a monthly journal published by the board of
commissioners and the warden of the Joilet
state penitentiary and edited by a prisoner,
has been issued. It is a highly creditable pub-
lication reflecting much credit upon the humani-
tarian administration of Illinois' greatest
prison.

The number contains forty-eight pages,
mainly the work of prisoners. But it also has
discussions of prison problems, a letter from
Governor Dunne, a poem by Walter Ma lone,
sent by Secretary of State William J. Bryan,
and even a number of jokes and stories in light-
er vein. A feature of much interest is a re-
print of the Constitution of the United States,
with the names of the original signers, mem-
bers of the constitutional convention which
adopted it.

In short, here is a monthly magazine which
must, of necessity, be of large interest to the
unfortunates confined in the Joilet prison. The
very fact of its existence marks a great in-
crease in humanitarianism and enlightened
prison management, for it is a startling en-
croachment upon the old system which regard-
ed a prisoner as a sort of inferior wild animal,
only fit to be caged and abused.

We shall do much l)ctter in our prison ad-
ministration if we recognize the fact that even
prisoners have some rights, and that one of
them is that they be not regarded as having
entirely forfeited their claims to human sym-
pathy and understanding. As a long step in
this direction the establishment of the Joliet
Prison Post may be hailed as a decidedly wel-
come innovation in the penal system of Illinois.
— Inter Ocean, Chicago.

The conduct of our "honor men" at Camp
Hope will open prison gates throughout the
United States and will save many a sinner from
a consumptive's grave.

A prison guard wdio hopes that the Deputy
Warden wjll punish the prisoner whom he re-
ports, is unfit for his position. If the prison-
er is excused from punishment by the Deputy
Warden, the guard should receive him as
though nothing had happened and he should
hold no grudge against such prisoners.

Optimistic and Pathetic

We are in receipt of a copy of the Joilet
Prison Post, edited in Joilet prison, and con-
taining a number of articles by the prisoners
and in their interest. An optimistic tone runs
through the number and no doubt its every
line was most eagerly read by the inmates.
Some of the articles have a decidedly pathetic
touch, and especially is this true of the one
penned by the convict who has been there
eighteen long years. — Republican-Register,
Galeshurg, III.

February 1, 1914

The Joliet Prison Post

Two Prison Publications

Tlic jolict I'rison I'ost. "devoted to jirison
news." edited l)y a prisoner and i)iihlished
monthly by the board of commissioners and
the warden of the penitentiary at joliet. 111.,
comes close to bein^ all that a prison publica-
tion should be. It has something in it. The
warden takes advantage of its columns to out-
line his purposes and talk openly with the in-
mates of the prison. A prisoner who was one
of last fall's road gang tells what it means and
speaks for the forty-five men who constituted
the road working experiment with convicts
when he reviews the work, the spirit in which
the men took hold of it and declares its suc-
cess from a reformatory standpoint. The
prison physician and the chaplain have their
word and contributions from convicts, letters
from outside and clippings from other prison
papers combine with some display advertising
to make up a very creditable quarto magazine
of forty-eight pages.

The main thing about the Prison Post is that
it is worth reading by the men inside and by
those outside who are in any way interested in
the operation of prisons. It touches on mat-
ters of actual daily interest to those people
within the w^alls. It is useful and interesting
and worth the effort.

The Anamosa reformatory where a prison
paper is being issued, should study the Joliet
style and class. The Prison Press is as nearly
the opposite of the Post as may be. The Press
is well printed — and there's an end. The Post
is a useful magazine which can not fail to be
an effective aid to the process of reformation.
— Timcs-RcpublkiDi, Marshulltorcn. Io7ca.

@ ®

Brimfull of Good Reading

riie Free 1 rader is in receipt of a copy of
tile first issue of "The Joliet Prison Post," a
monthly paper devoted to the dissemination of
news of the state penitentiary at Joiiel. The
I)a|)er is in magazine form and is brimfull of
good reading matter.

"The Post" is edited by one of the prisoners
and the editorial paragraphs are highly flat-
tering to (Governor Dunne. Warden Allen of
the prison, and other (jfTicials there. The
prisoners say they are receiving the best treat-
ment under the Dunne administration ever
granted by any set of state oflicials and they
appreciate it highly. — I'rcc Trader, ()tt(i7iV.
Illinois.

Sound and Uplifting

Number one, of volume one, of the joilet
I'rison Post has come to the Courier- Herald
oHice. The pubhcation is edited i)v the pris-
oners of the state penitentiary at Joilet and pub-
lished by the board of commissioners and the
warden of the prison. It is printed on an ex-
celicj-.t (|uahty of paper, contains forty-eight
l)ages, eleven of which are filled with advertis-

mg.

There is a tone about the publication which
is uplifting. E^verything which the prisoners
ha\e written is clean and wholesome. There
is soundeil in each discussion something of a
wholesome resjjcct for law, a longing for lib-
erty, and withal a desire for human better-
ment which speaks well for the influence of
the state prison. Not a sordid line appears in
the paper. It is filled with suggestions as to
the improvement of the pris(jners' life, with
red-blooded poetry, with a letter from (Gover-
nor Dunne, a poem sent by William J. Hryan
and a letter from Louis F. Post. The Joilet
Prison Post is indicative of awakening social
interest in America, within prison walls a> well
as elsewhere. — Couricr-I I cralil , ('Ihnl.-^-fnmi,

111.

^ ®

"Our Protestant Brothers"

A change has been maile in the Illinois State
prison at Joliet. Edmund M. Allen, the war-
den appointed by Governor Dunne, believes in
humane treatment of prisoners anil the "Joliet
Prison Post," a magazine published by the pris-
on autlK^rities and edited by a prisoner, tells of
the improveil conditions. In passing, it may
be said that the magazine reveals workman-
siiij) and skill, literary and mechanical, that is
superior to many a publication of free men.

Here is a paragrajjh from a letter of a pris-
oner who "has ser\ ed time more than eighteen
years" that is worth the attention of ihousiinds
and tens of thousands out of jail:

"Those of us who are of the Catholic faith
nuist not overlook the fact that, under Mr. Al-
len, we have Catholic services every two weeks
anil mass every Sunday instead of once a
month. I feel confident tluit our Protestant
brothers rejoice with us over this."

Mark the phrase "Our Protestant brothers."
Think on it well. How often is brotherly love,
the kind of love that every minister and priest
preaches from his pulpit, to his own congre-

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

gation, breathed with a sincerity so obvious, so
disarming of suspicion — outside of prison
walls?

When this man, with eighteen years of pris-
on slavery behind him, speaks of "our Protest-
ant brothers," you, reader, know that he means
it. You will agree with him, too, that "Pro-
testant brothers (in prison) rejoice" with him
"that the Catholics now have the mass every
Sunday," however you may not believe in the
mass. Nor will you doubt, Protestant though
you be, that your brother Protestants in prison
are as tolerent and gentle in their view of the
Catholic faith as this old prisoner is of theirs.

Must one go behind prison walls to find
"charity" that "suffereth long and is kind?"

To Catholic and Protestant, alike free, res-
pectable and prosperous, we commend the ser-
mon that the prisoner of eighteen years has
preached to them in forty-five words. Surely,
if Christian love may stamp out sectarian ani-
mosity and vindictiveness in the life of the
prison, it should have free play among the
free! — The State, Columbia, S. C.

A Human Interest Magazine

The news counters are filled with "human
interest" periodicals these days, but none bear
so vital a message of genuine human interest as
the "Prison Post," published monthly by the
inmates of the Joliet Penitentiary.

While vigorously advocating the new idea
of imprisonment as a means of reformation,
rather than of vengeance, the "Prison Post"
does not encourage sentimentality, as indicated
in this introductory paragraph:

"The prisoner who looks only for sympathy
in this paper will be disappointed. We hope
that he who recognizes his own shortcomings
will find encouragement in every number."

The point of view of "the man inside" is al-
ways interesting and frequently illuminating.
To the man or woman concerned with the re-
clamation of those who have stumbled no
periodical can offer more absorbing study than
this monthly journal setting forth the reflec-
tions of those who bear the judgments of out-
raged society. — The Peoria Journal.

A Credit to the Prisoners

The News-Herald is in receipt of a copy of
the first edition of the Joilet Prison Post, a
magazine edited by a prisoner.

The new magazine contains 48 pages, a lit-
tle larger than standard magzine size and is
well printed.

The very first statement in the first page of
the paper reads as follows: "The prisoner who
looks only for sympathy in this paper will be
disappointed."

The paper is devoted to prison news large-
ly. Scores of convicts contribute. There is
a long interview with Deputy Warden Walsh,
a contribution by Governor Dunne and a
great deal of interesting information about
prison affairs generally.

The publication is exceptionally well gotten
up. It has a good advertising patronage and
is most certainly a credit to the prisoners who
are getting it out. — Nezvs-Herald, Litchfield,
I lino is.

Road Building in Alabama

The movement to take convicts from the
mines and the lumber camps in Alabama goes
ahead slowly. A meeting held last summer in
Birmingham to agitate the question has borne
fruit only within the past few weeks, when
some fifty convicts have been put to work on
road construction in Jefferson county.

No convicts have as yet been taken from the
mines or lumber camps.

Newspaper articles, editorials and news
stories in various state papers deal with it from
day to day. Possibly the one most tangible
result of the summer's meeting so far has been
the creation of a strong public sentiment for
it. — The Survey, Nezu York.

Good for the Boys

Joilet prison honor men are continuing in
road work, not heeding the little snow on the
ground. They like the work and their tents
have been equipped with stoves and as long as
the mercury does not go very far below zero,
they will prefer road building to any work that
might be assigned to them in the big institu-
tion. They are doing excellent work and are
causing not the slightest trouble. No doubt
the gangs or squads will be increased just as
fast as it is deemed safe. None but men who
can be trusted are assigned to this work and the
men themselves see to it that the confidence
which is given them is not misplaced. — Dis-
patch, Moline, III.

February 1, 1914

The Jollet Prison Post

The Love of Freedom

There is something over which to ponder in
the joy of the Hberated wild thing. A caged
bird, used to the hberty of the air, the confined
beast, born in the fastnesses of the wilds, will
often pine and die for the very desire for free-
dom.

Not unlike the lower strata of beings is man,
long confined, when he is liberated. The
cause may vary. The delight with which the
invalid takes his first tottering step, upon re-
covery, is good to see. He feels he is being
freed from the clutches of his disease. A re-
cent example lies in the pfesence of the convict
road gangs from the Joliet prison. These
gangs are constantly increasing. The men
upon them are "trusties," in every case. Rath-
er than enjoy the warmth and comfort of the
prison home, these men are facing the winter's
severe changes, in tents, and are working daily
in the biting air, for the freedom from encom-
pasing walls. The sense of helplessness is less
acute, perhaps, even though no thought of es-
cape from obligation enters the mind. In the
sunlight and beauty of God's great out-of-
doors, these shamed men can face their duty
with steadier e^^es and stronger hearts. Here
the law cannot rob them of what every man
has, good or bad, the incentive for right think-
ing and living. Penal students tell us that
more men are reformed out of doors than un-
der roofs. The freedom instinct generallv
prevails.^Lrf/^fr, Canton, Illinois.

Ready to Break Camp

The convicts who, without guards, without
shackles or handcuffs, arrived here from the
foilet state penitentiary on September 3, 1913,
will have completed their road work this week
with a record of having "made good" as they
said they would when Warden E. M. Allen
started them on the work at Camp Hope.

The convicts have by their loyalty and gootl
behavior demonstrated the fact that it pays to
lend a helping hand to the "down and out."

Of the sixty-five men who have been at the
camp in the last four or five months, Harry
West, who is now clerk of the camp and has
ten months yet to serve, said:

"The boys are all on the .'^(|uare yet and there
isn't a man who hasn't kept his word of honor
with the warden given at Joilet before we
started for camp."

The men have worked eight lK)urs every
day since they started on road building, except

Saturday afternoons, Sundays, and holidays,
riie work accomplished has been highly sjitis-
factory to the local commissioners and the
people here.

Fifteen of the original parly ol loriy live
men have been released by pardon or other-
wise.

But as the convicts whose terms had expired
were released from camp new "honor men"
were sent from the state prison to take their
places, so that Capt. Keegan has had forty-five
men working under him at all times.

What pleases the men themselves most is
that they have "made good" and that the con-
fidence placed in them by Warden Allen has
not been betrayed.

The Rev. A. B. Whitcombe of the First
Episcopal church of Dixon, who has been cha|>-
lain of the camp since its establishment, and
who has been a daily visitor, said he never saw
a bunch of men so w'illing to work or who were
more anxious to really "make good."

The road up over the hills from Grand ile
Tour, where all the work has been done, has
taken more time to complete than exjK'Cted at
the start. This was due to the large amount
of crushed rock that has been used, but was
not called for in the original plans of Slate
Engineer Johnson. — Chicago Tribune, Jantmrv
i8, 19 1 4.

No More Penitentiaries

The Springfield Republican has this to say
about Ohio's new method of treating crimi-
nals:

When America was a country of farms and
villages, its ideal of caring for delinquents
and dependents was in a big brick institution.
Now that urban conditions have develojx'd even
to rather too great extent, we see a natural and
whok'sonie reaction toward the farm colony as
an ideal. Thus Ohio has a new place of de-
tention beautifully situated in a virgin forest.
which no one is to be allowed to speak of as a
penitentiary.

C )hio has adopted a prison jK^nalty with more
svmpathy than revenge in it, not condolence for
I lie crime, but sympathy for the criminal. This
very treatment will make crime ashamed of it-
self. A man sent to the prison for some
crime will be apt to say to himself, "to think
that I have attacked the jwace and order of a
state that treats me so considerately and kind-
ly!" There is reformation in that kind of a
thought and reformation is two-thirds of pun-
ishment. — Ohio State Journal.

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

Kentucky Road Work

The movement for placing convicts on the
road received a fresh impetus last month, when
a constitutional amendment was passed in Ken-
tucky, permitting the use of prisoners upon the
public highways. Previous to this, all Ken-
tucky prisoners were employed within the walls
of the institution under the contract system,
but, pending the passage of the amendment,
the prison commissioners refused to renew a
contract soon to expire, so that convicts will
be available for road work as soon as the neces-
sary legislation can be enacted. — Times Union,
Jacksonville, Fla.

Putting Men on Honor

It is officially reported that since the parole
system was adopted by the Missouri state pris-
on authorities, eight months ago, not one con-
vict in 7i released, has again committed crime,
or broken his parole.

This record is in line with that made last
year by the "honor men" sent from the state
penitentiary of Ililnois to work upon the roads.

There is, indeed, some "honor among
thieves" — and other malefactors.

There is at least a spark of honor in the vilest
wretch alive.

It is not possible in every case, perhaps, to
fan that spark to flame. But in it lives what-
ever hope exists of reformation of the criminal.

Putting men on honor tends to mak^ men
honorable.

Just as distrusting good men — showing them
they are suspected — treating them like scound-
rels — tends to make them scoundrels.

Trusting bad men is not going to make all
of them trustworthy. Not any more than
manifest distrust of better men will make them
all clishonest. But there is temptation in the
one case to justify confidence, as there is temp-
tation in the other case to justify suspicion.

Like appeals to like, and like responds to
like.

Comprehension of that rule is growing clear-
er and promises to make, some day, reforma-
tories of our prisons. — Register, Canton, III.

Another Prison Farm

The first anouncement of Dayton's new di-
rector of public welfare is that he proposes to
abandon the city workhouse and establish a
prison farm in its stead. In other words, Day-
ton will have a Warrensville.

Attention was called in these columns some
weeks ago to the widening popularity of the
prison farm idea. Ohio is to have a farm
prison in place of the present penitentiary at
Columbus. Other states have taken steps to
the same end. But the cities led in the re-
form.

Cleveland's success at Warrensville has be-
come famous. Kansas City has an institution
similar in form and purpose, the work of which
in the last two or three years has been highly
praised.

Dayton is to profit by the experience of
these and other cities which have already
abandoned practices in penology which tended
to degrade but not to reform men and women
who fell under the law's displeasure. It is a
hopeful comment on society's increasing hu-
manity that so many wide-awake communities
are ready to abandon old practices for new in
the treatment of their less vicious offenders. —
Plain Dealer, Cleveland, O.

Good for the Chicago Journal

Concerning five "honor men" sent to Camp
Hope from this prison and who were recently
released the Chicago Journal said, "These five
men may not be wholly reclaimed, but they
have a better chance of good citizenship than
any who have gone before. They have had
work which hardens their muscles, braces
their minds and strengthens their self-control.
They have learned by experience that it pays
to be trustworthy, that the state can be parent
and protector as well as policeman, that the
law is willing to give a fellow a chance."

Self Criticism

Fault-finding, any man will find an excel-
lent habit if directed only at himself. Ex-
pended thus, it will correct his faults, eradicate
his vices and give him a tremendous advantage
over the thousands that are sure to be entered
in the race with him. Directed at others, it
will get him nothing but enemies, and enemies
are always dangerous.

Often the fellow who imagines that he is
being neglected by his fellow-men, could se-
cure all the attention he craves, by considering
his own mistakes a little more and his fellow-
men's a little less. — The Better Citizen, Rah-
ivay, N. J.

February 1, 1914

The Joliei Prison P<)s<

Our Police and Penal Systems

(From an acklrc-s before the Omaha (Nel). )
Philosophical society, by Laurie J. (juimbv.
(^maha.)

Until society learns to deal fairly with the
criminal the number of criminals will increase.
Society has tried inmishment for untold cen-
turies, and yet to-day the most intellectual and
painstakiuiL,^ of the students of criminoloj^y are
not in the least a^^reed that punishment has in
any sense proved efhcacious in the cure of
crime. For no matter how severe.* the punish-
ment, it cannot expel from the mind of the of-
fender the desire to do that which he believes he
must, and so loni^ as any desire remains in the
mind of man, that desire will eventuallv be
satisfied. Vou may punish a man so severelv
that he may not commit a certain deed, but you
cannot punish him so severely that he may not
wish to do it. England for centuries tried the
severest punishments against crime. During
the reign of Henry \'III, about thirty-nine
years, some seventy-two thousand people were
put to death through the power of the state, and
for all this time there is not an item to prove
that crime decreased. Two centuries ago Eng-
land had more than two hundred crimes, which
her criminal code made punishable with death,
but not until the state became less criminal,
did crime decrease. It is not uncommon for
some folk, whose own conduct is not always
above suspicion, to say that one who breaks the
criminal law puts himself out of all considera-
tion by his fellow mortals; but when society
hounds him who has once offended, and hounds
him for that reason only, it is itself a worse of-
fender, for it puts a club into its enemy's hand.
X'erily, in the majority of cases, it is the crim-
inal who is more sinned against than sinning.

From observation and learning the opinions
of others, I believe that the majority, if not in-
deed all. so-called criminally-disposed are more
the victims of circumstances, environment and
growth, over which they had no control, i
am constantly more and more convinced that
all of us really try to do, the best we can. That
we do not rise to the degree we should is more
through our ignorance or from our under-de-
velopment. From this premise, it would fol-
low that society should treat the criminal more
as a sick man — more as one in need of assist-
ance — than as one upon whom it should i)ounce
with distended talons, to rend and tear. — The
Commoner, Lincoln, Neb.

"An Ambulance Down in the Valley"

">■ J<>!>ei>li .M;iliti!>

Twas a dangerous cliff, as they freely con-
fessed,
Though to walk near its crest was so i)leas-
ant ;
P)Ut over il> lerrii)le edge ihere had >li|)pe(l

.\ (hike and full many a peasant.
So the people said something would have to
I)e done,
r.ut tiieir projects did not ;it all tallv.
SoiiK. "j)nl a fence around the edge oi nic
cliff;"
Some, "an ambulance down in the vallev."

But the cry for the ambulance carried the day.

And it spread through the neighboring city;
A fence may be useful or not it is true.

But each heart became brimful of pitv
For those who slipped over that dangerous
cliff.

And the dwellers in highway and allev
Gave pounds or pence — not to put up a fence.

But an .imbulanci- down in the vallev.

Then rui oid sage remarked: "It's a marvel to
me
That i)eople gi\e far more attention
To repairing results than to stopping the cause,

\\ hen they'll better aim at prevention.
Let us stop at its source all this mischief."
cried he.
"Come, neighbors and friends, let us rally;
If the cliff" we will fence, we might almost dis-
pense
With the ambulance down in the valley."

"Oh, he's a fanatic." the other rejoined;

"Dispense with the ambulance? Never!
He'd dispense with all charities, too; if he
could.
No. no. we'll support them forever!
Aren't we picking up f(tlks just as fast as thev
fall?
And sh.'dl thi> man dicl.iie ii' \\>: Shall he?
Why should people "f <eii-r st«ip t<> put up a
fence,
\\ bile the ambulance works in the valley?"
— Lansing (Kansas) renilenliory Hiillelin

Only One Too Many

P^ven (lovernor Blease must feel that he is
pardoning rather too freely when he finds that
he has jKirdoned one man twice. — linquirer.
Buffalo, Mezu y'ork.

The JoHet Prison Post

First Year

Do Criminals Reform ?

A representative of the New York Herald
interviewed William A. Pinkerton on the sub-
ject of the reform of criminals. The follow-
ing are some of the forcible statements by this
great authority:

"Do criminals ever reform, really turn over
a new leaf, and become good citizens?"

1 fired the question at random, little dream-
ing what a wealth of interesting and convinc-
ing anecdote it would evoke. I expected the
time-honored cynical reply, souT'thing to the
effect of "Once a thief, always a I'nef." But
I was disappointed — agreeably disappointed.
For his answer was a quick emphatic, earnest
"Yes."

And the man who said "Yes" was William
A. Pinkerton, and he knows.

Probably no living man knows more intimate
details about the individual members of the un-
derworld, those who are active criminals to-
day, as well as the notorious crooks of the past,
than the head of the Pinkerton Detective
Agency. And every crook will tell you, what
every honest man who knows Mr. Pinkerton
will tell you, that when he says "Yes" there is
no possibility that the correct answer should
be "No."

I know what the average man thinks — that a
real crook never turns straight. But it isn't
so. Thousands of crooks — and I don't mean
one time offenders, but men in the class we
call hardened criminals — have become honest
men to my knowledge. It is not true, as some
recent writer said, that as many crooks turn
honest as there are honest men turn crooked,
but I believe that one of the reasons is that so
few men are willing to lend a helping hand. I
don't mean that every crook is ready to re-
form if he is encouraged, but I do mean that
society makes it hard for any man who has
once been a criminal to lead an honest life.

"And ril tell you another thing," continued
Mr. Pinkerton ; "I'm prouder of the fact that I
have helped a few criminals to become honest
men than of all the work I have done in putting
criminals behind the bars. I'm proud of the
fact that every criminal knows that Pinkerton
will deal squarely with him if he will deal
squarely with Pinkerton — that I believe it is as
important to keep faith with a bank thief as
with a bank president.

"I know a score of men in Chicago — not
saloon keepers, but reputable merchants — who
have criminal records. These men have done

time and have paid their debt to society for
their crimes. I cannot tell you their names,
for it would be unfair to them and to their
wives and families, many of whom have no
suspicion that there is anything wrong in the
pasts of their husbands and fathers. 'Besides,
when Society discovers that a man is a former
criminal it is not content to cancel the debt, no
matter how much imprisonment at hard labor
the former crook may have given in expiation
of his sin.

"I know men in trusted positions in New
York who were convicts. , In many cases only
the man himself and his employer know the
secret, and sometimes the employer does not
know. I know men scattered all over the
West — business men, professional men, many
of them wealthy and prominent citizens — who
have seen the inside of Joliet, Moyamensing,
Sing Sing or Leavenworth. They have sons
and daughters who never have suspected and
never will suspect the truth.

"These are good men — as good men as any
living. They have turned away from their
old ways; in many cases have changed their
names, and who shall say they are not as much
to be respected as the honest man who never
was tempted, never was forced into crime?" —
Good IVords.

Atlanta Prison

The prisons seem to be in for the same sort
of exposure, which has been meted out, from
time to time, to other institutions, or groups
of individuals. If the prison of a state is not
exposed, or at least criticised, it is almost safe
to assume that the state has no prison. And
now the federal prisons are having their turn.
The criticism, made of Atlanta prison by Jul-
ian Hawthorne, has produced an inquiry on
the part of the Department of Justice. A good
deal of testimony has been taken already and
it seems very likely that the charges made by
Mr. Hawthorne will be found to have a cer-
tain amount of support. It is probable that
the criticism of the prisons, for not living up
to the standard set for, prisons according to the
older idea of them, will be succeeded by
changes, which would have been regarded as
sweeping, a few years ago. The people of the
country have suddenly discovered that there
are things, even in w^ell-conducted prisons, of
which they do not approve and are w'ondering
how they should be changed. — Advertiser, Bos-
ton, Mass.

February 1, 1914

The Joliel Prison Post

Malnutrition and Crime

A scicntitic schecliilc of diet for prisoners in
the city jail is bcini,^ arningcd by Dr. A. F.
(iillihan, health director of Oakland, in con-
junction with Professor Myer E. Jaffa, pro-
fessor of nutrition at the University of Cali-
fornia, according to announcement today.

"Malnutrition is responsible for criminality
in many cases, and i)y proper feeding of crim-
inals their criminal tendencies may, to some
extent at least, be removed," says Dr. (iillihan.

The objects of the experiments with the
prison diet will be to pjrove the theory held by
Dr. (Jillihan that men and women with criminal
inclinations, while in prison, may be subjected
to such a diet as will relieve them of their ten-
dencies and send them forth into the world
better able to withstand temptation and less
likely to revert to former customs.

Prisoners are to be allowed a variety of
foods, these to be decided upon by the health di-
rector andProfessor Jaffa. Dr. Gillihan con-
tends that with proper food a person's men-
tality can be greatly improved. — Evening Post,
Chicago.

A Good Name

In no place on earth does a good record go
further than in the penitentiary. Some folks
seem to gather the idea that because they are
in prison a good name is not to, be sought af-
ter, and that to be reckless is to be a hero.
How erroneous is the idea.

The bible says, "A good name is rather to
be chosen than great riches." This statement
is made without qualification, and is as ap-
plicable behind prison walls as on the outside.
If a prisoner has not a good name as a pris-
oner, he has absolutely nothing.

There are prisoners in this institution whose
word is good, and their names, as prisoners,
are above reproach. The Warden could, and
would, if necessary, trust them anywhere.
Think you that such a record stands for
naught? Yea, verily, it is to be more valued
than silver or gold.

When the minimum is about up there are
some who come before the board for a parole,
but they have a bad name. No action is taken
in their case, and they blame every one but the
right party. Other things being equal, they
could have been released, but for the record. —
Penitentiary Bulletin, Lansing, Kansas.

The Superlative in Stupidity

The prisoners are jiot allowed to write let-
ters until they have been incarcerated two
months. After that they are permitted to
write only once a month. They can be visited
only once a month — the visit, of course, being
in the presence of an official — and they must
not come in contact with the visitor, as by an
embrace or a handshake. They must not speak
to one another at all, excejU dm'ing fifteen
minutes each day.

They must not even smile at one another.
For smiling, a pri.soner is made to stand in the
corner, face to the wall, until the foul crime is
burned and purged away. During the j^recious
fifteen minutes they may speak only to those
sitting next to them in the workroom ; they can
not move from their seats to speak to some one
at a little distance.

Sttch are conditions in the women's prison
at Auburn, New York, as described in The
Survey by two female investigators \\\v) got
themselves locked up for the purpose of fintl-
ing out; but their equivalents can be found in
scores of other penal institutions.

Just what a State thinks it will gain by
maintaining an elaborate machine for dehum-
anizing prisoners, carefully squeezing every
drop of human interest and sympathy out of
them, we are unable t(» imagine. We expect
the State is also unable to imagine. — Salnrday
Evening Post.

Bars Stripes

New York, Jan. 12. — The convict stripe is
to be eliminated from the city prisons during
the administration of Mayor Mitchel, accord-
ing to Dr. Katherine L. Davis, corrections com-
missioner, who made her fir^t visit to I'lark-
well's Island today.

"You can't reform a woman in bed ticking,'
she said. "I believe strongly in the psychology
of clothes. A woman always has more self-
respect when she has on her be.^t clothes." —
Chicago Record Herald.

"I Serve Him Truthfully"

Let the motto of every man in prison be, "I
serve him truthfully that will put me in trust."
And whether the trust be great or small, let
him live up to it every day. and every hour of
the day. — Penitentiary Bulletin, Lansing, Kan-
sas.

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

Have a Grievance?

All convicts have grievances in common,
legitimate and otherwise. Almost every man
of them has a select few of his own, and to ac-
quire a hrand-new one has its advantages. A
good grievance is always interesting, and. if
nothing else, it enables him to discard one out
of his old and shop-worn assortment. It fur-
nishes a new outlet for stagnant thoughts, a
new subject for conversation, and always com-
mands an attentive and sympathetic audience.
Then, too, it is so easily carried about that no
lynx-eyed ofificer can detect it by bulge of pock-
et or of clothing in a spot where no pocket is
supposed to be.

No prisoner ever tries to sidestep a griev-
ance. A good set of grievances enables a fel-
low to divert his thoughts from his own sins
and apply them to those committed against
him. He soon crowds his own offenses into
the background and conceives a sympathy for
himself. It is fine to be a martyr.

Illiteracy is the real cause of many a man's
coming to the Penitentiary, and they were serv-
ing their sentences and going ovit again, if any-

or less temporary expedient, as most convicts,
regardless of sentence, are liberated sooner or
later, and returning him to liberty certainly-
not bettered or strengthened in any way. He
had been punished, that is all. and in an unintel-
ligent manner, better calculated to instill ran-
cor than repentance. — Nc7cs, Baltimore, Md.

Illiteracy and Prisons

"Illiteracy is the real cause of many a man's
coming to the penitentiary," saVs the superin-
tendent of the intramural school at that insti-
tution in an article published in the News . . .
on the work which the school is doing. That
being the case, removing illiteracy is one of the
best means of preventing prisoners from being
sent back there when they have finished their
terms and been given a new chance in life. We
get a clear idea from the article of the direct
iuanner in which the school operartes to develop
aspiration on the part of the convicts. This
aspiration is much broader than the mere de-
sire to learn how to read and write and to ac-
([uire the other elementary instruction that is
eiven. It opens a new vista to men inclined

thing worse off and with less equipment for ^^ ^^ discouraged and sullen, and the visible

life's struggle than when they entered, con
stituting a greater menace to society than ever
before.

That the illiterate and ignorant are more
prone toward crime is a fact easily understood.
Their ignorance and lack of the mental and
moral development, and even of the informa-
tion that comes from reading, causes them to
be more primitive in all their instincts, and
more liable to commit crimes of violence and
those against the person. Their only means
of committing crimes against property are
crude and usually involve actual or possible
violence in the commission or hiding of the
crime. There is more potent danger in one
ignorant illiterate than in a number of men
with some education, although criminally in-
clined.

The writer does not claim that there is less
inherent honesty among the illiterate and ignor-
ant than among persons having education to
some degree, but observation and statistics
convince that the majority of the major crimes,
those offenses against which society needs to
fight the hardest, are committed by the ignor-
ant, and that the crimes of the ignorant are
usually of that nature.

evidence of their own progress is a constant
encouragement to them. We are not surprised
at the statement that the warden considers the
school his best constructive agency. It is but
a year and a half since men were pooh-pooh-
ing the idea of introducing reformative pro-
cesses into the Maryland penitentiary. To
such of them as remain, the evidence of what
has been and is being accomplished through
this one means of encouragement should be a
revelation. — News, Baltimore.

Crimes Against Criminals

A recent headline in the New York Press
announces: "End of torture for women in
penitentiary promised." Isn't there volumes
of commentary in that brief line upon our dark
ages attitude toward the treatment of wrong-
doers? — La Follette's Weekly, Madison, Wis.

Charges Unfounded

Julian Hawthorne's charges against the man-
agement of the Federal penitentiary at Atlanta
were declared on January 12 to be without
foundation by the special investigator in his

In this State, as in most others, we have^^report to Attorney General McReynolds. — TJie
been simply removing the criminal, a mov^^Piiblic, Chicago.

February' 1 , 1914

Tlu» .liiliot Prison Post

RISE AGAIN

By a Great Meadows (N. Y.) Prisoner

If you fell in the iiiiul,

Would you flounder around.

With your feet in the air

And your head on the ,t,^rnunil ?

No, you'd get on your feet,
And go on as you should,

And get rid of the dirt

On your clothes if you could.

Then why not do likewise
When from virtue you fall,

'Stead of whining arountl
Till you sicken us all.

There's naught to l)e gained

By parading your woes;
If you fall from gr..ce,

Get the dirt off your clothes.

Then start on youi way,
■ With a .smile on your face,
And your head in the air —
You'll win at that pace.

Star of Hope.

Go in to Win

"He conquers who believes he can." is a mot-
to that every inmate would do well to keep
constantly before him, for the men who have
made good in this world have not been the ones
who have gone forth with doubt or misgivings
in their heart, but who have set out with the
firm intention of "making good" and coniiuer-
ing, come what may.

It is a well known fact that the men who
have been of the greatest use to the world and
th-*mselves have not been the men who were
reared in lu.xury, but who have been launched
uj)on the world in the midst of poverty and
suffering. They have felt the world as it is,
not as many think it ought to be. They have
been brought face to face with pitiful hard-
ships, they have had to take their knocks with
the rest, and in the majority of ca.ses tiiey were
good hard ones. But their courage and their
conviction to do what was right saved them,
and developed them from mere pygmies into
the giants of our race.

It is said that human nature is naturally la/.y,
and people will not put forth liieir best efforts
until somethini; has forced them to do so.

There can hardly be any disputing about this
I)oint. The history of the world bears it out.
Then, if this be true, are not hardships a bless-
ing in disguise? Do they not rouse the best
that is within us, and goad us on toward higher
and nobler efforts? No one, wIkj ever wants
to make a real man out of himself, can es-
cape the stern school of exj)erience and hard
knocks. Knowledge cannot be obtained from
books alone — there is nothing that can supplant
experience.

Let us not, therefore, regard our pres^ni
state as the death to all our aims and ambitions,
but make it serve as a stimulant to that which
is better. Let us use it as a ladder to climb
uj)ward, atul not as a roi>c to drag us down-
wards.

Let us .set forth l<i ldH'ilri — noi to be coii-
([uered, and if we keej) this spirit in our hearts,
adversity — hard as it may seem at the time —
cannot deter us from (jur puri>ose; it can only
serve to open our eyes, to see things as they
are, and make us try all the harder to better
our.selves in life. — '/'he Better Cithen. Ralncax,
N.J.

The Officer's Example

The officiary of a penilnuiary have a great
responsibility. Each officer's life is m<jre
closely scrutinized by the prison body than any
person is watched on the outside. Kvcrything
they say or do is weighed according to the
strictest standaril, and if they vary from the
rule of righteou.siiess the whole scheme of re-
formation falls to the ground.

How are we to train men without a trainer?
If an ofiker should so far forget himself as to
indulge in profanity or the foolish diversion of
telliiig stories off color, or doing anything Ih'-
nealh the plane of a gentlemen, he is no long-
er suitable for the service; for instead of train-
ing men, he debases them. — Penitentiary [Uti-
le tin, J.ansiny, Kansas.

They Want Bread

.\. helping h.ind >houId be given to every
man whom the jail sends forth into the world
to .nake another start. He should not only be
allowed but heliK-d to redeem himself. The
best and oidy way to do this is to give him a
ch.'ince to earn his bread honestly and in the
sweat of his brow — to give the ex-prisoner a
job. — Chieayo Tribune.

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

Books Written in Prison

In a news dispatch from Atlanta a few days
ago it was stated that the warden of the federal
penitentiary at that place had issued an order
barring Julian Hawthorne's writings from the
prison. In connection with this it is inter-
esting to note that the enforced solitude of
prison life has given many literary men the
opportunity of producing many notable literary
works.

The most striking example of this is the case
of John Bunyan, who was imprisoned for
twelve years. During that period he spent
most of his leisure time in producing works
which have made his name famous. In 1672
Bunyan was released, but, boldly continuing
to preach his unorthodox views, he was thrown
again into prison. It was during the second
period of his incarceration that he wrote the
first part of the famous "Pilgrim's Progress."

The career of the famous Dr. Dodd is not yet
forgotten. He was one of the most popular
preachers of his time, and studied under var-
ious actors and actresses the most effective
methods of reading and delivering his dis-
courses. From miles around people flocked
to hear him read the Litany. His fame led
him to many extravagances in living and he
forged a number of bonds, for which offense
he was convicted and served a sentence in
prison. While there he wrote "The Beauties
of Shakespeare" and "The Joys of Solitude."

Lord William Nevill, who was sentenced to
serve five years' penal servitude, suffered much
from ill health while in prison, and on this ac-
count was unable to do much manual labor,
and so gained time for the wTiting of his book
on prison life. — Nezv York Sun.

The Prisoner and Society

Upon being sentenced to ten years in a Wis-
consin penitentiary after having pleaded guilty
to a charge of robbery, a young man — he was
barely twenty-two years old — became bitterly
reminiscent before the court. His plight was
all the sadder because it was Christmas eve.
The prisoner blamed his native state of Ohio,
and charged that persecution had caused his
downfall. He declared that as a youth of
seventeen he had made one mistake by stealing
$40 from a bank where he was employed, and
that thereafter he had been hounded continu-
ously. Just how much of truth there is in the

young felon's story is uncertain, for it has not
been investigated. There is a chance that
the prisoner told the absolute truth, and it is
quite possible that he sought to shield his dis-
honesty behind an abnormal imagination.

Those familiar with police practice would
find one element in the wail from the prisoner
which would cause them to give him the bene-
fit of the doubt. For the first offense he said
he was sentenced to a reformatory. After be-
ing paroled he got another start in life — a new
hold on society — and was doing well, he told
the judge, but finally his record became known,
and the police picked him up on suspicion when-
ever a crime was committed. He declared
that he was accused of burglaries with which
he had no connection, until his spirit was brok-
en and again he found himself an outcast.

The police have their methods, often the re-
sult of their experience in the activities which
protect society at large, but do they give the
man who has fallen the benefit of the doubt?
Frequently old detectives will tell you that it
is necessary to use the dragnet when crime has
been committed, and rake in all those who have
"done time." Such a policy is open to debate
at least, but it is certain that if the convict in
question reviewed his career truthfully, so-
ciety's crime against him is infinitely less par-
donable than is his transgression against so-
ciety. — Harrisburg (Pa.) Telegraph.

University Training for Prison Inmates

Through cooperation between the state, the
state university and the state penitentiary, Ne-
braska is about to undertake an uplifting work
whereof the simple contemplation justifies a
reversal of Robert Burns' famous couplet on
man's inhumanity to man. Only an improv-
ing sense of man's responsibility to man, of
man's obligation to his brother in distress,
could have brought about the reforms in pris-
on management and discipline which this age
is loudly demanding and often securing. It
most assuredly speaks eloquently for the ad-
vancing humanism of our day when a uni-
versity takes the thought and the time to in-
quire into the condition of the unfortunates at
the other end of a state capital with the view
to amelioration.

A hundred years ago, even twenty-five years
ago, the idea of educating state convicts, some
of them life prisoners, for the sake of enlight-
enment, would hardly have entered into the
thought of a university faculty. Yet this is

February 1/1914

The Juliet Prlnoii Post

l)recisely what is proixjsed by the University oi
Nebraska. Under an arrangement with the
state board of control, the state will fnrnish
the necessary l)0()ks and the nniversity will con-
iluct a correspondence course for the henelit of
the prisoners. This course will inchule arith-
metic. American history, grammar, literature,
l)()()kkeei)ing and agriculture. It is mention-
ed as a pathetic circumstance that some of the
convicts may never have an opportunity to ap-
plv what they shall have learned outside the
prison walls. Perhaps not, but the good that
mav result from this work will not be confined
to the prison. It will act as a moral leaven to
human experience everywhere.

If it be true that "man's inhumanity to man"
has made "countless thousands mourn," it is
also true that man's humanity to man makes
countless thousands rejoice. Whatever bene-
fit the convicts may derive from this humane
attention from the outside world will be as
n(»thing, we think, compared with the good that
the act contains fgr all mankind. The world
has been soured by selfishness and neglect ; it
can be sweetened by unselfishness and ciiarity.
— Science Monitor, Boston, Moss.

For More Exact Justice

Tentative appro\al has been given by the
finance committee of the city council to a pro-
ixjsed appropriation for a psychopathic labora-
tory. A similar appropriation is to be asked
of the county board, in order that the labora-
^ tory when established may handle cases sent
to it from state, county and municipal courts.
Such a laboratory would have for its purpose
the doing of more exact justice to certain class-
es of offenders and the giving of better protec-
tion to the community.

Chief Justice Olson of the Municipal ccjurl
estimates that 25 per cent of the persons con-
victed of criminal offenses are defective, either
mentally or physically, and require treatment
rather than punishment. With respect to the
insane, it is argued, punishment certainly is out
of the question. But what of those in the bor-
derland between normality and insanity, the
feeble-minded, the degenerate, the defective,
the epileptic, the moron? Are they to have the
same treatment as persons of normal mentality
and physical soundness who commit crimes?

The Germans answer this question in the
negative. In all the larger cities of Ciermany
are psychopathic laboratories, to which judges

may send offenders suspected of being abnor-
mal. For the Germans hold, in their penal
C(Kle, that "there is no punishable act if, at
the time of the commission, the actor was in a
state of unconsciousness or of morbid distur-
bance of the mental faculties which excluded
the free determination of the will." Havinj.;
been proved to be abnormal, the offender i-
treated according to his mental or physical re-
(juirements, and thus a reasonably exact meas-
ure of justice is given him, according to mod-
ern ideas of penology, which bar retaliation or
retribution as the motive of punishment.

We in America fall far short of this humane
and enlightened standard. Here criminals
iiave l)een dealt with largely on the assump-
tion that they are all normal per.sons who
know what is rigiit but who prefer to do
wrong. In important respects our nieth{»d-
need readjustment. Establishing properly con-
ducted psychoi)athic laboratories would be a
rational step toward that desirable end. — Daily
.Y('7i'.y, Chicago.

Mistakes

"There are two kinds of mistakes. Thosi
that happen from ordinary human mis-think-
ing and those that come from carelessness
and petty unthinking.

"No one ever gets too big to make nuhiakes.
The secret is that the big man is greater than
his mistakes, because he ri.^^es right out of them
and passes beyond them.

"After one of Henry Ward Beecher's ser-
mons in Plymouth Church, Brooklyn, a young
man came up to him and said: 'Mr. Beecher.
did you know that you made a grammatical
error in your sermon this morning?'

" 'A grammatical error,' answered Beecher ;
'ril bet my hat that I made forty of them.' "
— I'roni ")'ou Can," by Geo. Mattheiv Adams

® ^ ®

Revenge, of course, is ollicially discredited
nowadays, though it is practiced as actively
as ever under guises more or less civilized. —
Julian llaicthornc.

^ ^ ^

In his treatment of prisoners as well as in
the example he sets by personal conduct, ;i
prison guard should always bear in mind that
a penitentiary is not only a place of punishment
but also an institution which intend^ the rc-
formati(»n of its inmates.

Jesse Sogers,

84 The Joliet Prison Post First Year

LOVE AND PUNISHMENT But, here, once more, it is obvious that only

Punishment rightly interpreted, involves the ^^ve and intelligence could cause punishment

idea of saving or reformation, and inheres in to be mflicted ; these lackmg, we should leave

all things and acts, with or without conscious- the children to their own mischievous and des-

ness. For there is in all phenomena a tendency tructive devices.

to disintegration, subsidence and death; whicli Now let us emphasize an important truth,
tendency love and intelligence spontaneously Acts of punishment often take the form of the
seek to arrest and counteract. To counteract infliction of physical pain ; the child which gets
or oppose an injurious tendency is to punish it, jj^g f^e^- ^y^^ q^ tells a lie is spanked, for ex-
for all opposition, or thwarting of desire, is ample. It understands, sooner or later, that
felt as punitive, as long as the desire persists, j-j^.^j- Qf ^j-,^ spanking is not so bad as that of
The final aim of punishment is, while restrain- ^^^^ fever or the loss of integrity which it was
ing, to instruct and direct, until the injurious ^^^^ ^q guard against. But a child may be,
desire has been transformed into a beneficent ^^j-^^j jg often spanked because it is merely
one, in harmony with the love and intelligence, troublesome or provoking to other people, and,
which thus transformed it. therefore, not for its benefit but for their own
Mineral substances tend to crumble ; Vege- convenience, or even from a spirit of anger or
table and animal ones to decay; arrest of these revenge. But anger and revenge are passions
processes is a punishment, with economic love of hell, not principles of heaven, and, however
as its motive, and with restoration or preserva- manifested, are injurious both to giver and
tion as its result; but, unless this benificent receiver. The spanking given in anger is still
aim were present, there would be no punish- called punishment, but it is radically different
ment; we should say, let the granite disinte- therefrom according to oiir interpretation,
grate; let the plant or corpse rot! Coming to The child soon perceives that love and intelli-
the plane of consciousness, we tame animals by gence had no part in it, and the consequences
punishing their destructive impulses from a of it are, accordingly, not amendment and self-
principle of love and intelligence. They pres- control, but fear, subterfuge, and finally hatred,
ently cease to resist our restrictions, and reap And upon the selfish and cruel parent, the ef-
the benefit in improved conditions for them- feet is cpite as degrading and brutalizing. We
selves, as well as in usefulness or pleasure to may sum the situation in the assertion that
us. But, again, had not love and intelligence punishment not prompted by love and intelli-
been the prompters, we would have let the ani- gence is a crime against human nature. And
mals«run wild or destroyed them or left them a crime against human nature is an unpardon-
mutually to destroy one another. able sin. Punishment in the right spirit is sal-
Arriving at the human degree, we are guided vation ; it is damnation in the wrong,
by the same ideas. Our children, in infancy. The existing system of dealing with crim-
are not yet endowed with reason and judg- inals is still based upon the idea of punishment ;
ment in either the moral or the physical realm, and, in theory, this is correct. But unless it
and, as we love them and intelligently desire can be shown that in practice it is animated
their welfare and happiness, we seek to supply and directed not only by intelligence, but by
these deficiences in them. . This we accomplish love, it is wrong and a failure. Punishment
by instruction — partly verbal, that is, by homi- inflicted upon prisoners in any other spirit than
lies, "lessons," and exhortations; and' partly that of love, are inflicted in an evil spirit — the
by punishments, which are lively illustrations spirit of .cruelty, revenge, tyranny, egotism,
of the folly or harm of pursuing their natural brutal selfishness. The power of a prison offi-
impulses and propensities. The children are cial over a prisoner is greater than that of a
made to suffer transiently and superficially in parent over a child, for the official is supported
order that they may not hereafter suffer in- by the authority of the State, and yet he is
wardly and permanently. At first they feel practically irresponsible; he can beat the pris-
the pain without comprehending the object ; oner into insensibility for a whim, he can tor-
later, when experience has revealed the love . ture him into insanity, he can kill him outright,
and intelligence that occasioned the pain, they and for all this he needs but to plead "justifica-
begin to acquiesce and co-operate — at which tion." And his word will unhesitatingly be
point, punishment ceases and self-control and taken against the victim's, or against any num-
reformation are established. ber of eye-w^itnesses — if they be prisoners! He

February 1, 1914

The Joliet Prison Post

not only can do all of this, but he has done it
many times, as prison records and other records
show. And even he has never ventured to pre-
tend that he was actuated by love and intelli-

gences.

It is a terrible mistake to give absolute power
of punishment into tlic hands of any human
being who cannot be trusted to punish only in
love and with intelligence. How many jail of-
ficials meet this test? ^'es, some do; but what
proportion do they bear to the whole? And
vet every jail is a place of punishment, both of
mind and of bodv. — Better Citiaen, Rah:cax.
N. J.

Pledge of Supt. Riley

In marking the intnxluction of a new idea
in prison discipline, by which the convicts
themselves will share in tlie maintenance of or-
der, the inmates of Auburn Prison have sent
to State Superintendent of Prisons John P>.
Riley a set of commendatory resolutions and
entered into the new plan with the greatest en-
thusiasm.

The new idea is centered in what is called the
Good Conduct League. Thomas Mott

Osborne, Chairman of the State Commission
for Prison Reform, suggested the new organi-
zation and is workirtg it out, with Warden
Charles F. Rattigan and Supt. Riley actively
cooperating. The league will comprise all in-
mates of the prison, and membership in it is
contingent upon a good record. The 1,500
convicts, after preliminary explanation of the
plan, met in their various shops and held elec-
tions. They selected one man, to be known as
a lieutenant, to represent each shop or com-
pany of convicts, in a central committee of ap-
proximately fifty members, to form the league.

The purpose of this new organization is to
place some measure of responsibility for dis-
cipline in the men themselves, and to give them
fair opportunity, to earn privileges by good
conduct instead of receiving them, as now, in
the arbitrary decision of keeper or other officer.
The rules will not be such that slight infrac-
tions will result in hopeless disgrace, as any
one who loses membership may earn his rein-
statement bv mending his ways. As the con-
victs are allowed to share in the formation of
the league and to make its rules, the public
opinion of the prisoners will assist in the main-
tenance of order. Moreover, the elected lieu-
tenants will share in the responsibility when
the enlarged privileges are put into effect.

The league will provide, among other things,

better use of leisure, in which the convict will
have opportunity to make this more profitable
in effecting his regeneration.

The resolutions which were adopted follow:

"Whereas, The Hon. John H, Riley, Super-
intendent of State Prisons of tlie State of New
Ndrk, has by initiative, endeavor and encour-
agement inspired among the officers and in-
mates such a kindly spirit of physical, moral
and humanitarian progressiveness as warrants
the hope of more considerate management and
supervision of the whole personnel than that
which obtained in all the previous history of
prison conduct, and

"Whereas. We. as one of tiie first fruits of
the humane thought of the said Hon. John H.
Riley, have been elected by ballot of the inmates
of Auburn Prison a committee for the purpose
of organizing some society or league within
the pri.sou. having for its aim the mental, moral
and civic betterment of the inmates, we con-
ceive it our duty as well as our great pleasure
to express in some tangible form the apprecia-
tion of this committee and those we represent,
and therefore be it

"Resolved, That our sincere thanks be ten-
dered to Hon. John B. Riley and that we. in-
dividually and as representatives of all inmates
of Auburn Prison, hereby pledge our best,
honest endeavor and constant attention to the
ultimate "success of all such efforts as the said
Hon. John B. Riley has already made or which
he shall hereafter undertake looking to the gen-
eral uplift and i)rogressive regeneration of men
and methods inside the walls of Auburn Pris-
on; and be it further

"Resolved, That an engrossed copy of these
resolutions be mailed to the said Hon. John B.
Rilev as a souvenir to recall the inauguration
of a niore promising future for those who for
so many years have been considered outside
the pale of human kinship."

The resolutions are signed by the idnvict«:
who were elected lieutenants of the Ciood Con-
duct League. — Xeu- )'(>rlc World.

A prison guard should report all willful in-
fractions of the rules in writing to the Deputy
Warden and when he fails to do this, he is
remis in his duties.

If a prisoner indulge in what a prison guard
conceives to he iminulent and insulung lan-
guage, he should not rejjly in like terms, but he
should report such infraction of discipline to
the Deputy Warden. John A. Lyons.

The JoHet Prison Post

First Year

Three Kinds of People

There are three classes of people. There is
that princely class of folk who would do ri,e^lit
if they were on an island as was Robin sow
Crusoe, alone. There are plenty of them too.
though it is often spoken otherwise.

This is the class of men and women upon
whom the world depends for leadership and
example. They stand in the fore front of all
reform. Such men as Gladstone of England.
Lincoln of America, and such women as Fran-
cis Willard are examples of this noble class in
leadership. Then in private life we see them
in every neighborhood. The man and wife
living quietly in the community, bringing up
their little family in the way they should go.
Nothing could induce them to do a wrong
thing. The word "righteousness" is written
all over their business affairs. May we have
more of such people. The second class is that
kind of men and wumen who are easily in-
fluenced either for right or wrong. They will
be good if they are with good folks, but will be
bad if with bad people. Now it pays to work
with such a class; for if they are kept sur-
rounded with a good influence, they will make
good citizens.

But the third class is a hard problem any-
where. They have fallen below the plane of
moral decency, and are, many times,, too much
decayed to stand up when put upon their feet.
You might as well scatter wheat on a tin roof
and expect it to grow, as to try to instill the
seeds of righteousness into this class and ex-
pect results. Of course all things are possi-
ble with God, but in few instances do we find
a moral backbone created where there is none.
— Penitentiary Bulletin, Lansing, Kansas.

® ® ©

Men think there are circumstances when one
may deal with human beings without l()\e, but
there are no such circumstances. One may
deal with things without love; one may cut
down trees, make bricks, hammer iron, with-
out love; but you can not deal with men with-
out it, just as one can not deal with bees with-
out being careful. If you deal carelessly with
bees you will injure them, and will yourself be
injured. And so with men. — Tolstoy.

Under severe discipline each infraction of
the rules meant cruel and degrading punish-
ment, frequently causing loss of health and
hastening death.

The man who thinks that honesty is the
best policy and can find no other recommen-
dation for it should come to prison and make
room outside for some prisoner who has served
too much time.

"A conviction for crime frequently carries
with it a future of hounding and helplessness,
of fear and hiding, of uselessness, and aim-
lessness. of insanity and base death." — Julian
Hawthorne.

©• © ®

Hard, rough work in the open air, good
food and the confidence reposed in prisoners
will make reliable men of those in prison
camps if there is any good in them.

# © ®
Severe discipline contemplated treating all
prisoners alike regardless of strength or tem-
perament. Under this system officials without
brains answered every purpose.

® ® ©
A prison guard's attitude towards the prison-
ers should be kindly but firm and he should
have no favorites unless as the result of good
conduct, industry and skill.

© @ ®
A warden of a prison is under obligations to
the community which clothes him with his
power and to the inmates in his care ; to recog-
nize that he is also warden of whatever good
there is in each of his prisoners.

© ® ©
Severe discipline usually resulted in either
cowardly or desperate prisoners; under it
many left at the completion of their sentences
broken down in health and unfit for freedom.

© @ ©
Commitment papers may provide for hard
work but they are always silent on cursing,
striking or otherwise mistreating prisoners.

© © ©
A prison guard should realize that th( I
Deputy Warden rules on cases in the capacity
of a judge, and that his verdicts should not b'
criticized by any officer of a lower rank.

February 1, 1914 TllO Joliot Prison Post 87

EXTRACTS FROM THE CONSTITUTION OF ILLINOIS, 1870.

PREAMBLE. We, the people of the state of Illi-
nois — grateful to Almighty God for the civil, politi-
cal and religious liberty which He hath so long per-
mitted us to enjoy, and looking to Him for c bless-
ing upon our endeavors to secure and transmit the
same unimpaired to succeeding generations — in or-
der to form a more perfect government, establish
justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide for tho
common defense, promote the general welfare, and
secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our
posterity, do ordain and establish this constitution
for the state of Illinois.

ARTICLE II.

Bill of Rights.

§ 1. All men are by nature free and independent,
and have certain inherent and inalienable rights —
among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of
happiness. To secure these rights and the protec-
tion of property, governments are instituted among
men, deriving their just powers from the consent of
the governed.

§ 2. No person shall be deprived of life, liberty or
property, without due process of law.

§ 3. The free exercise and enjoyment of religious
profession and worship, without discrimination,
shall forever be guaranteed; and no person shall be
denied any civil or political right, privilege or capa-
city, on account of his religious opinions; but the
liberty of conscience hereby secured shall not be con-
strued to dispense with oaths or affirmations, excuse
acts of licentiousness, or justify practices inconsist-
ent with the peace or safety of the state. No per-
son shall be required to attend or support any minis-
try or place of worship against his consent, nor shall
any preference be given by law to any religious de-
nomination or mode of worship.

§ 4. Every person may freely speak, write antl
publish on all subjects, being responsible for the
abuse of that liberty; and in all trials for libel, both
civil and criminal, the truth, when published with
good motives and for justifiable ends, shall be a suf-
ficent defense.

§ 5. The right of trial by jury as heretofore en-
joyed, shall remain inviolate; but the trial of civil
cases before justices of the peace by a jury of less
than twelve men may be authorized by law.

§ 6. The right of the people to be secure in their
persons, houses, papers and effects, against unrea-
sonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated;
and no warrant shall issue without probable cause,
supported by affidavit, particularly describing the
place to be searched, and the persons or the things
to be seized.

§ 7. All persons shall be bailable by sufficient
sureties, except for capital offenses, *60] where the
proof is evident or the presumption great; and the
privilege or writ of habeas corpus shall not be sus-
pended, unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion
the public safety may require it.

§ 8. No person shall be held to answer for a crim-
inal offense, unless on indictment of a grand jury,' ex-
cept in cases in which the punishment is by fine, or
imprisonment otherwise than in the penitentiary, in
cases of impeachment, and in cases arising in th<;
army and navy, or in the militia, when in actual ser-
vice in time of war or public danger: Provided, that
the grand jury may be abolished by law in all cases.

§ n. In all criminal prosecutions the accused shall
have the right to appear and defend in portion and
by counsel, to demand the nature and cause of the
accusation and to have a copy thereof, to meet tho
witnesses face to face, and to have process to compel
the attendance of witnesses in his behalf, and a
.speedy public trial by an impartial jury of the county
or district in which the offense is alleged to have
been committed.

§ 10. No person shall be compelle<i in any crim-
inal case to give evidence against himself, or be twice
put in jeopardy for the same offense.

§ 11. All penalties shall be proportione«i to the
nature of the offense, and no conviction shall work
corruption of blood or forfeiture of estate; nor
shall any person be transported out of the state for
any offense committed within the same.

§ 12. No person shall be imprisoned for debt,
unless upon refusal to deliver up his estate for the
benefit of his creditors, in such manner as shall be
pre.scribed by law, or in cases where there is strong
presumption of fraud.

§ 13. Private property shall not be taken or dam-
aged for public use without just compensation.
Such compensation, when not made by the state, shall
be ascertained by a jury, as shall be prescribed by
law. The fee of land taken for railroad tracks
without consent of the owners thereof, shall remain
in such owners, subject to the use for which it is
taken.

§ 14. No ex post facto law, or law impairing the
obligation of contracts, or making any irrevocable
grant of special privileges or immunities, shall be
passed.

§ 15. The military shall be .in strict subordination
to the civil power.

§ 16. No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quar-
tered in any house without the consent of the owner;
nor in time of war, except in the manner prescribeil
by law.

§ 17. The people have the right to assemble in a
peaceable manner to consult for the common good,
to make known their opinons to their representatives,
and to apply for redress of grievances.

§ 18. All elections shall be free and equal.

§ 19. Every person ought to find a certain remedy
in the laws for all injuries and wrongs which he may
receive in his person, property or reputation; he-
ought to obtain, by law, right and justice freely, and
without being obliged to purchase it, completely and
without denial, promptly, and without delay.

§ 20. A frequent recurrence to the fundamental
principles of civil government is absolutely necessary
to preserve the blessings of liberty.

ARTICLE III.
Distribution of PowerH.

The powers of the government of this state an"
divided into three distinct departments — the legis-
lative, executive and judicial; and no person, or col-
lection of persons, being one of these departments,
shall exercise any power properly belonging to eith-
er of the others," except as hereinafter expressly di-
rected or permitted.

ARTICLE V.
Governor.

§ 13. The governor shall have power to grant re-
prieves, commutations and pardons, after conviction,
for all offenses, subject to such regulations as ma\
be provided by law relative to the manner of apply-
ing therefor. ^^M

The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

ARTICLE VI.
Judicial Department.

§ 1. The judicial powers, except as in this article
is otherwise providecl, shall be vested in one supreme
court, circuit courts, county courts, justices of the
peace, police magistrates, and such courts as may be
ci'eated by law in and for cities and incorporated
towns.

Supreme Court.

§ 2. The supreme court shall consist of seven
judges, and shall have original jurisdiction in cases
relating to the revenue, in mandamus and habeas
corpus, and appellate jurisdiction in all other cases.
One of said judges shall be chief justice; four shall
constitute a quorum, and the concurrence of four
shall be necessary to every decision.

§ 5. The pi-esent grand divisions shall be pre-
served, and be denominated Southern, Central and
Northern, until otherwise provided by law. The
state shall be divided into seven districts for the
election of judges, and until otherwise provided by
law, they shall be as follows:

First District — The counties of St. Clair, Clinton,
Washington, Jefferson, Wayne, Edwards, Wabash,
White, Hamilton, Franklin, Perry, Randolph, Mon-
roe, Jackson, Williamson, Saline, Gallatin, Hardin,
Pope, Union, Johnson, Alexander, Pulaski and Mas-
sac.

Second District — The counties of Madison, Bond,
Marion, Clay, Richland, Lawrence, Crawfoi'd, Jasper,
Effingham, Fayette, Montgomery, Macoupin, Shelby,
Cumberland, Clark, Greene, Jersey, Calhoun and
Christian.

Third District — The counties of Sangamon, Macon,
Logan, DeWitt, Piatt, Douglas, Champaign, Ver-
milion, McLean, Livingston, Ford, Iroquois, Coles,
Edgar, Moultrie and Tazewell.

Fourth District — The counties of Fulton, Mc-
Donough, Hancock, §chuyler. Brown, Adams, Pike,
Mason, Menard, Morgan, Cass and Scott.

Fifth District— The counties of Knox, Warren,
Henderson, Mercer, Henry, Stark, Peoria, Marshall,
Putnam, Bureau, LaSalle, Grundy and Woodford.

Sixth District— The counties of Whiteside, Carroll,
Jo Daviess, Stephenson, Winnebago, Boone, Mc-
Henry, Kane, Kendall, DeKalb, Lee, Ogle and Rock
Island.

„ Seventh District— The counties of Lake, Cook,
Will, Kankakee and DuPage.

The boundaries of the districts may be changed
at the session of the general [*70 assemblv next pre-
ceding the election for judges therein, "and at no
other time; but whenever such alterations shall be
made, the same shall be upon the rule of equality of
population, as nearly as county bounds will allow,
and the districts shall be composed of contiguous
counties, in as nearly compact form as circum-
stances wlil permit. The alteration of the districts
shall not affect the tenure of office of any judge.

§8. Appeals and writs of error mav"be taken to
the supreme court, held in the grand division in
which the case is decided, or, by consent of the par-
ties, to any other grand division.

Appelate Courts.

§ 11. After the year of our Lord 1874, inferior
appellate courts, of uniform organization and juris-
diction, may be created in districts formed for that
purpose, to which such appeals and writs of error
as the general assembly may provide may be prose-
cuted from circuit and other courts, and from which
appeals and writs of error shall lie to the supreme
court, in all criminal cases, and cases in which a fran-
chise or freehold or the validity of a statute is in-
volved, and in such other cases as amy be provided
by law. Such appellate courts shall be held by such

number of judges of the circuit courts, and at such
times and places, and in such manner, as may be
provided by law; but no judge shall sit in review
upon cases decided by him, nor shall said judges re-
ceive any additional compensation for such services.
Circuit Courts.
§ 12. The circuit courts shall have original juris-
diction of all causes in law and equity, and such ap-
pellate jurisdiction as is or may be provided by law,
and shall hold two or more terms each year in
every county. The terms of office of judges of cir-
cuit courts shall be six years.

SEPARATE SECTIONS.
Convict Labor.

Hereafter it shall be unlawful for the commis-
sioners of any penitentiary or other reformatory in-
stitution in the State of Illinois, to let by contract to
any person or persons, or corporations, the labor of
any convict confined within said institution. [This
section was submitted to the voters at the election
in November, 1886, as an amendment, was adopted,
and became a part of this Constitution.

[Note — We have omitted only those parts of the
Constitution which have no possible bearing on the
enforcement of the Criminal Code.

Under severe discipline the prisoner soon
learned that there was only one side to his led-
ger account, and that was the debit side.

A prison guard should obey the orders of his

superiors at all costs.

® @ @

Severe discipline prompted animosity against
official authoritv.

The fact that the State provides only ten
dollars to a discharged prisoner is the excuse
of many for again falling into evil ways.
Think of it ! Ten dollars and a bad reputation
to start in anew.

® © ®

Severe discipline is gradually being supplant-
ed by humane methods of detention and cor-
rection.

A prison gtiard should be fitted by schooling
and temperament to direct at least one hundred
men.

® © ©

When in a prison, the inmates are kind to
one another it always follows that the Warden
is a humanitarian.

© © ©
Society has no accurate or vital knowledge
of what penal imprisonment is, of its effect
on the men subjected to it, and upon those ap-
pointed to administer it. — Julian Haivthorne.

February 1, 1914

The «folie( Prison PoHt

IDC

3ac

301

Dcmc

Dae

DDC

jcnc

'WT^ assume that you have read this
number of The Joliet Prison
Post. The inmates of the Illinois State
Prison, represented by the force in the
Newspaper Office, will do their utmost to
publish a paper of merit.

If you approve of the tone of this
publication, you are respectfully requested
to send to the Joliet Prison Post, One
Dollar, in payment of subscription for
one year.

Address:

The Joliet Prison Post

1900 Collins Street, Joliet, Illinois

DIZZIC

DDC

DDE

3CDC

3DC

3ac

The Joliet Prison Post

$200.00 REWARD

First Year

ESCAPED CONVICT

JEFF. SHARUM, No. 3009

Alias Richard Benton, Jeff. Davis; "Little Jeff"

' Received June la, 1913, United States Court, Chicago, III.

i^ Forging U, S. Post Office Money Order; 3 ^/^ years.

-^g^' SS- Height, 5 ft. 5^. Hair, gray mixed. Eyes, green slate. Weight,
119.

Scars: Dim scar 2c long outer thumb 3c below wrist. Small scar front forearm
at wrist. Right knee cap broken, walks lame.

Bertillon: 19.7; 15.2; 1.5; 26.0; 45.1; 167.3; ^•4-

Escaped from Illinois State Penitentiary, August 27, 19 13.

Arrest and telegraph EDMUND M. ALLEN, Warden, Joliet, 111.

February 1, 1914

Tli<» Juliet Prison Post

COMPLIMENTS OF

SULZBERGER & SONS COMPANY

U. S. A.

— = MAJESTIC

HAWS. BACON, LARD, CANNED MEATS

FAMOUS EVERYWHERE FOR HIGH QUALITY AND EXCELLENCE OF FLAVOR

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VENEERS

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Circassian, Mahogany, Quartered Oak,
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ons

Broth

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Lumber and Fuel Co.

WHOLESALE AND RETAIL

LUMBER AND COAL

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SPECIALIZING IN
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We have the larj^est laboratories devoted
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COMMERCIAL

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The JoHet Prison Post

First Year

THE BOSTON STORE

Retailers of EverYihinq

JOLIET'S BIGGEST, BUSIEST AND BEST STORE

QJAY, TOMMY, if you have any doubts
about this store being the Best in Joliet
just ask the Warden. He's traded with us
for many, many moons and he says we've
treated him so well that he just can't go any-
where else.

SURE WE WANT YOUR TRADE, AND WE WILL DO OUR BEST
TO PLEASE YOU. Of course, if you happen to order a Bull Pup or a Boston
Terrier it takes us a little time to hunt up his pedigree and to fill the order,
but we will fill it all right.

I. B. Williams
& Sons

MANUFACTURERS OF

Oak Tanned Leather Belting

Round Leather Belting
Cut and Side Lace Leather

14 N. FRANKLIN STREET

TELEPHONE MAIN 1665

CHICAGO

When Opportunity Presents
Itself Speak a Good Word for

ihe P. E.
Holmstrom Co.

Wholesale Grocers

JOLIET, ILLINOIS

WRRDES BUCK

BUILDING
MAIERIAL

511 and 513 WEBSTER ST.
BOTH PHONES 215 JOLIET, ILLINOIS

AGENTS IN ALL PRINCIPAL CITIES

February 1, 1914

The Juliet Prison Post

&DELITF

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Paint and Varnish Products

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JOLIET OIL REFINING CO.

REFINERS OF PETROLEUM

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PLUMBING SUPPLIES

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94 The Joliet Prison Post First Year

RESULTS SUPREME

USE

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THE JOLIET PRISON POST

1900 COLLINS STREET
JOLIET, ILL.

1914

Enclosed find for One Dollar, in payment

of subscription for One Year.

Name

DO NOT REMIT Street and No.

IN STAMPS,

City

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State

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February 1, 1914

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The Joliet Prison Post

First Year

JOHN MURPHY, President P. J. LINSKEY, Secretary

THOMAS KASHER, Vice President

MURPHY, LINSKEY & KASHER

■

COAL

CO.

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(

THE JOLIET
PlflSONPOST

Vol. 1.

JOLIET, ILLINOIS. MARCH 1. 1914.

No. .{

EDITORIAL

Escaping. From Prison

It is the law of the .state of lUinois that a
prison guard must do his utmost to prevent
escapes and that he may take the life of an es-
caping prisoner in order to prevent such escape.
The guard shall not be held responsible for tak-
ing an escaping prisoner's life unless he kills
unnecessarily or wantonly. There could be dis-
cussion about what constitutes unnecessarv or
wanton killing of an escaping prisoner, the same
as there can be discussion of everything, but as
a practical proposition, a prisoner who attempts
to escape, under the laws of Illinois forfeits his
right to live.

The taking of a human life is always a fright-
ful thing, and it makes no difference if the per-
son is a citizen or a prisoner. All right-thinking
men and women will feel sorry that Oscar Von
Hagen recently lost his life in his futile effort
to make his escape from this prison, and the
only consolation that can be found lies in th^
knowledge that he was in full possession of his
mental faculties. He took the chance and paid
the penalty. One moment he was the living
image of God's noblest work and a second later
he was inanimate. Let us hope that he has not
died wholly in vain : that his sad ending may
deter others from attempting what he undertook
to do.

During the past twenty-two years, thirty-eight
pn have escaped from this prison, and of this
I nber. twenty-nine have been recaptured, leav-
I ine who have not been returned. Of these,
' -^re known to be in other prisons, and

they will be returned here as soon as they are
released from their present places of confine-
ment. One is known to be dead, and those who
are alive and free are fugitives from justice,
wanderers who dare not communicate with rela-
tives or friends ; men who cannot make an hon-
est living, because they must always be on their
guard against every law-abiding citizen and all
officers of the law.

An escaped prisoner never catches up with
his time : it is always before him. and his only
escape is by death.

Profanity and Vulgarity

Many ignorant men arc profane and vulgar
because they think it makes them appear smart.
All the profanity and vulgarity used in connec-
tion with the English language can be learned
by a man with a common school education in
one day, so. after all, oaths and foul words are
no indications of intelligence : on the contrary,
the more knowledge one has. the less likely he
is to use objectionable language. A profane
and vulgar man usually thinks that he has the
right to use such language as pleases him, but
this is not true. No one will claim that any
man has a right to inflict a foul odor upon an-
other and. upon the same theory, no man has
anv right to force the sounds of his foully
spoken words in any other person's ears.

Many ignorant persons are neither profane
nor vulgar, but nearly every vulgar and profane
person is ignorant. As a rule, the man who is
vulgar and profane looks more like an ape than
a human.

98 THE JOLIET PRISON POST. First Year

Published Monthly by the conncction with their future applications for

BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS AND THE , , .... ' f ^, ^

WARDEN OF THE ILLINOIS STATE pardons or paroles ; in addition to that, every

PENITENTIARY, JOLIET, man in the conspiracy who can be proven guilty

•* • • • may have to serve a term in a Federal prison for

Address: THE JOLIET PRISON POST his cfiforts, after his release from here.

1900 Collins Strekt . . - . Joliet, Illinois

@ @

Single Copy Ten Cents

Yearly Subscription One Dollar tt- •. r-».Ti i ▼ • i

Canadian and Foreign One Dollar and Fifty Cents University Of Nebraska Incident

EDITED BY A PRISONER According to the Chicago Journal, Kenneth
Murphy, aged 21, serving a life sentence for

REPRODUCTIONS PERMITTED UNCONDITIONALLY ' . i -kt 1

murder in the JNebrasKa penitentiarv, was re-

^"^Tfifce^lt yoTt'!"i'nfn%ir und'er^?h"e" ^A^t \'{ i^arck f. i^sT^.""^" ccutly parolcd by Govcmor Morehcad of that

state, to enter the University of Nebraska, a

gD28 ... ...

state institution. Upon his application for ad-

Our Counterfeiters mission he was, by the order of Samuel Avery,

T , 1 , • • , . , .1 chancellor of the universitv, not permitted to
It would be interesting to know just how the . , ... . '. , ,
- . . , . . , .1 J register, because of his criminal record,
five inmates of this prison who were recently de-
tected at counterfeiting United States coin ^

planned to gain any substantial benefit by their j^-^ occurrence presents a complicated situa-

operations. We will concede them mechanical ^.^^ r^^^ university being a state institution,

skill, but was there not one in the group who ., , , ^.u t. 4.u r- ' • u u u

' ^ \„ it would seem that the Governor s wish should

possessed even average common sense? These ^ t. ^u ^ j rr xi i n r ± .

* , , , , * ,,.,.- , . not be thwarted. If the chancellor of a state

men had much to lose and little, if anvthing, to . .^ , - ^ ^ • ,• .•

, , . ' * , . university can bar a man from a state institution

gain, yet they worked overtime to counterfeit ? j .• .1 • , r 1 •

°. ', , , ,r 1 11 of education, the ex-pnsoner, bv reason of his

nickels, quarters and half dollars. . 1 u r .1 ' t

* prison record, could, for the same cause, be

® denied admission to a night school for adults

Anv man with some prison experience and a '^^^^ ^" ^^^ P"^^^^ ^^^°°1^- ^e assume that no

small' amount of intellect would recognize at °"^ '^'" ^^^^"^ *^^^ ^ "^^" ^^^o has served a

,, ,., 1 ujjr j-i. sentence for a felonv would be barred from a

once that the plan was headed for disaster as , ,. , , "

^, r ^ re . ^ • .1 . public school on that ground,

soon as the first efforts to maKe the counter- *

feits had been started. When fifteen or sixteen ®

hundred men live in a twenty-acre enclosure, jf Kenneth Murphy desires to obtain an edu-

the population is so dense that secrets are only cation, why should he be prevented, when he has

remotely possible. Practically everything comes ^^g Governor's sanction^
to light in a crowded penitentiary. Even the

officers usually fail to have secrets from the "

inmates, but when the inmates attempt to have On the other hand, a man who commits a
secrets from the officers, then it is one hundred crime and is convicted must know that he will
to one that they will fail. It must be, in this never be welcomed in university circles. The
case, that the spirit of mischief had driven ordi- students at a university most likely would resent
nary common sense out of the minds of these having a paroled prisoner in their midst,
exposed counterfeiters. Even if they had sue- ^
ceeded in manufacturing large quantities of su-
perior counterfeit coins, how were they to be This incident is useful in illustrating the diffi-
disposed of? How long would it have taken to culties which an ex-prisoner encounters. Tc
trace the counterfeits back to their source? Iiave one's sins follow him to the grave seems

^ the inevitable fate of the man who falls. We

have no remedy to suggest for this conditioi

Let us see what these counterfeiters stood to except to speak for generosity from society t(

lose. The attempt will always be considered in the men and women who have paid the penalty]

March 1, 1914 THE JOLIET PRISON POST. 99

The Dependents of Prisoners be had. It is most surprising to see how easily,

With the prison reform movement sweeping beliind prison walls, drunkards and dope fiends

over the country, it is but natural that the fate of get over the longing which controls them when

those dependent upon the convicted men and they are outside. We do not mean that these

women should come in for consideration. Warden nien would not use liquor or drugs while in

William H. Moyer of the Atlanta, Ga., peniten- prison if they could get them, but we do mean

tiary has made a report to the United States at- that within a few days after coming to prison

torney-general, which has recently been made the most confirmed drunkards and dope fiends

public. He is of the opinion that depriving a fam- get along comfortably without the use of these

ily of necessary support by sending its head to stimulants.

prison, without making any provision for the sup- ^

port of the family, is a greater menace to future t • ^i

. , ^, ,, , r' , • , ^ • , It IS true that some prisoners will taKe long

society than the benefits which accrue to society , ,. *•

, ., • .• r ., • • 1 TT u chances to get liquor or drugs, but it is done

from the incarceration of the criminal. He be- . ,

lieves that the innocent are more severely pun- '""''^ ^" *^^ gambling spirit than as the result

ished than the guilty under the administration of ^^ ^^^ '^^^ ^''^^^"S^ ^""^ those things. Prisoners

our present penal system, and he suggests that ''"^^ ^°"^^ ^^'^ '" extreme cases of alcoholism

relief be given in some authorized way. He ^""^ usually up and about and working within a

recommends proper compensation for the labor ^^eek after their arrival,

of the prisoner and that a part of the prisoner's @ @

earnings derived through his work should be

J ^ , ^ J ,1 4. r 4.U J J ^ Missouri Makes Nt'w Contracts for Prison
devoted towards the support of the dependents

of such prisoners. He points out that during

the past ten years $17,525 has been paid to dis- I" ^P^^^ of the universally recognized iniquity

charged prisoners, which, on the average, figures o^ contracting prison labor to commercial com-

less than one cent a day per man for every work- panics, which has always resulted in destroying

ing day. inmates of prisons and injuring free labor, the

^ State of Missouri has recently contracted its pris-
oners at seventy-five cents per working day, per

A proposal that wages be paid to prisoners is nian, to the following named concerns :

frequently objected to by taxpayers, on the star Clothing Company i.ooo prisoners

ground that taxes would increase correspond- Parker Boot & Shoe Company 250 prisoners

ingly, but such arguments beg the questions, Sullivan Saddle Tree Company 175 prisoners

which are : (\) Will society benefit in the long f/"^""^' ^^°°'" ^7P^">' ^^« P^'^°"^"

... Ruwart Harness Conipanv 75 prisoners

run by supporting in this indirect wav the de- t,, ^ , ., ,,, , ,, ,r»ic

, ' . ., ,„. , • '• 1 • The contracts run until December 31, 1915.
pendents of the prisoner? (2) Is it right in a

civilized country to punish the innocent depend- ®

ents of a convicted person? When these two jj^^j Missouri is only a little way behind

questions are intelligently answered by the pub- Delaware, where the whipping posts are in

He, laws will be passed to attempt the support ^,^^g^ ^^,i,l ^^ appreciated, when we inform our

of innocent dependents of convicted prisoners, readers that in penitentiaries where the contract

@ @ .system prevails the officers are paid their salary

_ . _ , , , _ _. , in full bv the state which gives them emplov-

Cunng Drunkards and Dope Fiends . j ^t • ^ ^ n '

^ ^ ment, and the prison contractors usually pay

Those who study drnnk-ards and dope fiends ^^ese officers from ten dollars per month up-
should come to the penitentiaries for a course ^v^rds secretly
of instruction. They would learn that the most '
confirmed drunkards and dope fiends soon re-
cover from the shock to their systems by reason When men who are avaricious enough to be
of the sudden absence of these agencies when willing to endure the stigma of employing prison
they are placed where alcohol and drugs cannot labor for the sake of profits, are willing to pay

100

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

First Year

state employes from ten dollars per month up-
wards, it follows that they expect a profit on
these investments and the only possible way in
which such profits can be made is by perverting
the State's employes from their legitimate voca-
tions of prison guards to slave drivers for busi-
ness men ( ?) whose ethics are lower than those
of the prisoners whom they exhaust.

The higher the price is which the contractors
pay for the work of prisoners the harder will
the task be made for those prisoners and the less
chance there is that any leniency will be shown
to anv of the large numbers of dying consump-
tives, who are inevitably produced in all insti-
tutions where long sentences are served and
where the exploiting of prison labor is permitted.

Julian Hawthorne on Prison Methods

Julian Hawthorne's writings regarding the
Atlanta. Ga., prison are just what might have
been expected from a man guilty of crime who
tries to befuddle himself into the belief that he
is innocent. No prison can seem right to a
man in that state of mind, because he is neces-
sarily prejudiced before he enters the prison
walls.

and who admits it, because only such a one
can reason from the correct viewpoint.

Julian Hawthorne's articles on the Atlanta
]jrison will attract temporary notice, and will
shortly be forgotten.

He has written many fine paragraphs, but his
articles as a whole are unsound and misleading.

In view of his talents, he might have made
a lasting impression upon prison methods, but
he has, unfortunately, let the opportunity go by.

We Do Not Lose Our Names

It is generally the opinion of society that con-
victed persons, upon entering penal institutions,
lose their names and become numbers. This is
in part a mistake. A prisoner, upon entering,
is given a number, but he keeps his name. The
number is a great convenience to the prisoners
as well as the officers. It serves as a ready
means of identification for the many John
Smiths ; it enables the laundryman to get the
underclothing back to the right man, etc., etc.

There are in every large ])rison at least three
classes of prisoners : (1) those who are inno-
cent of the crimes they are serving time for.
(2) those who are guilty but who claim to be
innocent, ( 3 ) those who arc guilty and admit
it. One should not expect logical views from
either of the first two classes, because it is
impossible for an innocent person to be recon-
ciled to incarceration, and as to a prisoner who
is guilty but who claims to be innocent, he is
either untruthful or mentally unbalanced.

Some day an author will do to the present
penal system what Harriet Beecher .Stowe did
to slavery when she produced "Uncle Tom's
Cabin." and it seems likely such author will
be a person who has served time, but if that is
the case, it will be one who knows he was guilty

Outside of a prison, the giving of numbers to
prisoners is usually looked upon as one of the
horrors of prison life, but the inmates do not
look upon it as such. They are willing to do
without a lot they get in prison, but they are
perfectly willing to keep the number until they
go out.

The Trusty's Enemy

The worst enemy of the "trusty" is the good-
hearted fool citizen who, in a spirit of mistaken
gene'"osity, hands such a prisoner a bottle of
whisky. Either the prisoner has no use for the
poison or he falls before temptation and takes
one or more drinks, with the result of losing his
good job and being placed where that form of
temptation cannot reach him. Out in the world
a man may be able to take a drink without that

March I. I'.M)

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

101

tact becoming known, but in an institution where
no one drinks, a wliisky breath can be detected
across the room.

Many prisoners are here because they have
been drunkards and that faihng has led them
to crime. These men become so far cured in
this institution that they have not any craving
for liquor until they see it ; then the old desire
comes back, and the man frequently is not strong
enough to repulse it, and he falls. It is a ter-
rible thing for the prisoner who has worked his
way up to the position of trusty to lose out, for
frequently he has many years to serve.

Spring will soon be with us. and then the pris-
oners who are selected for the work will be
sent out as honor men to the camps, and as
surely as this happens, the kind-hearted fool with
his bottle of whisky will try to help the boys
along a little. The man who gives a prisoner
any alcoholic drink is in the same class with the
fool who thinks that the gim is not loaded.

There and Here

There has been much press comment recently
on the action of the Federal authorities at Fort
Leavenworth, where stripes were discarded as a
means of punishment, because it was said that
many of the prisoners looked upon their fellows
who wore stripes for misconduct as heroes and
martvrs.

On the other hand, the warden of this prison
has recently commenced dressing all prisoners
convicted of serious infractions of the rules in
stripes, and the result is that the few men in
this prison who are so dressed can find no sym-
pathy among the other inmates. Here they are
n(^t considered heroes or martvrs.

Wherever men are persecuted, the conspicuous
victims are looked upon as heroes and martyrs.
Wherever life is worth living, ofTenders against
law and order — which in prisons is called dis-
cipline — are despised.

Prison Contract Labor in Chicago

In a report made recently by the efficiency
division of the civil service commission of Chi-
cago it was recommended that the inmates of
the Bridewell be henceforth enii)loyed at mu-
nicipal work instead of their labor being sold
under contracts to private concerns.

Contract labor in institutions where inmates
usually serve short sentences is not as repre-
hensible as when it is permitted in penal insti-
tutions where sentences are reckoned by years
instead of by days and months; but the destruc-
tive competition of prison-made gocnls with free
labor remains the same, and the slave-driving of
helpless inmates by guards who are first paid by
the community for doing their duty and then are
secretly paid regularly by the contracting firms
to represent their interest in getting the greatest
possible amount of work done by prisoners who
are helpless against unusual oppression, remains
the same.

The state of Illinois has gone on record
against contract labor, many years ago.

Senility in Prison

We publish in this issue a group portrait of
three inmates of this prison who typify a class
of prisoners who are in their second childhood.
Some of them cannot explain why they are here.
All they know about their life is that it is
very uncomfortable and that the stone walls of
their cells are an excellent aid to rheumatism.

Owing to their physical and mental condition,
they are undergoing much harder punishment
than arc those prisoners who are in full pos-
session of all their faculties, and this in spite
of all that the authorities can do to alleviate
their conditions.

In many instances these old men have been
here so long that they have been ft)rgotten by
former friends and relatives. Does society de-
mand that their i)unishment be continued?

What they need is to be helped by kind-
hearted people and lawyers, and the editor of
this publication is anxious to give full informa-
tion to those that desire to aid them.

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

These men are serving life sentences. Reading from left to right they have served respectively twenty,
eighteen and twenty-two years and are now sixty, seventy-one and sixty-nine years of age.

March 1, 1914

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

103

EDITOR'S COLUMNS

About Knockers and Snitchers

February 10, 1914.
To the Editor:

I have read in the Post a line or so regarding
"knockers" and "snitches," and I wish to ask
what your idea of such may be. I am going to
tell you what I would call a knocker, aiid, if
you feel inclined to do so, I would like to hear
what you think about this subject, as it is caus-
ing a somewhat ill feeling in this prison. What
I call a knocker is a man who is always trying to
tell the officers little petty things that do not
amount to anything and which are none of his
business. His idea is that by doing so he is get-
ting a stand-in with the keeper, whereas in real-
ity he is injuring himself; that is my idea of
a knocker. Now, here is what I call an honest
man. In order to tell you what I mean when I
say that telling is sometimes justified, I will tell
of an instance which happened in this prison a
number of years ago. A prisoner had obtained
a bottle of "soup" (explosives), which he in-
tended to throw against the wall on the Fourth
of July while the men were in the yard, and in
doing so blow out part of the wall and escape.

Now, another prisoner found out that he in-
tended to do this, and he told the officers and
they shook him down and found the dope. Now,
here is what I want to know : was the informer
in this case right in stopping a thing like that
by telling a keeper or should he let the fellow
throw the dope and perhaps kill a number of
people passing outside in the street, the keepers
on the wall and possibly some prisoners in the
vard ?

Here is another : is it right that if a prisoner
knows that another prisoner is doing something
that will injure the rest of the men and cause
the prison a set back in its forward movement
and reflect on a warden such as we have ; to let
him destroy all the good that has been done for
us and make the people outside sore just at a
time when most of us are trying to make good,
and for the sake of a foolish piece of work by
some men that do not appreciate what is being
done for us, should we stand by and see them
destrov our chances for advancement which the

public is giving us now or should we inform the
officers and stop it? Is he in your opinion a
knocker? Such a case happened here not long
ago and the knocker is being cussed by some o7
the inmates. They call him a "rat" and all such
as that. If such things as those fellows were
doing were to become known outside and traced
to this prison what would our warden have said
about the man who knew, for not stopping it
and what eflfect would it have on us? Is it right
for all to, suffer for the foolishness of two or
three? I think any man that knows of such
things going on that will injure all of us is not
a man at all if he does not try to stop it.

An Inmate.
Note — It will always be difficult to find the
dividing line between duty and snitching. To a
person of good character knowledge of wrong
doing is always embarrassing.

People who lead clean lives in wholesome sur-
roundings never worry about knockers and
snitchers.

Those who commit the greatest crimes are
most insistent upon closed eyes and sealed lips.
Thus we see that the lower ones character is the
more insistent he becomes that all others should
possess the particular virtue which is necessary
for his safety.

A prisoner can usually be square with all the
inmates and the officers, but it requires some
wisdom and tact. He should refuse to become a
party to any secret and generally speaking he
should mind his own business. He should try
to make life a little easier for his "brothers in
law," and .should pride himself on fair dealing
with his fellow prisoners. He should keep his
word at all times, even to those who have become
his enemies. He should never try to "get even"
by disclosing information in order to hurt an
enemy.

If any prisoner had "soup" (explosives) within
the walls of this prison that fact would at the
earliest possible opportunity be made known to
the officers, if such fact were known by the —
Editor.

^ ^

The watchword of the age is energy ; the goal,
success. — The Better Citizen, Rahway, N. J.

104

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

First Year

Free Copies for Prisoners

Each prisoner received a copy of the January
number without cost, and the same will be done
with regard to the February issue. The expense
of the copies distributed to the inmates is borne
by the Library and Amusement fund, and it is
the intention of the authorities to continue this
indefinitely, but discontinuance is to remain op-
tional.

For the present, prisoners will be permitted
to mail their copy to any address in the United
States and the prison authorities will pay the
postage. To do this, the inmate should hand
his paper to his keeper, who will write the name
and address of the person to whom it is to go
legibly on a slip of paper and then send both
to the ofiice of the Superintendent of Mails.

Under no circumstances should the name and
address or anything else be writen on the paper,
as this is against the rules. Inmates are not
permitted to pay for any paper or to subscribe.
nor yet to pay for the subscription of a friend.
In no way will the prisoners or any one of them
be permitted to pay any money to The Joliet
Prison Post. — The Editor.

The foregoing instructions appeared in the
February number, and are repeated because of
the trouble the inmates and the officers have
caused us by their disregard of these instruc-
tions. Numerous copies have reached us with
names and addresses written on the magazines,
instead of being written on a loose piece of
paper laid inside the magazine. In many cases
prisoners marked passages in the articles and
wrote letters in the masrazine.

Graded Feeding

A novel plan of keeping prisoners on good
behavior has been thought of by W. O. Murray,
one of the penitentiary commissioners. Believ-
ing that most men are more concerned with what
they eat than hardly anything else, he thinks it
would be a good scheme to have two different
sets of tables at the Huntville penitentiary — one
for those who are on good behavior, and the
other set for those who are unruly and not in-
clined to do good work. The prisoners who have
good records would be given better food and a
more extensive bill of fare than the others. Mr.
Murray believes that such a system would do
more toward making the prisoners behave than
all of the "bats" and dark cells ever made. —
Post, Houston, Texas.

Xote — Nearly every prisoner or ex-prisoner
knows that Mr. Murray's suggestion is sound to
the core. — Editor.

About Our Counterfeiters

Recently the warden of the Joliet penitentiary
introduced many reforms looking to the amelior-
ation of the life of the convict. They were al-
lowed more privileges than they ever enjoyed
before, and the first use that they made of their
liberty was to coin counterfeit nickels in the
machine shop. They already had passed $100 j
worth of nickels and had prepared dies for quar-
ters and dollars, none of which had been coined.
Thus does the holy cause of reform get a set-
back. — Star, Peoria, 111.

\\t desire to state that we mail the paper
under a second-class mailing privilege obtained
from the United States government, and that
the rules of the Post Office Department forbid
any writing on or in a magazine which is mailed
as second-class matter.

Last month we substituted new copies for all
that had writing on, but we will not do it again.
After this notice appears we will destroy all
magazines which are sent to us for mailing with
even one stroke of writing on them. — Editor.

Note — The foregoing editorial is reproduced
here in order to bring home to our would-be
counterfeiters the fact that in attempting to
please themselves they have injured the cause of j
prison reform. — Editor.

I Desire to Meet Him

The author of "My Wonder Night," which ap-
pears in this number, is requested to make him-
self known to the

Editor.

Marcli 1. I'.tH

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

105

INTERVIEWS

p. D. CLARKSON

SUPERINTENDENT OF PAROLE AGENTS

On the Paroling of the Prisoners from the
Illinois State Penitentiary

(Interview by the Editor)

For convenience this article is treated as if the
parole law applied only to men. It applies equally
to women and everything in this article applies tu
women as well as men. — Editor.

■ @

Prisoners from the Joliet prison while on pa-
role are looked after for the Warden by six
parole agents, namely, myself, as Superinten-
dent of the Parole Agents ; William Christy, who
is in charge of the Chicago office whenever 1
am absent; Henry J. Roesch, Samuel E. Erick-
sen. James McFadden and Thomas L. Matthews.
Our office is at room 202, 180 Dearborn Street.
Chicago. James McFadden makes his headquar-
ters at the Joliet prison and Thomas L. Mat-
thews operates from Galesburg, 111.

We give our undivided attention to the work
of looking after paroled prisoners, and we are
not permitted to hold any other employment.
We are on duty regularly from eight o'clock in
the morning until five-thirty o'clock in the after-
noon. In cases of emergency, there is no limit
to our hours of employment.

It is to our interest to have prisoners who are
paroled from the Joliet prison succeed in estab-
lishing themselves as good citizens, and it is
our duty to devote ourselves wholly to this ob-
ject and we do our best to bring about the de-
sired results. We meet with varying success.
Frequently our eflforts are rewarded by the grati-
tude of those prisoners who succeed : sometimes
we are blamed by those who violate the condi-
tions of their paroles and in consequence thereof
are returned to the prison to serve more time
luider their original sentences.

It nuist at the outset be understood that under
the indeterminate sentence law, man\- convicted
men are sentenced to the Joliet pri.son to serve
sentences running from one year to five, to ten.
to fourteen, to twcntv vears and to life, while

both the minimum and maximum sentences vary
according to the nature of the crime. Certain
classes of offenders receive a fixed sentence in
court and are not subject to the parole law. Un-
der an indeterminate sentence a prisoner becomes
eligible for parole as soon as he serves his mini-
mum sentence, but it is in the discretion of the pa-
role board to call upon him to do any part of his
sentence over and above the minimum to the
limit of his maximum sentence, less the good
time allowed by law. Thus, a man who is con-
victed of manslaughter, which crime calls for a
sentence of from one year to life, may be paroled
when he has served eleven months or he may be
kept in confinement for the remainder of his
natural life at the discretion of the parole board.

Paroling a prisoner only means that the war-
den, acting under authorit>- from the parole
board, permits the prisoner to go outside of the
walls (under restrictions), to show if he can,
that he is fit to be returned to society. The
length of time which a prisoner is required to
serve on parole is at the discretion of the parole
hoard provided that it, together with the time
served in prison, does not exceed the maximum
of the sentence, less all good time earned under
the good time law. The usual period of proba-
tion on parole is one year.

We take pride in having paroled prisoners
succeed and prosper. Many of them do, and we
are usually regarded as helpers by such. Many
of them who have earned and secured their dis-
charges visit us after they are no longer subject
to our control, thereby showing their friendly
spirit.

Parole violators, after their return to the pris-
on, usually have some unfounded tales of perse-
cution and hard luck to tell, which, by reason
of such stories always remaining uncontradicted,
has a discouraging eflPect <in the, inmates who
are to be paroled at some time in the future,
thus to come imder our supervision and control
later on. We frequently find that these men are
suspicious of us and labor under the impression
that we de-sire their downfall and consequent re-
turn [o the prison. We are anxious that all in-

106 THE JOLIET PRISON POST. First Year

mates who are paroled and who leave the prison their friend. A paroled prisoner cannot afford to

determined to be industrious, law abiding per- prove stubborn,

sons, shall come to us trusting that we will prove ^
ourselves their friends, counsellors and protec-

tors so long as they do their best. They should Prisoners on parole violate their parole and

in the first place recognize that they are not free ''^''^ immediately subject to return to the prison

men but paroled prisoners until they receive their '^ ^^^^ (1) ^^^^^^^ ^he crmunal code, (2) are

discharge. This should not prevent paroled ^"'^^^ °^ misdemeanors, (3) carry concealed

prisoners from having faith in the officials. I ^^^^apons, (4) driuK alcoholic liquors, (5) leave

can confidently say that the governor, the com- ^^^^'^ P^^^^^ ^^ employment without permission

missioners, the warden, the members of the pa- ^"^"^ ^^^ ^^'■^^"' ^^^ ^^^^^ the state without

role board and also the parole officers desire Proper permission, (7) carry burglar's tools, (8)

that all paroled prisoners shall so conduct them- '^"^^^" ^'"^'^ ^^^^'' ^^"^^^ ^^^^' "^"^ °'^1«^^ i"

selves during the period of probation that they ^^^ evening, (9) in any way demonstrate that

will earn their discharge and become useful citi- ^^'^^ ^'^ ^ "'^"'^^^ ^^ '^^'^t>'-

zens and, as one who knows, I am happy to give ^

this information to the inmates of the Toliet t . • i . . ,

•^ Just as soon as prisoners who receive inde-

prison. . "^ , . ^ ,.

terminate sentences enter the prison at Joliet

^ their incarceration becomes a matter of interest

We desire to befriend all well intentioned to the parole board. The board investigates all

men who come under our care. We ask for prisoners' past records usually before they have

the confidence of paroled prisoners and instruct served the minimum time of their respective sen-

them to come to us with their troubles. They tences. While there is no legal obligation on

should always tell us the truth without evasion the part of the parole board to give prisoners

or reserve, then we will help them if we can a hearing at any time, it is the custom to grant

do it within the provisions of the laws of the a hearing when the prisoners have served eleven

state, which it is our sworn duty to abide by months of their sentences— if one year be the

and enforce. Paroled prisoners who avoid us minimum. In the case of repeaters at the prison

and who are reluctant to tell what they have ^^''^^ ^^^ "ot given a hearing until a longer period

done, are doing and intend to do, are the ones ^^ ^"^^ ^^^ passed, or in cases of conviction for

who arouse our suspicions and are frequently ^^^'^^ stealing, which carries a minimum sen-

those who get into trouble, which results in their ^^"^^ °^ ^^^^^ ^e^'^' ^^^ prisoners do not obtain

being returned to the prison. ^ ^e^""" ""til they have served three years less

the good time they have earned. If, after the

^ hearing, the parole board is of the opinion that

All prisoners on parole should have it clearly it is safe to trust a prisoner outside of the prison

in their minds before they leave the prison that ^^'^lls on parole, the board may order him pa-

so long as they are on parole,— which is until ^oled. If the paroled prisoner succeeds in earn-

they get their discharge,— they are under the "'§^ ^'^^ discharge what remains of the maximum

jurisdiction of the warden just as much as when sentence is rebated, and upon receipt of his dis-

in prison. If they always remember this they ^^'^'^'"^. ^^ ^' ^'^^' ^''^ "^^ ^^^^^^- ^^'^ ^^^'^

have a much greater chance to earn their dis- ^epea ing.

charge than if they erroneously think they are ^

free. A paroled prisoner should not hide away After a prisoner has been order paroled by the

from a parole agent any more than should a parole board the warden is authorised to permit

prisoner within the walls attempt to hide away such prisoner to go out on parole provided suit-

from a prison official. So long as paroled pris- able employment has been found for him with a

oners have no reasons for evading a parole offi- responsible and worthy employer at living wages.

cer they have nothing to fear from him and they After a prisoner is ordered paroled he is per-

will never regret looking upon such officer as mitted to write to his friends requesting them to

March 1, 1914

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

107

obtain emplovnicnt for him and when some one
willing to give employment is found, an applica-
tion blank is forwarded t(i such person to be
filled in, signed and returned to the warden for
his approval.

Under the provisions of the document which
is to be signed by the employer he states (1)
his place of residence. (2) his business and busi-
ness address, (3) that he is able and willing to
furnish employment and to continue the prisoner
in his employ until he receives his final dis-
charge (which will be at the pleasure of the
parole board, but not less than twelve months
from the date of his parole), (4) to keep such
paroled prisoner steadily engaged for at least
one year at employment (the nature of which
must be stated), (5) to pay him the salary whicli
has been fixed for his services, (6) to take a
friendly interest in such prisoner and to counsel
and direct him in that which is good, (7) to
promptly report to the warden any unnecessary
absence from work, any tendency to low and
evil associates, or any violations of the condi-
tions of his parole, (8) to see that the paroled
prisoner forwards his monthly reports to the
warden on the first of each month with the em-
ployer's certificate thereon as to its correctness.

The prisoner who has been ordered paroled
may, after the employer has been accepted, by
the warden, leave the prison to serve his parole
after signing a parole agreement by which the
said prisoner agrees (1) to proceed at once to
his place of employment and report to his em-
ployer, (2) to make out a written report to the
warden announcing his arrival ; this report must
be endorsed by the employer, (3) not to change
employment nor to leave such employment un-
less by order or upon permission from the war-
den first obtained in writing, (4) to make re-
port monthly to the warden on the first day of
every month as to his conduct and success, which
reports must be endorsed by his employer, (5) to
abstain from the use of intoxicating liquors and
avoid all evil associations and places of amuse-
ment, (6) to respect and obey the laws cheer-
fully and conduct himself in all respects as a
good citizen, (7) in the event of sickness or loss
of his position he must immediately report the

fact to the warden or have the report made for
him. Violation of any of the foregoing require-
ments forfeits the parole contract on the part
of the paroled prisoner and renders him liable
to be returned at once to the penitentiary to
serve out the maximum sentence or such part
thereof as the parole board may direct.

The acceptance or the rejection of one oflfer-
ing himself as an employer is entirely in the dis-
cretion of the warden and the investigation re-
garding the qualifications and desirability of such
person offering to become an employer is usually
undertaken by me or one of the officers acting
under my directions. In passing on the qualifi-
cations of one offering to become an employer
we look to his character and reputation, hi-
ability to furnish employment under favorable
surroundings. We visit the prospective employer
and learn from him if he has signed the appli-
cation, if he understands it and if he is willing
to carry out its terms and provisions.

A paroled prisoner may board wherever he
likes, provided the place seems suitable to us.
When we find that a paroled prisoner is living
at a place where his surroundings seem unfit we
tell him to move. When a jiri.soncr asks us to
help him find a suitable boarding place we do
what we can for him in this respect.

We sometimes receive complaints from pa-
roled prisoners that their employers take undue
advantage of them. In such cases we always
investigate the c<Mnplaint and if we find that it
is justified and that the employer will not treat
the paroled prisoner as he should, we do all
in our power to secure other emi)loyinent for
him.

In securing employment for paroled prisoners
no two cases are treated exactly alike ; each is
handled according to what seems to us the re-
quirements of the particular case. We have be-
come experts in the matter of securing emptoy-
ment for prisoners out on parole because we are
engaged in this work constantly. We have made
valuable connections with some employers who

108

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

First Year

have opportunities and the incHnation to lend a
helping hand to these men. We sometimes suc-
ceed in placing paroled prisoners with large con-
cerns but we place a great majority of our men
with small business houses.

During the parole period we visit the employ-
ers to learn how the paroled prisoner is getting
on and then we talk with the prisoner and learn
what he has to report. We do our utmost to
keep the fact that the man is a prisoner on parole
from all but the employer. When a paroled
prisoner becomes sick, and for this reason is no
longer welcome in his home, we take him to a
public hospital or to Hope Hall.

I have never yet found a policeman who con-
nived to send a paroled prisoner back to the
prison and I know of no hounding or interfer-
ence with prisoners who are out on parole and
who act the part of men. The paroled prisoner
who behaves himself, shuns bad company and
avoids all evil places, has no trouble whatever.
The paroled prisoner who keeps bad company,
goes to places of ill repute, or gets drunk,
promptly attracts the attention of police officers
and I consider this right.

When a paroled prisoner is arrested we are
notified and we assist him to clear himself if we
consider him innocent, but if he has violated his
parole we return him to the prison. We fre-
quently appear in the courts to look after the
interests of these prisoners. We make allow-
ances for hard luck and help the paroled pris-
oner who tries to do right but who is unfortu-
nate. A paroled prisoner must remain in this
state while on parole. No paroled prisoner is
ever returned to the prison under the present
administration unless he deserves it.

The prisoners who are ordered paroled and
who are unable to secure an employer are taken
out of the prison by Major M. A. Messlein, rep-
resenting Mrs. Maude Ballington Booth. This
usually causes a delay in leaving the prison of
about three months. Major Messlein takes these
men to Hope Hall, situated at the corner of

Ridge avenue and Norman street in Chicago.
At this home the paroled prisoners are well fed,
have home surroundings, good reading, fine beds,
splendid example and great interest is taken in
them, and are under no compulsory expense for
board and lodging.

The paroled prisoner who acts the part of a
man and who deals fairly and squarely with Ma-
jor Messlein will be encouraged in every proper
way and he will easily earn his discharge. We
co-operate with Major Messlein whenever he
calls on us for assistance but until then we leave
the handling of the prisoners who are paroled
to him entirely to his discretion. He has always
kept us satisfactorily informed as to the men in
his charge.

The parole violators who are sent back to the
prison and who circulate stories to the discredit
of Hope Hall or to Major Messlein in order to
clear themselves from blame for their return, de-
serve nothing but contempt.

Under Warden Allen's management a very
large proportion of paroled prisoners are earning
their discharges. It is too early to give statistics
because a year usually elapses after leaving
prison before the paroled prisoner can earn his
discharge.

THOMAS R. O'BRIEN

CHIEF ENGINEER AT THE ILLINOIS
STATE PENITENTIARY

On the Work and Men in His Department

(Interview by the Editor)

I have under my supervision between one hun-
dred and twenty-five and one hundred and fifty
male prisoners, which includes blacksmiths,boiler-
makers, bricklayers, carpenters, coalpassers, cin-
der pitmen, draughtsmen, electricians, engineers,
firemen, moulders, machinists, painters, plumb-
ers, porters, tinners, storekeepers, water tend-
ers, clerks and bookkeepers. The majority of
these employes have a familiarity united with
dexterity in the performance of their work.

March 1, lOH

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

109

I find the inmates who are assigned as my
assistants as a whole as capable and congenial
as any men T have ever employed outside of
prison. Some of my assistants are the most
enthusiastic men at their work that I have ever
met. and I would have no hesitancy in giving
them employment if T were engaged in business
outside of prison and in need of conscientious
workers.

It sometimes happens that some of my men
work thirty-six hours witliout sleep to remedy
conditions that occur from time to time. They
have always responded cheerfuly in emergencies.
Occasionally one becomes dissatisfied or tired
of his work and requests a change to some other
department ; in such cases I use what little influ-
ence I have to transfer him where he desires to
go or to some position more suitable to him.

That we have been busy since I took charge
on August 20, 1913, will be seen from the fol-
lowing:

A two-story stone building, 47x62 feet, has
been erected within the prison walls at the north-
west corner of Broadway and Railroad street.
It is now in part occupied by the yard master
and his force of men, and the remainder will
soon be occupied by the fire department and as
sleeping quarters for the inmates who work at
night and sleep during the day.

A new 20x45 feet building for the storage of
oils outside of the walls has been built.

A recreation park, also outside the walls, has
been laid out. It is enclosed by 1,540 feet of
fence twelve feet high.

.\ complete and new line of pipes throughout
the warden house has been installed for pro-
tection against fire.

A cement floor has been laid in the kitchen of
the hospital and another in the basement under
the store and library.

A new pump has been installed in the bath-
room and piped, giving a direct supply of arte-
sian water to the cell houses for drinking pur-
poses.

A new electric air compres.sor has been in-
stalled, giving an added supply of water for fire
protection.

A new iron and wooden gate has been made
for the west wall.

The yard track scales have been repaired,
which involved almost an entire new outfit.

Three schoolrooms, a school office and an art-
ist's room have been built in connection with the
chapel.

A new stairway from the chapel to the ground
has been erected for use in case of fire and acci-
dent when the cha])el is used.

A building is being rcmcjdcled for use as of-
fices for the industrial agent and the newspa|>cr
staflF.

Work is in progress for the extension of the
ash pit through the power house to eliminatr
clogged conditions.

Our boilers Xos. 2, 3, 4 and 5 are being re-
constructed to increase their efficiency.

A concrete retaining wall is in the course of
construction between the Elgin, Joliet and East-
ern railroad tracks and the quarry. This wall
is twelve hundred feet in length, thirteen feel
high and five feet thick at its base and twenty
inches at the top.

In the near future work will be commenced
on new fire mains leading from the main feed
to the hospital building, the machine and lum-
ber warehouses, the cooper and rattan shops and
the women's prison.

A large water reservoir is to be rebricked and
cemented.

The physical condition of this plant was at
the breaking-down point when I took charge,
and there is much more unavoidable constructive
work to be done.

^ ^ -^

.Severe discipline meant cruel punishment for
laughing, gazing, talking in shop or yard, get-
ting out of step, writing notes, and failure to
close the iron cell doors on the second.

^ « 4»

Severe discipline usually resulted in either
cowardly or desperate prisoners ; unrler it many
left at the completion of their sentences broken
down in health and unfit for freedom.

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

First Year

MISS FRANCIS COWLEY

NURSE AT WOMEN'S PRISON
On Women in Penal Institutions

(Interview by the Editor)

Men, more than anything else, cause women to
be imprisoned in penal institutions (1) by pro-
voking jealousy, (2) by using- women as a vice
medium, (3) by ensnaring women in their evil
deeds and deserting them unprotected, (4) by
turning state's evidence to clear themselves after
having been associated with women in the same
crime.

The inmates under my care desire to be
trusted. They are neat ; have personal pride and
appreciate good, clean literature. The majority
of them have a fixed purpose to reform and all
desire to have happy homes.

During incarceration women should be chiefly
engaged in household Avork — not that of a
drudge, but that rendering them capable of hold-
ing first-class positions.

NEWS NARRATIVE

Two Prisoners Attempt to Escape

On Tuesday morning. February 3, two pris-
oners, Oscar Von Hagen and James O'Neill, at-
tempted to escape from this prison. Both men
were at the time working in the quarry and by
reason of repair work to the quarry fence there
appeared to be an opportunity to escape by way
of a temporary hole in the fence.

Von Hagen went through first and his act
was seen bv Guard Arthur R. Carver, who was
on the ground and unarmed. Mr. Carver gave
the alarm to Guard Jerry Collins, who was near
by in an elevated lookout station, armed with a
high-power rifle and an abundance of steel-
nosed bullets. Mr. Collins saw Von Hagen run-
ning at top speed and twice called to him to
halt, to which the fugitive paid no heed. When
\'^on Hagen was within a few feet of the end
of a long freight train, beyond which he would
liave disappeared, Mr. Collins fired at a range
of one hundred and fifty feet. Immediately Von
Hagen raised his arms and fell to the ground,
face downward, and lav still.

I do not believe in the silent system for women
in prisons without frequent talking seasons or
periods. Wherever the silent system prevails
there is much revenge or spite work planned,
because of sphinx-like expression and tomb-like
stillness.

A woman while in prison should be instructed
in every possible w^ay to get the best out of her
every act and to value time and opportunity.

Women in prisons should have the privilege
and encouragement from the authorities to at-
tend class instructions in fundamental branches
of education (public school course) a portion of
the daytime being devoted to this instruction
while the mind is iii fit condition. I do not ap-
prove of evening classes for women prisoners
after a hard day's work, and if the classes are
taught by teachers who are prisoners, such teach-
ers should not be required to perform any other
work, I would by all means have domestic sci-
ence taught the inmates.

As soon as the shot had been fired, prisoner
James O'Neill, who was inside the quarry fence
climbed it, and Mr. Carver thinking that O'Neill
was simply curious to see what had occurred,
ordered him to come down, which he did.
O'Neill next dashed out through the same open-
ing in the fence Von Hagen had gone through
and started off in a southeasterly direction, past
the prostrate body of Von Hagen, towards the
end of a train of freight cars which was stalled,
followed closely by Mr. Carver.

Officer Collins was at that moment busy at the
telephone reporting to the officers at the warden
house what had occurred. This enabled O'Neill
to reach the freight cars, which shielded him
from the view of Mr. Collins. When Mr. Car-
ver reached the freight cars he kept running
after the prisoner, but on the other side of the
train, where Mr. Collins could see him. By
doing this he hoped to attract the attention of
Mr. Collins to the escaping prisoner. He suc-
ceeded in this, meanwhile keeping close to

March 1, 1914

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

Ill

O'Neill, who finally reached the end of the cars
and sped out into the open. At this moment Mr.
Collins fired four successive shots at the fugi-
tive, but missed. By this time the escaping pris-
oner was beyond the range of the rifle, and as
Mr. Collins was the last armed outpost in the
direction O'Neill had fled, the latter was tempo-
rarily free except for Mr. Carver, who was keep-
ing pace with him as he ran on across the prison
farm. Soon the prisoner passed the boundaries
of the farm and reached a small settlement,
where he ran into a house. Mr. Carver, know-
ing that the alarm had been given and that offi-
cers might be expected at any moment, decided
to wait outside the buildings and he patrolled
near by in order to prevent the fugitive from
escaping unseen. After a wait of about fifteen
minutes O'Neill came out, dressed in citizens'
clothing and he started to retrace his steps, ap-
parently unconcerned. Mr. Carver wishing him
to believe that he was not recognized, approached
and asked if he had seen anything of an escap-
ing prisoner, and noticed that O'Neill had his
right hand on his hip pocket. By a quick move
Mr. Carver grabbed his right hand in both his
own. This left O'Neill's left hand free, and
he commenced to use it with full force on Mr.
Carver, who devoted his energies towards pre-
venting the prisoner from drawing a weapon.
In the struggle Mr. Carver, who was the smaller
man, got the worst of it, but he did not release
his hold on the other's right hand. Mr. Carver
supposed that he was fighting for his life and
was willing to take punishment if by so doing
he could prevent his prisoner from drawing a
weapon. O'Neill then tried to choke Mr. Car-
ver. By this time there were about fifty men and
women and children present and Mr. Carver
called upon the men to help him, but no as-
sistance was rendered him. Then Mr. A. J.
Duller of Rockford, 111., a conductor on the
C, M. & G. railroad, approached Mr. Carver,
who called upon Mr. Duller to search the pris-
oner, but the conductor declined to do this.
Then Mr. Carver asked him to strike the pris-
oner over the head, which request Mr. Duller
complied with, striking O'Neill a hard blow on
the head with his fist. At this moment Mr.
Duller's train started to pull out and he ran to
catch it.

The blow struck the prisoner by Mr. Duller
weakened him and this gave Mr. Carter, who
during all the struggle had been underneath, a
chance to satisfy himself that O'Neill probably
had no weapon, and then he commenced to fight
to get the upper hand. In a short time Mr.
Carver was on top. At this time a civilian came
up and struck Mr. Carver a blow on the mouth
with his fist and then grabbed him by the right
shoulder, another civilian grabbed his left arm,
but they did not again strike him. Meanwhile
the two civilians advised O'Neill to run away,
but Mr. Carver had grasped two fingers of the
prisoner's left hand and held on for about five
minutes with the two civilians keeping hold of
Mr. Carver, the struggling prisoner meanwhile
doing his best to get his fingers out of Mr.
Carver's grasp. No more blows were struck at
this period.

Finally the prisoner shook off Mr. Carver's
grip on his fingers and started to run as at first
in a southeasterly direction, away from the quar-
ry. Mr. Carver soon shook himself loose from
the two men who were holding him and started
after the prisoner, who was fast losing his wind.
O'Neill was soon overtaken and Mr. Carver
struck him a hard blow with his fist on the left
temple, both men going down with Mr. Carver
on top. O'Neill then cried "enough," and prom-
ised that he would return with the officer peace-
fully if the latter would not strike him again.

He then sat down, exhausted, and Mr.
Carver stood guard over him, surrounded by an
unfriendly crowd. Deputy Warden William
Walsh and a number of officers arrived shortly
after and he took charge of matters. The De{)-
uty Warden had been directed to the right place
I)y a resident who had viewed as much as pos-
sible of what was transpiring, meanwhile re-
maining where the officers from the Warden
House were likely to pass.

In all O'Neill had succcede<l in getting about
a mile away from his starting point.

When the body of Von Hagen was reached it
was found that the bullet had entered the back
of the head near the right ear and passed
through and out under the left eye. This is

112

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

First Year

accounted for by the fact tiiat Von Hagen was
running- with his head pretty well down when
the bullet struck him. The physicians who ex-
amined the body stated that death had been in-
stantaneous.

some of the other men in the actual work. A
call was sent in to the Joliet fire department for
a pulmotor, and this was applied, and the work
kept going for two hours, until the last spark
of hope vanished.

A coroner's jury consisting of four clergymen,
to-wit: George Weish, J. M. Schneider, H.
G. Sandross and A. J. Hoag, and two laymen
pronounced the killing of Von Hagen justifiable
under the circumstances and the law.

Death of Stephen Mariano

The accidental death of prisoner Stephen
Mariano, which occurred in the powerhouse
Sunday, February 8, was unusually sad. The
coroner's verdict was that his death was "due
to an accident caused by falling into a pit." The
indirect cause, however, was overzealousness on
the part of the victim regarding his work, in
that he disregarded the rules and climbed over
the railing — in spite of the written warning —
to dislodge the coal so that it would pass more
freely. He slipped, and before he could save
himself, fell into the pit, and twenty tons of
coal came tumbling on top of him. The coal
was slack, and smothered him to death before
he could be released.

The prompt and energetic action on the part
of the officers and inmates failed to save him.
The first intimation anyone had that something
was wrong was when Mariano screamed after
falling. Several of the men ran to his aid, at
the same time shouting for help. There was
only one way to release the victim, and that
was to throw off the twenty tons of coal that
covered him. Only a few men were available,
on account of the rest being locked up in their
cells, being Sunday afternoon, but these few
went to work with a will, and after an hour's
extremely hard work, succeeded in uncovering
him. He was in an upright position, with his
hands over his head.

Dr. Cleminson was on hand and directed the
efforts toward resuscitation, besides relieving

Warden and Mrs. Allen and Chaplain
Patrick were on hand and lent all aid possible.
The inmates who helped so valiantly were Steve
Kelleher, Frank Gagen, William Sanders, John
•Stacey, James Tawzer, Martin Brophy, William
(Sunny) Dunne, Joseph Feinberg, F. Ruby and
Dr. Cleminson. Everything possible was done
in an effort to revive the unfortunate man, but
to no avail. The news quickly spread, and an
atmosphere of gloom pervaded the entire insti-
tution.

Mariano was an Italian by birth, and one of
the most quiet men in the institution. Every-
body liked him. He came here from La Salle
county on December 6, 1912. He leaves a wife
and two children. He was 28 years old and was
buried by his relatives on February 10.

Good work needs no boosting other than the
results obtained.

CONTRIBUTIONS
FROM INMATES

HOW WE ARE PAMPERED

By George Williams

A Prisoner

Prison reform has a great many obstacles to
overcome and not the least is the attitude of
certain periodicals and influential people, who
knowing little or nothing of prisons, regard any
humane improvement in prisons as detrimental
to society, and for such use the term "pampering
prisoners."

At this time our prison is in the limelight be-
cause of the efforts our warden has made and is
making to improve our conditions. Throughout
the country people read of revolution in prison

March 1. 1014 THE JOLIET PRISON POST. 113

methods; the aboHtioii of the '"silent system," derstood when it is known that more than six
which did not allow a man to speak to his fellow hundred men "live" in this building. There is
prisoner, no matter how urgent the reason ; the another cell house called the West Wing, which
daily exercise in the open air, which allows the differs from the East Wing only in that it con-
prisoner the benefit of sunshine and pure air tains one hundred additional cells and about two
for a short time each day, thus helping to pre- hundred more men.

vent consumption— the most dangerous enemy In the third photograph we have an outside

of all prisoners— from getting a better grip on view of the cells from the gallery and the fourth

its victims ; the privileges of writing and receiv- shows the cells as they look from the door. Note

ing visits more often, which enables a prisoner to the man standing with his head almost touching

keep in touch with his relatives and friends, and, the ceiling and the man sitting down with his

by more frequent communication with them, les- back against the stone wall and his knees braced

sen the chances of being forgotten; the "honor against the bed. Note the tin bucket alongside

system," which allows men to leave prisons with- the man sitting down. This is the only sani-

out guards, with their word as the only guar- tary appliance the cell affords. The walls, ceil-

antee that they will not escape, and to return ing and floor are of stone, and the door is of bar

when their work is finished, and many other iron.

improvements, all of which tend to lessen the We wonder how some of these critics would

rigors of prison life, and have a tendency to keep like to work every day and then take their only

prisoners healthy and normal. recreation — there is no outdoor exercise in the

Because of these changes those periodicals and winter — in these cells, where a man almost

influential people seem to think that this prison touches the ceiling with his head when he stands

is a place where there is no discipline and all up, and cannot sit down, with comfort. Aliout

the desires of the inmates are gratified, and their the only way a man can be comfortable in these

fear is that instead of keeping men out of prison cubby holes is to lie down and then he wants to

it will cause many to "break" in. Nothing is be careful not to toss around too much,

more absurd. If any of the readers of this article are in-

If they were familiar with the facts they might terested enough to desire a practical demonstra-

not be so unreasonable in their attitude. They tion which will illustrate the discomforts of these

see only one side of the case and their cry is cells let them lay a rug seven feet long and four

that we are being "pampered." feet wide on the floor, put an ordinary couch

If being pampered means to wedge two pris- on the rug, and imagine it to be a two story bed.

oners in a cell seven feet long, seven feet high place an ordinary water pail on the rug with two

and four feet wide and to keep them there four- small stools, and then stay on that rug fourteen

teen hours every day and eighteen hours on Sun- hours. If the experimentalists will do this they

days and holidays, to compel them to work the will then have some idea of what "pampered

rest of the time without remuneration and then prisoners" endure in the way of discomforts, to

feed them on a diet that costs about five cents say nothing of the absence of sunlight and fresh

a meal, then we are certainly pampered to a very air.

high degree. When it is remembered that men have to ex-
Newspaper articles regarding the changes ist under these conditions for periods of from
made in this prison deal only with the pleasant one year to life it does not require much imag-
side. but a glance at the photographs which ac- ination to understand how little prisoners are
company this article will give outsiders some idea pampered, and when it is furtlier remembered
of a prison that seldom gets into print. that some of these men have existed under these
The first two photographs show the exterior conditions for more than twenty years the read-
and interior of the East Wing cell house. After ers will probably wonder what sort of a prison
viewing them it can be very easily seen how little those critics would build who designate progres-
sunlight and fresh air can get into the cells. The sive prison reform methods as "pampering," and
purpose of these photographs will be better un- "encouraging men to commit crimes."

114

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

First Yeaf

o
►1

3*
(V

C
0)

»<

<
n

March 1, 1914

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

I 'C

South corridor of East Wing cell house.

116

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

First Year

View of a portion of the West Wing cell house illustrating congested conditions.

March 1. 1914

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

117

Interior view of a cell illustrating the two story bed, the low ceiling and the cramped position of the men

in the cells.

11« itit. jUi.lt. L PKISON POST. First Year

HOW I LICKED JOHN BARLEY- think-tank, forming a pool upon the floor of my

CORN cell in which I could read my fortune in much

By GeoT^wanson *^^ '^"'^ "'^""^^ t^^* °^^ ^'""^ ^i^^^^es used to
A Prisoner ^^^^ fortuucs in the dregs of an empty coffee
I was born and raised in a country where, at ''"P' ^"^ ^^^^ ^ ^^^^ t^^^e did not cheer me up
that time, a gentleman universally known as anymore than facing the wall did. I saw John
John Barleycorn was extremely popular. In- barleycorn with that smiling, moon-faced mask
deed, I am quite sure that in no other land has ^^ ^'^ removed. I saw his real face, a death face,
he ever enjoyed himself more heartily than he "^"^^ ^ ^"^^'^ "P^" '^> ^"^ '" ^^^ mocking mirrors
did in Sweden about twenty-five years ago. °^ ^'^ ^^^^ ^ ^^^ ^'"'"i^' ™i"' Poverty, death and
Farmers, laborers and mechanics took him to ''^"- ^^ through the same process and you will
their hearts, hailing him as their best friend, ^^^ "^^'^^ ^ '^^ '^"^ ^^ >'0" ^"^end to give John
the never failing healer of body and soul ; at barleycorn a fight when you go out of here, you
the councils of business and professional men his "'"^^ ^° through it or take a licking. Take the
assistance and advice was considered indispens- "thought cure" as I will call it, and take it hope-
able; artists, poets and writers called upon him ^""y' Prayerfully and thoroughly,
for inspiration ; at the universities he was as ^ ^^^^^ "°^ ^^^^^ ^o" ^i^h a detailed account
popular as any hero of the gridiron at our own °^ ^^^ ^^^^ between myself and John Barley-
seats of learning; yes, even eminent clergymen ^°''"' ^"* ^^^" ^ went out of the gate one chilly
consulted him earnestly before entering their pul- September evening he was there to meet me, but
pits, and the pocket flask was as indispensable ^ ^'^^ previously put myself into the pink of
an adjunct to worship as the prayer book. A condition for the fray by taking many doses of
conceited, swearing, swaggering coxcomb he had "^^ thought cure, and a particularly strong one
become, confident of his unshakable sway; and ^^""^ "^§^^t before, so I had decidedly the better of
yet even then the sexton was uncoiling the rope ^^""^ °"^- ^" ^^^ subsequent rounds, however,
of his funeral bell, and today he is not dead, but ^^ ^^^ "'^ ^^^^^ ^^ ^'^^^' ^^^ ^ ^^^ ^^^e sec-
his doctors are gravely shaking their heads and "^"^^ ^"^ between rounds I never failed to take
the undertal<er is in the ante-room. John Bar- another swig of my thought cure, and every time
leycorn no longer swaggers through Sweden— he ^^^ ^°"^ ^^"^ ^ tangoed up to my antagonist in
is scarcely able to creep. *^^^ """^^^ approved style. (By the way, in a fight
I am not reciting these facts in order to cast "^'^^ J"^^'" Barleycorn or any other renowned
any shadow upon my native land or its people, %hter, always tango up to the scratch, never
but in order to show you how almost inevitable hesitation waltz), I won the fight but it took me
it was that I should become a drunkard, and ^^ ^^^^^ ^ y^^'" ^^^^^^ ^ ^^^^ safe at all, and even
before I had left high school I had more than a ^^^^^ *^^^ ^ ^^^ occasional sparring matches with
nodding acquaintance with John Barleycorn— ^""'' ' ^"^ ^^^^ ^ §^° °"t of here this time he will
occasionally it had been a staggering one. Ever "° ^^^^^ be ^ there to meet me again, but this
since, up to about fifteen years ago, I sought *'"^^ ^^ ^^^"'^ ^ ^^^^ ^"•

him for consolation in sorrow, for companion- ^°W' ^^^ ^^y ^^^ ' "'^^^t good has it done

ship in joy and for courage and strength in >'""' ^^^^ ^^^ >'^" bragging about? You are

emergencies. It was about that time, however. ^^""^ ^8'^^"' ^"^ ^''^" though you did not drink

that John tripped me up when I wasn't looking. 3^°" ^^^e violated your parole and you are ap-

and I had a fall which landed me in this peni- parently no better off than you would be had you

tentiary where the officials endeavored to cheer been drinking." As to the first question, I have

me up by telling me to "face the wall" and prac- "^^er been dirty or ragged ; I have never been

tice the deaf and dumb language.^ Well, I did called a bum or bar-room loafer ; I've never been

not cheer up, but I sobered up, which was more completely broke ; I've never woke up in the

to the purpose — and 1 have been sober ever morning with a brown taste in my mouth, and

since. In the daytime I sawed wood and said the boilef makers working overtime in my head ;

nothing; in the evenings I read and thought, and last, but not least, I've been able to respect

Drop by drop the thoughts leaked from my myself and feel the. pleasure that comes to every

-March 1, 1914

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

one who has fought and conquered a fault or a
weakness. Secondly, I am not bragging; if you
have so understood me I have failed to make
myself clear. I am here again, and I have vio-
lated my parole, but that is another story, and
The Joliet Prison Post is no place for us to
air our private mistakes or grievances, fancied or
real. Anyway, John Barleycorn had no hand in
it this time.

Boys, if I have succeeded in setting you think-
ing I have accomplished the purpose I aimed at.
Think! think! think! Thought created the
world ; thought peopled it ; thought civilized it.
Think then, but think right. Wrong thinking
caused ninety-nine per cent of all the wars, all
the crime and nearly all disease. Right think-
ing builds, purifies, enobles ; wrong thinking de-
stroys, sullies, makes beasts of us.

® © ®

THE LETTER FROM HOME

By R. E. C.

A Prisoner

Every evening a very large majority of the
inmates here are peculiarly alive to the footfall
of the mail man. There are expectant looks
on every face when his approach is heralded ;
likewise, shades of disappointment gather on
those faces should the hurrying messenger,
freighted with his precious burden, see fit to
pass on without delivering the much beloved
and expected letter.

And why not? The letter is the real link —
the only link of consequence — which connects
the inmate to the world of his interest ; with-
out it, life would be well nigh unbearable here.
All the papers, magazines and books in the world
could not act as a worthy substitute for the
little white sheet which can bring what no
printed page could ever bring — love and hope.

In these days we hear much about reform
and reformers ; we read of the influence for
good that this new school of thought has upon
the prisoner of today. It is a wonderful work
that is being done, and what course the reform-
ers may eventually pursue in the future we may
assume will prove the determining factor as to
the ultimate reform of the criminal. Still, T
believe the real seed of reform is being con-
stantly sown in this pri.son, while the man is

yet a prisoner within its walls. The seed comes
to him, neatly sealed within a little envelope
and with Uncle Sam's stamp of approval with-
out. A little .seed that, before starting on its
jlourney, had been blessed, perhaps, by wife.
sister, father or brother; more often dampened
with the hot kisses of a faithful mother, alwavs
the last to put aside the paper and dry the pen
forever.

This will not appear surprising should we take
time to look into the subject deeply and serious-
ly. I have had occasion to talk with many pris-
oners here, many of whom I knew but slightly,
on the subject of home letters, and I have found
them, without exception, strangely responsive.
While it seems a personal matter to discuss, they
did not resent any approach which might lead
up to it. On the contrary, a new and altogether
better side of their nature asserted itself. Their
faces visibly brighten ; their tone appears to
soften ; questionable expletives are not drawn
upon when occasion arises to lay emphasis. They
speak (and this almost without exception) of
their record and past misdeeds, not boastfully,
but regretfully and remorsefully. Often at this
time they will express the desire to live straight
— to make good. I have more than once thought,
on listening to a man who was talking so ear-
nestly of home and home folks that he would
have been labeled as a decided bore in the outer
world, that it only needed at that exact and pre-
cise moment the presence in the flesh of some
member of his household to fully complete his
reform, which his confinement had started.
Whether or not it would have proved a perma-
nent reform is another and still deeper question,
the discussion of which is not wholly apropos
to our subject and would take us from our pres-
ent groove of thought. We are treating of the
human emotions, not strength of character or
hereditary tendencies.

So the "letter from home" will ever continue
to come; it will continue to brighten and awaken
the new thoughts for better things. It must
always be .so. It is the only thing which can
reach and strike that chord which the most un-
fortunate of men have hidden within their
hearts ; the chord that can awaken the memories
'•f home and its love, the mere recollection of
which must work for the dawn of the new im-
])ulse — for reformation.

120

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

First Year

MY WONDER NIGHT

By E. C. C.

A Prisoner

The memory of the events of what I term
my "wonder night" is as vivid and reaHstic to
me today as on the occasion, now near a year
distant, when I experienced them.

It was the night before Labor day. I, in
common with other performers, had been de-
tailed by our Warden to remain in the chapel
until nine o'clock in the evening in order to
enact a full dress rehearsal of the entertainment
we were to present to our fellow prisoners on
the following day.

We started our rehearsal at 6:30 o'clock.
About an hour later, having nothing to do at
that moment, I wandered idly down one of
the aisles of the church, and passing through the
door at the rear of the room descended the
steps that led to the principal street of the prison.
No keeper, officious and surly, molested me.
In accordance with his plans of trusting some-
what to the honor of the men under his charge,
our Warden had allowed us, to the number of
nearly two score — a dozen or more of whom
were "lifers" — to remain out of our cells after
dark absolutely unguarded, with nothing between
us and liberty save an unprotected, easily scalable
wall — and, our word of honor.

As I slowly descended the steps, I ruminated
on the dissimilarity of the policy of our War-
den and that of his predecessors; the former
trusting in the man, the latter in the payroll.
As regarding myself. I knew full well which
would procure the better results from me, and
my feeling I believe to be natural to all pris-
oners who are normal.

I reached the bottom of the flight of steps,
and opening the door before me, a step brought
me into the open and into the night with a quiet-
ness so grave and sweet as to seem almost un-
earthly.

The feeling of delight, intermingled with awe,
that swept over me at the sight that met my
eyes is indescribable. For over a decade I had
never been out of my cell after sundown. In
all those years my only vision of the night had
been a wall-like mass of blackness, a few feet
square, in front of -a cellhouse window.

I was in ecstacy. My spirits soared as though

I had quaffed a magic draught of the fabled
Elixir of Life. I felt as young and buoyant as
when I was a child ; the weariness, frets and
worries of my life dropped from me like a cloak
from the body.

I inhaled gratefully the cool, damp night air
deep into my lungs. The slight breeze played
about me ; now caressing my heated forehead,
now departing, ever and anon returning, as
though to invite me to join with it in its frolic.
The suspended electric lights, set at irregular
intervals along the streets, were swinging slight-
ly by its force, seeming to draw the shadows
after them in a never-ending movement, cast-
ing buildings into bold relief one moment and
obliterating them the next.

Directly opposite me stood the Warden House,
flanked on either side by the cell houses. Every
window shone with light, and with its dark back-
ground of night the scene seemed totally un-
familiar.

Beautiful as it was to my unaccustomed eyes,
this vision of my prison at night was eclipsed
a thousandfold by the crowning glory that was
above my head. Stars, myriads of them,
gleamed and glittered above me, shedding a soft,
silvery radiance on all beneath.

I stood enthalled, for I know not the space of
time, but eventually there entered into my mind
thoughts long unaccustomed to dwell there. For
years, almost from the time I was old enough
to reason, I had been beset by doubts relative
to the religion I had been reared in. I would
read or hear them analyzed and, perplexed,
would interrogate myself: "How is this possi-
ble?". My perturbation of mind finally became
so great that I dropped all thought of religion
and became unconcerned spiritually. For years
I had given absolutely no thought to God or
His teachings.

On that wonder night, as I gazed at the dia-
mond-studded sky high above me — "a fit floor
for the heavens" — ^ knowledge of the immensity
of God's power came to me. The doubts reared
in my puny brain were dispelled ; they were
as nothing; confidence was implanted in their
place. In the sweet quiet of the night God was:
very near, was about me — was beside me.
knelt down on the cold flagstone and, for the
first time in my life I prayed, truly prayed,

March 1, 191-1

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

121

Do you understand why that night to me is
and always will be my "Wonder Xight?"

It was then, by the g^race of God, I received
the greatest of all His blessings — Faith.

^ ® ®

OUR OPPORTUNITY

By A. Theist

A Prisoner

We are here, we men and women, because
twelve men in whom we put our trust have said
that we are guilty of the crime with which we
were charged ; or we have taken a plea of guilty
to obtain a light sentence. Whether we or our
attorneys were lax in picking twelve men who
did not happen to agree with our view of the
case, or whether the police manufactured evi-
dence and railroaded us, is entirely aside from
the main issue ; the salient fact is that we are
here, came here through due process of law,
and that the Warden and his officers are not to
blame for it. Nevertheless, here we are. and we
are going to stay (if we are reponsible prison-
ers) until we are released by the same process
of law which was responsible for our coming
here. Now then, let's be square. Let us be big
enough to pay our debts to the State without
whining and cringing, even if we feel that the
debt is unjust. Emerson said : "Strenuous souls
hate cheap success." If we can help our War-
den win the battle that he is waging, boys, it
will not be a cheap success ; it will be a victory
of strenuous souls in every sense of the word —
but we will have to get together. No one man
alone can win a fight of this kind ; it needs the
cooperation of every one of us, and you and I
can prove by our words and actions that it would
be possible for the authorities to open the gates
of this institution and leave them unguarded,
knowing that the prisoners who are confined
within realize that they are paying a debt and
paying it honestly in the only coin with which
debts of our kinrl can be canceled (the for-
feiture of our liberty), and that they can be
trusted to stay within certain precincts without
the restraint of high walls, iron bars and armed
guards.

Rome was not built in a day and the customs
and usages of centuries of prison administra-
tion cannot be changed in a week or a year.
Rut they are being changed, and it is up ta us

to prove to the world and society that for cen-
turies the men and women who have committed
crimes have been receiving the wrong kind of
treatment. The public is waking up to a realiza-
tion of the fact that it owes the prisoners some-
thing; that men an<l women arc not being sent
to prison only for punishment, but alscj to pro-
tect society from their jrarticular form of vi-
ciousness. ;\ few years hence education will .
supplant hard labor and reformation will be
more than a mere word ; it will be a reality.

Do you not see the responsibility that rests
upon the men and women who are now here?
We are being given the acid test. If we do not
prove pure gold, all the good things which we
now enjoy, all the better things that are to come,
all the hard work on the part of our Warden
and his workers will be lost and this movement
for our betterment will be set back a number of
years. Wake up, you men and women of the
I. S. P. Can you not see that every one of us
is helping to make history? We are in a posi-
tion to help one of the greatest movements in
the history of the world — a movement towards
a fuller, better civilization. Let's get together.
Let us stop being convicts and once again be-
come men and women. Any dead fish can float
downstream, but it takes a live one to swim up.
Are you alive? Then prove it every minute of
the time that you are with us by your conduct.
Set a standard for yourself and make everything
you do measure up to it. Look over every prop-
osition carefully, and if it does not come up to
that scale, pass it up. Remember, men and
women, there is one you cannot lie to. You
might fool others, but 'way down, deep in your
own heart you know whether or not you have
been on the level with yourself. It you arc
square with yourself, you will not cheat anyone
else very much^remcmber that. Let us keep
every ounce of energ)' and good that we have
in us. Men and women will be coming to this and
like institutions for years after we have passed
over the great divide, and we owe them a duty
just as much as we owe a duty to ourselves
and to the present administration, and that is to
do the best we can to help our Warden show
the world that the prisoners are responsible per-
sons, that they can be trusted and will not vio-
late that tru.st.

Do not be a hard loser. If vou have a debt

122

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

First Year

to pay, do so with a smile. No one likes a
welcher or a piker. Do not be one. Get into
the band wagon with the rest of us and help
our Warden make of this place one of hope ; a
place where a person who has never had a chance
can come and learn and go into the world better
qualified to make a fight for an honest living.
Boost, boost, boost and smile. For you know
that someone said that "while you smile, another
smiles, and soon there are miles and miles of
smiles, and life's worth while because you smile."

IT'S UP TO US

By William Richards

A Prisoner

Oh, Spring! We greet you with hearts full
of joy, for you bring us hopes of better days,
days that we had not hoped to see while inmates
of the I. S. P. at Joliet.

This spring there are to be many contemplated
changes in addition to the changes already
wrought in this institution that will tend to the
betterment of all that are confined within its
walls. Many of us probably will be working
outside of prison walls, and while not free in
the true sense of the word, yet out in God's sun-
shine and pure air. Isn't it wonderful to know
that shortly many of us men who have been
behind these cold, gray walls with their miseries
and intrigues (which are no more), may be, for
the first time in many weary, hopeless years,
enjoy the benefits of the new administration of
this state. Let us hope that long may it rule,
even forever and ever. Let us hope that as
soon as the legislature convenes again they will
pass a law allowing the life and long-time men
the privilege of working outside of prison walls.
They are the men who really ought to derive
the benefits of the law which now only allows
the short-time men the profits of its provisions.
Let us who have but short time strive hard
to make a path for the long-term men to tread
that will lessen their burdens. Let it be a path
of sunshine, happiness and hopefulness. It is our
duty to help the life and long-time men in this
prison, a duty which is so important that we who
might go out on road work ought well to consider
our responsibility towards the long and life-term
prisoners. They will he judged by our ability

and deportment. It is up to us. Let us do what
is expected of us to the best of our ability. As
we sow so they shall reap. O, let it not be a
harvest of bitter disappointments, heartbreaks
and utter hopelessness. The disappointment
would be cruel and hard to bear by the ones
who had hoped for much through our efforts.
Their future welfare depends on us. What shall
it be, the utter hopelessness or a future of bright
prospects? Let it be the latter. We can do the
right thing and give confidence to our staunch
supporters, so that when they take the mat-
ter to Springfield in the near future they will
have an argument that cannot be successfully
combatted, that of the good work done and the
deportment of the tried honor men. It will be
very much in our favor, I assure you, and it
will not be a drudge or a hardship on any one
of us to go out and do a day's work. We must
work in prison, as it is. Why not outside of
it? And keeping the lifetime men in mind, it
ought to be a pleasure to try and ease their
confinement. So let the harvest of our effort
be a harvest of bright and cheerful prospects
in future days for all men wearing the prison
garb. It will give us much pleasure in after
years to know that we have had a hand in the
uplift of prison life. It's in .us ; let us show
the world at large that we are not what they
think us to be, the vultures of society. Seeing
is believing. So let us open their eyes to the
utmost. For only by doing our level best in
a straightforward way can we hope to bring
the prison situation to the desired plane — that
of wide-open gates and every inmate his own
keeper. Honor men, it's up to us; let us do
that which is desired and, above all, gain the
confidence of all that are interested in our
welfare.

THE OLD TIMERS

By Abraham Montague

A Prisoner

There are two classes of "old timers" in this
and every other penal institution. One class
comprises the lifers and long-term men who have
been in this prison for a number of years, and
the other is composed of second, third, fourth
tei-mers, etc., to which the writer of this article

March 1, 1014

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

123

belongs. Various people have dilferent opin-
ions concerning us. The police say we are old
offenders. Criminologists call us habitual crim-
inals. State's attorneys call us — well, some peo-
ple have won $25,000 damage suits for having
been called the same thing. It is about the sec-
ond class of "old timers" that this article deals
with. In the past few years there has been a
general agitation and discussion about the primi-
tive methods in vogue in our penal institutions
and the treatment accorded the inmates. All
right-thinking and humanity-loving people have
contended that under the old system the in-
mates were not being reformed, but deformed.
There was absolutely no incentive, except in
isolated cases, for the inmate to regenerate him-
self. The stringent silent system and other strict
rules of a like nature appealed to the worst that
was in a man, and his thoughts and feelings
were shaped accordingly.

In short, society has frankly confessed that its
tolerance of past conditions in our penal in-
stitutions bred criminals. Therefore, society is
to some considerable extent responsible for the
evolution of the "old timers." We are very
glad to be able to write truthfully that since
our present Warden took charge of this prison
in April, 1913, he has eliminated the antiquated
crime-breeding methods of the past and is doing
everything within his power for the uplift and
moral betterment of the inmates. He has our
good will, and when the warden of a penal in-
stitution has the good will and respect of the in-
mates in his charge he has placed them on the
road to true reformation. Gov. E. F. Dunne
has done many good things, but the best thing
he ever did, from our viewpoint, was to give us
our Warden. Nearly all of us are properly ap-
preciating the humane treatment that is being
accorded us now ; the "old timers" more «o for
the simple reason that we know the actual dif-
ference between what was and what is. .Xnd,
in behalf of my fellow "old timers," I have com-
posed a parody on an old well-known song.
There were several suggestive items in the first
issue of the Po.«;t relative to the system "that
was," and we feel that the editor will not dis-
criminate against the following lines :

When we appear before the Board

To tell our tale of woe,
"Old Timers," as we arc. \vc all

Deserve some kind r)f show.

We're products ot a system past

That wasn't hardly fair;
A square deal is our only pica.

And we will play the square.

It makes no difference wliai r.. .lid

Once in a bygone time;
We think the State is paid in full

For what we did in crime.
So when we go before the Board.

We hope to hear them say:
"It makes no difference what they ivere,
But what they are today!"

We hope the Board intends to start

With just the cleanest slate.
Just like the Warden here has done —

The Governor of our State;
If a fellow here can be a man,

Through treatment that's humane,
It stands to reason when he's out

He'll also be the same.

It makes no difference, then, I say,

In what I think or do;
If something can be made of us,

Mr. Board, it's up to you.
Just do as Warden A. has done —

You'll hear him daily say:
"It makes no difference what they were.

But what they arc today!"

WOMEN LEARNING THE
ALPHABET

By an Inmate of the Women's Prison

How happy the inmates of the women's prison
are that conditions have changed ! We now have
a school and though but composed of two classes
thirty out of the sixty-one inmates attend.

.\ few months ago the alphabet seemed to
some only straight and curved lines, which they
were willing to believe could have a meaning
because they had been <^ informed. They are
beginning to learn to put the letters together
and are finding out that if used right these let-
ters will spell their natnes, tnake known their
wants, express their hopc^ and may even serve
to utter their thanks to those who have extended
to them the privileges of education.

These women in our classes are thoroughly in
earnest and. while timid and nervous at first they
are beginning to venture and when called upon
they give evidence of eager desires to know how
and why they improve by study. In the begin-
ner's ila»v ilu' sccoinl reader i< u<;ed a-^ a text

124

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

First Year

book, not because the pupils are as yet fit for the
second grade but because of the recurring use of
simple and most necessary words. The class re-
ceives drilling in the use of words under special
heads or branches, that is, those meaning articles
of wearing apparel, food, household goods and
subjects of history.

Our school room is well lighted and thor-
oughly comfortable. ( )ur cell house matron is
our principal and she is a wonderful teacher,
who combines class instruction with individual
teaching. Her method is : When pointing out
an error, a correction is so placed or given that
it becomes a comparison and the illustration is as
clearly shown as that of a patent medicine ad-
vertisement of "before and after taking." Her
illustrations are of untold value in convincing-
skeptical minds of the real truth of a statement.

If motion pictures were taken, showing the
facial changes of the students in our school room,
I am convinced that the smiles of satisfaction on
the face of the pupil when a new word has been
mastered or a correct answer given to an in-
quiry as to the meaning of two or more words,
pronoimced alike yet spelt dififerently, would
prove that it is worth while to have this class.

One woman desired first to learn how to spell
and write the three words "my," "dear" and
"children," so that in her next letter to her for-
mer home she might in her own handwriting sa-
lute her babies. "My dear children." She was con-
tent for the present to permit someone who
could write better to finish the letter for her.
Another woman after short instruction wrote
her first letter of only four lines to her husband,
hoping that this new accomplishment might help
her in retaining his aflfection of which she stands
in need. That letter expressed a volume.

® ® ®
TO MAKE PRISON LIFE BRIGHTER

If our hearts are filled with bright, cheerful
hopes, difficulties readily fade away. The girl
who works without hope and with her mind
over-burdened with discouragement and doubt
works at an immense disadvantage. Her hope-
lessness causes her to be a target, exposed on
every side to the winged arrows of disaster and
failure. Much of the energy that should be ex-
pended upon the task at hand is used up in over-
coming the inertia within. Such a girl is like
a piece of machinery, so clogged in its joints
and bearings that every ounce of steam is re-
quired to turn its wheels. She wastes so much
of her powers overcoming internal resistance
that it is not possible for her to get but a small
return for her labor.

Try to see the good in every task set before
you, for there is certainly some good if you will
but look for it. Work done hopefully is an
inspiration : to work hopelessly is wicked and
degrading. Fill your soul with hope and you
live. No matter how dark and stormy your
prospects in life may appear, there is always a
bright side to it somewhere, for no cloud was
yet so heavy as to exclude forever the glory of
the sun. View the future hopelessly and you
must see naught but shadows ; look upon it with
hope and your shadows will become a back-
ground for a golden light.

So, girls, let us all lend each other a help-
ing hand to make the days bright and beautiful.

WHAT SHALL HE DO ?

By an Inmate of the Women's Prison

When you rise in the morning form a resolu-
tion to make the day a happy one to at least one
girl. It is easily done ; a kind word to the sor-
rowful ; an encouraging expression to the striv-
ing will go a long w^ay. There is nothing per-
haps so essential to us in this as a sincere, ear-
nest and well-founded hope.

By Robert F. F.

A Prisoner

A second termer who has been a bad man
came to me recently for advice. He is due to
be discharged in April. He told me that he
wants to go straight. He did not say whether
he considered honesty the best policy, or that he
considered it wrong to steal. Take it either
way, he desires to earn an honest living, and he
came to me for information as to how to get
employment in Chicago. Knowing him, I did
not have to inquire as to his qualifications. In
his particular line he is worth from twenty to
twenty-five dollars per week ; with a pick and
shovel he could earn about thirty cents a day
in competition with new arrivals from Southern

March 1, 19J4

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

125

Europe. As he will have served his full time
when he is released, he will have no claim on the
assistance of the parole officers.

He seemed trouhled because he is not going
to steal any more, and he did not kncnv how
he could get a situation and keep it. He is in
good health and when he leaves he will have
ten dollars, which the state gives to all pris-
oners as a start in life.

I desired very nuich to give him encourage-
ment. 1 told him that if he found employment
with a large concern he would usually have to
give a bond, and in doing so he would have to
account for every year of his life since he left
school. I told him that if he secured employ-
ment he would at least be required to furnish
references, and that he might refer to the War-
den. That did not seem to encourage him, so
we sat down to think it over. He was anxious
to find a way of securing honest employment at
living wages and I was equally desirous of tell-
ing him how to do it. We thought it over for
half an hour and then we parted without saying
anything to one another.

A LIFER'S VIEWS

I-ebruary 20. 1914.
To the Editor:

Among the many changes brought about
here in the last year nothing impresses me so
much as the improved conduct of the pri.son-
ers. I have now been here sixteen years and
I must say that the last year has been very
unlike the previous fifteen years. The old
spirit of hate, envy, ill feeling among prison-
ers is fast going. It used to be a iew vvords
spoken between two jjrisoners in a low tone
of voice and the next moment a fight. We
have very few fights now.

.\ few weeks ago my friend Henry informed
me that he was in trouble, having been re-
ported by his keeper for disobedience. I told
him not to worry about it but to promise
Deputy Warden William Walsh, when he
came before him for a hearing, that he would
not disobey again, and then to kee|) his word,
and to my great surprise Henry answered that
he woukl much rather be sent t<i the "hole"
for punishment than to face the deputy.

Henrys preference ft)r punishment made
me curious and he told me that he had been
before Mr. Walsh last fall on a report for
inst)lence to an officer and that when he ap-
peared ft)r trial at the deputy's office he was
surprised to hear him say, "Sit down, Henry.
Your keeper has reported you f«»r insolence.
What ha\e you to say about it? Tell me all
about it." lie rejjlied to the deputy that the
officer was right and that he was sorry that
it had occurred. Then the dei)Uty had said to
him, "Henry, the warden and I wish to do
away with the solitary cells and the warden
has put it up to me to get rid of them. Neither
of us like to punish our fellow men because
punishment is injurious to health and char-
acter, but we cannot get rid of that place w ith-
out your assistance and that of all of the other
prisoners. This appears to me to be a grxnl
time for you and I to come to an agreement.
I want you to help me do away with the 'hole.'
My impression is that after all the men get
acquainted with me we will not need it here.
When I first came here and learned exactly
what punishment in a penitentiary meant it
seemed to me that I could not do my duty and
gain the confidence of the men, and I see no
way out of it unless you and all the others
will help me. I have been permitted to re-
move the restrictions against talking and
against Icjoking up from your work benches,
and you are now permitted to have lead pencils
and I make it a practice to examine into all
reports for misconduct to satisfy myself that
you men are getting a square deal, and I do
not see how I can do much more for you unless
all of you will help me. for there are rules we
must enforce just as they have always been.
We will permit no in.solence or vile language
towards either an officer or an inmate, and
figiiting is strictly forbidden. No officer will
be permitted to nag men. but it is up to you
boys to make it p<issil)le for me to run this
prison the way the warden and 1 want it run.
It is a very bard job, but if all the pri.soners
will help it will be easy. There is much the
warden wants to do for you boys, but it is
up to all of you to hasten or to delay him.
Now go back to your shop and tell your keeper
that I told you to apologize to him. and do so,
and say to the pfficer that I will talk with him

126

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

First Year

about you this evening. You may go now,
but remember that I Avant all of you boys to
help me."

Henry told me that he had gone back to the
shop and that he told the officer what the
deputy had said, that he had apologized and
that the officer had said, "That is all right,"
and had sent him back to his work. That the
next morning the keeper had come to his cell
and had said, "How are you this morning,
Henry?" and Henry told me that he knew by
this remark that the deputy had spoken to the
officer about him as he had promised to do.
Then Henry went on talking, saying, "You see,
the deputy kept his word and I have broken
mine with him. That is why I do not want to
go back to him. Just think of it! Almost all
the men have kept their word with the deputy,
and I have broken mine. In former years I
would not care. I would get a 'bawling out'
and be put in the 'hole' besides, but Deputy
Walsh reminds me of a father talking to his
son telling him to keep out of trouble. I do
not know what to say to him. What would
you do if you were in my place?" I told him
to tell the truth and leave the rest to the
deputy. The next day I saw Henry again
and I asked him how it came out. He said
that the deputy looked worried when he came
in, but he spoke in his usual low voice. That
he had asked him if he had been disobedient,
and that Henry had answered "Yes," and that
the deputy had answered him, "Henry, I be-
lieve yet that you will be a good man, and I
am going to give you another chance. I hope
you will not forget that I always keep my
promises to you boys, and that I want all of
you to do the same with me."

Now, I want to ask all of the men in this
prison how can we get away from a deputy
like that? Are we going to try to take an un-
fair advantage of his kindness, or shall we do
the best we can to act as he wants us to do?
We have not any too many friends in the
world, surely not so many that, we can afford
to spare any, and when we are lucky enough
to have a deputy warden who wants to
befriend us, there is only one thing for us to
do and that is to prove to the world by our
conduct that our deputy has the correct ideas
on running a penitentiary. It jnay seem funny

to some of us that Mr. Walsh can put this kind
of a "stunt" over a lot of men who on the
whole have usually desired to hit back. Some
of us feel lonesome because we cannot foster
hard feelings against our disciplinarian, but,
boys, he has us beaten and we might just as
well own up to it and be glad it is so.

Jesse Sogers.

We need a new prison, by gosh ;

In a cell with two fellows it's "squash."

For we often collide,

(Which is undignified),
And we stand on one leg when we wash.

Camp Hoper's of old Joliet
May return with a sense of regret;
If good times befell them
The home boys can tell them
Right here they can be jolly yet.

I think, if we put it to vote,

The chef in the kitchen we'd smote;

While he does his good part.

We request a la carte
Instead of the old table-d'hote.

Tlie "Knockers" are in for a roast;
Of the warnings they'd better make most.

If the hints we have sprung

Cannot bridle their tongue
We will see they are hit by a "Post.

Our three sturdy plumbers appear
To be busy this time of the year;

Though their wrenches, I figure.
Are big, still is bigger
The wrench which has brought them down here.

Though the Sunday School seems rather slow,
In the subjects quite deeply we go;

But the fat man, so wary,

(Address: "Solitary,")
Is the most weighty subject we know.

"Let reverence for law be taught in schools
and colleges, be written in spelling books and
primers, be published from pulpits and pro-
claimed in legislative houses, and enforced in
the courts of justice; in short, let it become the
political religion of the nation." — Abraham Lin-
coln.

March 1, 1914

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

127

• •"•••••••• • • If

BY HERBERT KAUFMAN

Copyrighted by the Author

I am soul-sore and bended and weary,

And my being is ancient and gray;
The heart in my bosom is dreary,

And I long to be up and away.
I want to re-spend what I squandered,

I seek but one chance to repay;
For last night my soul wakened and wandered

O'er the road to the gone yesterday.
Oh, the wrong that can never be righted !

And the wounds that can never be healed;
The darkness that could have been lighted;

The truths that too late were revealed;
The burdens so readily shifted;

And the thorns that I should have withdrawn;
The anguish that might have been lifted

From a heart that was thoughtlessly torn ;
The clean things my foolish feet muddied;

The innocent ones I judged wrong;
The home that with sorrow I flooded ;

The deaf ear I turned to life's song;
The struggler so easily aided;

The reckless one I might have checked;
The heartlessness that I paraded ;

The dear ones I hurt with neglect;
The flower I robbed of its beauty

And tossed in a day to the slime;
The hour I faltered in duty;

The whim whose indulgence was crime.
Oh, God ! though I face Thee repentent,

I ask not Thy mercy as yet;
I seek not to find Thee relentent

Until the tomorrow is met.
I thank Thee that Thou hast unshuttered

The blindness that darkened my soul.
My prayer to Thee now is not uttered

In hope to default conscience' toll,
I ask Thee to see me in sorrow

And grant me the prayer that I pray —
That I may make right on the morrow

The wrongs that I wrought yesterday.

*PubUshcd by the kind permission of Mr. Kaufman.

128

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

First Year

A Straigkt Talk to tlie World

(Concerning a Remedy)

Written for The Joliet Priion Post

Because for years you now have been main-
taining

That prison systems well you understand,
We marvel that your tone is uncomplaining —

You seldom ask — less often make demand ;
You give but briefest thought in ascertaining

The vital truth of things at your command.

'Tis true we hear you daily criticizing
With silver tongue, superbly eloquent ;

We catch the words, "reclaiming," "civilizing,"
"Temptation," "tendency" and "penitent."

Sometimes your tone is wholly sympathizing —
Your chosen weapon of accomplishment.

And men of wealth, self-satisfied, all-knowing.
With hungry eyes upon their revenue,

Proclaim with zeal that we are undergoing
A wholesome change, undreamed of hitherto ;

A long-range view — a tremulous tip-toeing
To catch a hasty glimpse of "something new."

The politicians, too, have congregated
Conditions here to earnestly debate ;

Have argued, doubted and expostulated
As self-appointed moulders of our fate.

How many of them, though, have contemplated
To personally the field investigate ?

Reformers sound their war-cry optimistic ;

Their newest slogan is : "Attack the Root ;"
Their goodness blending with the idealistic —

And yet we have no worthy substitute ;
Discussing "bumps" and nature's "dualistic"

Is moving some — but by the longer route.

The daily press, when time is quite propitious,
Our cause is apt most fervently to plead,

Then, all-forgetful, fall to be malicious —
See not the flower, but produce the weed ;

And thus the public, giddy and suspicious,
Forget the man and only note the deed.

The idle rich assume a blank expression

When "prison" sounds upon their cultured ear,

And then, recalling, make the frank confession
That once a rare and novel souvenir

By chance had fallen into their possession
While "slumming in that beastly atmosphere."

The blackest of us are not hydra-headed,
Nor are we dyed in deepest villainy ;

To crime think not that we are fully wedded.
If lacking crest or ancient pedigree.

Yet often our release is deeply dreaded —
And so I ponder on — The Remedy.

The Remedy? O, be it inferential

That we, fast bound, the golden key possess?
Ah ! no. 'Tis something subtle and potential,
■ And, like the realms of space, 'tis measureless;
Full well we know its giving is essential

To blotting out life's growing wretchedness.

O, narrow world ! 'Tis ripe for thy umasking —

Thy gilded altars to be overthrown;
For in thy strange conceit thou art but basking,
Yet dare wouldst judge the men thou dost dis-
own.
While from the depths thy castaways are asking
• For just a simple heart that knozvs their own!

E. R. N.

March 1. 1014

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

129

BY JOHN LYNCH— A Prisoner

Written for The Joliet Prison Post

Gazing at the steel barred window

Rising up within my view,
Once I stood and meditated —

Life passed by in mind's review.
Ghosts of all my shattered prospects

Seemed to pass in mournful file;
Darkened more the lonely moments

As I stood and thought the while.

How to ease the doleful hours

Came to me — O, fresh'ning thought !
Thus was bom the new desire,

And the strength for which I sought.
'Twas a vine that brought the message —

Just one stem which always grew
Round the heavy grated window —

The narrow window of my view.

There I watched it through the hours —

Day by day it thrived and grew,
'Till a few out-shooting tendrils

Missed hold of bars and came to view.
Had they come, I thought, to cheer me?

Prisoners, too, they seemed to be
Banished from the living sunlight —

Creeping, reaching out to me.

But I knew the storms of winter

Soon would steal the leaves away;
So I watched them, sad and lonely

Through the lone and weary day.
Then I thought: the vine would later

Grow its tendrils, straight and true;
So perhaps my own redemption

From its lesson might ensue.

Then the sinful thoughts departed,

Trooped away to endless space;
Truth within my heart was ringing —

God had sent to me his grace.
For I felt His love quite near me,

Love so pure and so divine;
Thus to me there came a lesson.

Through God's mercy, from a vine.

• «•••• •"•"•'•'•"•%'• ••'•'•

130

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

First Year

Comratiesi

Written for The Joliet Prison Post

Behind the clouds the sun is ever shining,

We see it not but know it's glowing there ;
O' comrade, let us bide the silver-lining

To joyfully break upon our dull despair.
And come what may, the fair or darksome weather,

The blue skies restful or the leaden-gray,
For us a smile — a sturdy pull together,

Forgetful of the thorns of yesterday.

So, comrade, let us face the new beginning —

Firm, standard bearers in the coming race ;
For rich the prize and dearly worth the winning.

All brave the leaders who may set the pace !
Look up beneath the crushing weight of sorrow,

Let all the fresh and good desires play
Forever in the hopeful, new tomorrow —

Turn o'er the bleeding page of yesterday.

See, through the mists the light is softly creeping;

Cheer up, my comrade, 'tis a goodly fight ;
Soon, soon for us the tired night of weeping

Shall end in morning's cool and healing light.
Then dawns the life for which we have been yearning.

When loosened burdens shall be cast away
Along the road to which is no returning —

The hidden road — the road to yesterday.

E. S. T.

•.•.•.•.•••.•.♦.•.•

Written for The Joliet Prison Post

He is with us in this prison on his cunning mischief bent;

To abash old Ananias he is fully competent.

And you need no introduction, nor give ear to his remark

Would you take his mental measure — you can pick him in the dark.

He's the "Knocker," lone and lonesome, and, no matter where or when.

You will never find him chumming -with, the fellows who are MEN.

It's enough to stir the stomach to receive his evil smirk;
It would take a hundred verses to relate his dirty work.
But I have an inspiration — 'tis a measure for "reform" ;
If we fellows were but voters 'twould be carried through by storm;
Let us round-up all the "Knockers," with no mercy to forgive.
In a JAIL WITHIN THE PRISON where the devils ought to live !

T. S. E.

March 1. 11H4

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

131

In Beer Ci)oUj)=pet

AS SUNG BY JOHN RUDNICK

Our Gennaa Comedian.

Yer may dalk of yur grent insdeedusions,
Yur hombs by der glidderink zees,
Nu Pord und drips in der moundens,
Bud dis blaze iss O Kay fur me.
Der kittcshen hes bean renowaydet
Der food is axemendt each day,
Und Walsh keebs his eyes on der menu
To zee der grub dond't get it away.

Chorus :

Down in deer Cholly-yet

Vat a shange ve've got yu bet.

For Walsh dond't led no von sving on yur chaw,

Or keebers to giff you a deal dat is raw.

Oh, it's nod der zame old blaze,

You kan zee it in mine faze.

Mitt dis food no dout

Ve vill all half der gout

In deer Cholly-yet.

Now dey dond sharge yu any atmizion

Dey gifT yer a chop right avay,

A shafe und a hare cud fur noddings

Und all yu kan eat efery day.

A blu suid't of klose mitoud hesking

A bromize dey'l fid yu chust ride,

A keeber to vatch vhile you sleebing

Zo no von vill svipe you by night'd.

Chorus:

Down in deer Cholly-yet,

Vorden Allen's der man yu bet.

For Allen iss hear for to giff his boys cheer.

Ve've efery ding hear bud a skooner of beer,

Oh, its nod der zame olt blaze,

Yu kan ze it mine faze.

Mit foot balls und stake balls.

Base balls und round balls.

In deer Cholly-yet.

Written for The Joliet Prison Post

Keep a laughin', keep a chafin',

Chase de wrinkles off yer brow ;
Git a joke off 'fore yu croak off

Wid de face yer wearin' now.
Wid yer grouch on an' yer slouch on

Yer a rummy lookin' jay!
Cut yer whinin', sun's a-shinin' —

Git yer fork an' make yer hay.

Back yer shoulders, grit yer moulders.

Git a gate an' take a climb ;
Don't be balkin', keep a-walkin' —

Keep a-movin' all de time.
Show a feller dat no yeller

Streak is bobbin' 'round yer way;
Stop yer pinin', sun's a-shinin' —

Grab yer fork an' toss yer hay.

Kind o' tough, hey, — kind o' rough, hey.

In de inside lookin' out?
Grin an' take it as dey make it —

Be a gamey sort o' scout !
Git a hunch on, git a punch on,

I'm yer pardner every day;
Quit yer whinin', sun's a-shinin' —

Jab yer fork an' pile yer hay.

E. T. K.

¥:

132

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

First Year

PRESS OPINIONS AND
REPRINTS

Warden Tynan's Views

"We are paying to the taxpayers of Colorado
$250,CXX) a year in road work," said Thomas Ty-
nan, warden of the Colorado State Penitentiary.
"In addition to that our cash earnings amount
to $32,000 from the sale of farm truck and stone
from our quarries, and we are this year adding
improvements of about $200,000 value to the
state penal institutions — all out of an appropria-
tion of $100,000 made for its maintenance."

"I select the men who are to go on the roads.
We have an audience system under which any
man confined in the penitentiary can secure an
interview with me. He writes his request on an
'audience slip,' which is given to the jailor, and
he has no trouble in getting to talk with me.
Each Sunday I devote several hours to this
phase of the work, and by that means I learn
everything that is going on in the prison and the
men come to me with their grievances.

"You have to sift men as you would sift flour.
We must separate the sheep from the goats.
Sixty per cent of the convicts can be worked
out. They are put into camps of about fifty men
each, under the supervision of an overseer and
an assistant, neither of whom is armed, for the
men are put on their honor. In some instances
we have camps in the state under one overseer
that are several hundred miles apart ; yet we
have few desertions, they amounting last year to
only 1 1-5 per cent. And all those who run
away are caught again and made to serve the
maximum of their sentences inside — a rule that
has a moral effect on would-be deserters.

"The men put in eight hours each day at hard
labor. Then they are free to do what pleases
them. If the camp be located near a stream, they
may go fishing, provided they keep within cer-
tain bounds, and they are furnished with books
and a phonograph. They may play ball if they
wish or indulge in other athletic games.

"At the beginning of his camp life, if a man
is not used to such work he is instructed to take
it easy until he becomes inured to the work.
Then he is required to do a good day's work,
and if he does not, he is quietly told he will have

to do better, and if he ])ersists in his recalcitra-
tion he is sent back to the penitentiary.

"Twenty-five per cent of our convicts worked
on the roads are negroes, and they are the most
trustworthy of all. Give a negro a chance to dig
his way out of prison and he will do it — by
working hard for a reduction in time. Another
tiling we find that is somewhat surprising at first
is that one-third of our life-termers can be
worked on the roads, for they realize that good
work in this way for a period of years counts
heavily in their favor before the board of par-
dons.

"We have built between 1,200 and 1,500 miles
of state highways under this system at a cost
of about $389 per mile for labor. These roads
and built of disintegrated granite and are fine
boulevards — not ordinary roads. We arc now
driving a road through solid granite, sixteen
feet wide and well surfaced, which costs us about
$1,000 per mile for labor, and that is the hardest
kind of construction. The roads are maintained
in good condition by the use of drags. They
cost about $4 apiece, and are effective in keeping
the road well surfaced, if used after each heavy
rain.

"The state does this work for the counties
by furnishing a dollar in lalx)r for each dollar
that the county provides for road work. The
money the state puts up is used to maintain the
camps, an expense of 32c per day per man. It
costs alwut $5,000 to equip a camp; this was
done in the first instance by a state appropria-
tion providing for all the camps we proposed to
establish. One or two since have been equipped
by counties.

"The state highway commissioner, with the
assistance of his engineers, lays out the roads to
be improved, and then the county commissioners
are notified that we are ready to help if they
will furnish money in equal proportion.

"The system was first established six year?
ago. We started by employing armed guards,
but soon found this was not satisfactory — the
expense was too great anfl the men were dis-
inclined to work. It is also interesting to note
that when the guard system was employed we
lost more men by desertion than we do at pres-
ent, when we have no guards except an armed
convict who patrols the camp at night.

"While we do not at present pay the men

March 1. r.M4

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

133

anything for their work, 1 have been advocating
the setting aside of a sum each day, which could
be given to the families of married men for the
family supixjrt during the prison term, or de-
posited to the credit of single men to aid them
in making a new start at the time of their re-
lease.

"Eighty ])er cent of the men who leave our
prisons now arc making good citizens, after hav-
ing had everything done to them that could be
done. Those who run away from the camps, we
find, are ones with other things hanging over
them which they fear.

"This system does not interfere with free la-
bor, nor take work from others. We are doing
work that would not be done at all if this system
were not in vogue, because we work only in those
counties that have not the funds to employ free
labor."

Mr. Tynan also described the rewards system
as carried on inside the penitentiary among men
not to be trusted with the road gangs, and which
provides many humanities and indulgences for
the convicts. He stated that under no circum-
stances should more than one man be confined in
a cell, even in a "dark room." the use of which
he deplored.

He critised the fee system obtaining in west-
ern states and declared that city and county jails
are but training schools for the penitentiary.
"Each county jail should be a farm," he de-
clared, "and each man should be taught some-
thing useful."

He declared that this system, or a similar one,
could be used by Texas to put her convict farms
on a self-supporting basis, citing as an illustra-
tion the fact that his men had worked an 800-
acre farm under one superintendent for a period
of one year, making a profit of $20,000. — Ne7cs,
Galveston, Texas.

Missouri Prisons Competing With Russia

How the fear of being whippeil drove ten po-
litical prisoners in a Russian stronghold in Si-
beria to try to commit suicide is told elsewhere
in this issue. A few weeks ago, in one of our
own state capitals, torture which, declares the
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, has been going on con-
tinuously for twenty days, drove a convict to
make a false confession, in which he implicated

another convict, who wa> thereuiK)ii subjectcil
to the same punishment which the first one h.id
received.

Moth prisoners were made t(j stand with their
faces X^^ the wall and their hands fastened in
rings al)ove their heads. They were not sus-
pended, but they could do nothing to ease the
.strain on their muscles. An investigator who
let himself be put in the "rings" begged to be
taken out at the end of two minutes. It is a
common thing in this jirison to keep men in the
"rings" for hours.

The prison is the Missouri state penitentiary
at Jefferson City, the largest in the country, hav-
ing 2,350 inmates.

Although the whipping post was made illegal
some time ago, convicts are still whipped, the
Post-Dispatch states, which has been making aii
exposure of conditions in the prison.

These facts about punishment have been ad-
mitted by the warden, 1). C. McClung. He de-
clines to discontinue the method, contending that*
it is the best he can devise. Before becoming
warden, Mr. McClung was a clothing merchant
in Jefferson City.

Punishment in the "rings" is used for all sorts
of offenses. It is especially adapted to increasing
the efficiency of the contract labor system which
holds the prison in its grip. Over 1,600 men
are said to be in the service of contractors, who
pay the state 70 cents a day for each worker.
If a convict does not finish his minimum stint
each day. he is liable to be put in the "rings."

The uncovering of these conditions has called
public attention to other evils. So congested
is the pri.son — it is the only one in the state —
that two, three and sometimes four men are
crowded together in one cell. No provision is
made for sports or exercise of any kind, other
than that in the workroom, except on Christmas
Day and the Fourth of July.

.\ grim phase of the present exposure has
been the uncovering of a statute passed in 1907
providing that 5 per cent of the earnings of the
l)risoncrs should be set aside for the use of
themselves and their dependents. Not a prisoner
has received a cent of the money thus due him.
The abolition of stripes and a new system of
granting paroles have brought some improve-
ment recently, and it is expected that the pres-
ent agitation will result in prohibiting the con-

134 THE JOLIET PRISON POST. First Year

tract labor system. A reformatory for first and joy some share of the earnings, and thus either

voung offenders is needed, and also a special to help those who are dependent on them or

reformatory for women. — The Survey, New accumulate a fund that will in some measure

York, N. Y. fortify them against the temptations that beset

^ ^ a released convict with peculiar seductiveness.

And, finally, it is a form of employment which

Way to Employ Convicts in Texas and Make ^^^ only permits, but in a sense requires that the

■^°^"^ convict shall in some degree be put on trust.

The Neivs dispatch from Austin reporting the Some may abuse that trust ; more, if those thus
closing of a contract whereby good roads district employed are wisely selected, will justify it, and
No. 1 of Smith county, Texas, is to have the use in justifying it they will be exercising and
of fifty convicts is characterized as an experi- strengthening their moral fibers, and thereby fit-
ment. It is hardly that, inasmuch as the same ting themselves for the freedom they look for-
thing has been done in several states, many com- ward to. Surely such results as these, even if
niunities and for many years. Furthermore, the they were only possible, must commend this
results in these other communities have been method of employing convicts to those who bear
such as to prove that this is altogether a feasible in mind that reform is one of the highest ends
method of employing convicts. This is not to ^^ punishment.

say that the results have been always and every- Looked at from the economic standpoint this
where satisfactory, for there have been failures method of employing convicts is no less ideal,
enough to give plausibility to the arguments that For one thing, it is the one method of using con-
have been made against this policy. But inves- vict labor that brings it into least competfi-
tigation has shown that the failures have been tion with free labor. Free labor does not seek
due to the mismanagement of those in adminis- road work when there is other work to do, and
trative authority, and not to any inherent and road work affords a smaller wage than most
incurable defect in the method itself. There is other kinds of work. Both their own welfare
in every penitentiary a large number of convicts and the public interest require that convicts be
who, for one reason or another, can not be safely kept at work, and here is a kind of work that
used in this way, but in every penitentiary there satisfies that requirement perfectly, and yet with-
is perhaps an equal, if not a greater number, who out incurring the objection which is usually made
can be employed in this way better than in any for free labor. For when convicts are engaged
other. The most that may be said, by way of in making roads, they compete with free labor
characterizing this contract, is that it constitutes in only a very negligible degree, if at all. Even
an innovation as to Texas, but an innovation more than this is to be said in favor of the policy
that, if fairly conducted, will become a practice, of making this use of convicts. It is a policy of
we believe. reducing the cost of roadmaking to a minimum,

As an innovation it is to be commended un- and in doing that it assures a more rapid exten-
qualifiedly, for if it should turn out well, as there sion of good roads mileage than we could other-
is no reason that it should not, we shall be full set wise expect, or even hope for. One has only to
on a policy that will simplify, if not solve, a prob- reflect on the incalculable economic and social
lem that has vexed us for many years. To the benefits that accrue from good roads to be per-
extent that it is practicable, this is not only the suaded that if there were nothing else to urge
best way to use convict labor, but the ideal way. this use of convicts it would be abundantly com-
It gives such as are suitable for it the best pos- mended by this consideration alone. The bene-
sible employment. It keeps them in the open air fits resulting from good roads would probably
and at a w^ork that will not overtax the strength, recompense the state for the cost of keeping the
Hence it is preferable to indoor employment and convicts even if they were not made self-support-
preferable even to farming, another form of out- ing. In this way the convicts could not only be
door employment ; for farming does not permit made to support themselves and profit themselves
a strict regulation of working hours. It is a form from their own labor, but they could be made to
of employment which enables the convicts to en- render, on these highly just terms, a public serv-

March I, I'M 4

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

135

ice which atones for the injury they did to so-
ciety.

It would hardly exagg-erate this incident to call
it epochal. Certainly it will be that if the re-
sults shall be what we think there is every reason
to expect. — News, Galveston, Texas.

Prisons Neither Hells Nor Hotels, But Schools
The investigation at Moyamensing Prison is
the outcropping of the public conscience toward
the criminal. Poor food, poor cells, poor prison
regulations are the incidental defects of a wrong
doctrine of punishment. Whether there is a
criminal class or not, it is clear that punishment
is not revenge, but recovery. Chastisement means
"to make clean." The soiled linen goes to the
laundry and undergoes a severe process of
cleansing, but this process is justified by the re-
sults. The linen comes out clean and white —
such should be the ethical motive of punishment.
Vengeance never helped anybody. It does not
belong to man to be vengeful. It is not the func-
tion of the courts to mete out vengence. Pun-
ishment may require severity, but its end must be
the remaking of the man. All true discipline is
helpful — otherwise it is brutality. All surgery
is hard, but health is its aim. Prisons are neither
hells nor hotels, but schools.

Gradually we are awakening to the conscious-
ness that we have been ill-treating humanity in
the name of punishment. This awakening began
with John Howard and Elizabeth Fry. Civiliza-
tion has at last reached the prison cell, and in this
way only may the occupant of the cell come back
to civilization. — Public Ledger, Philadelphia, Pa.

It's Up to You

What are you going to do when you leave
here? Oh, the joy of that moment when the
warden calls you out of line and tells you to get
shaved. Sleepless nights are forgotten, and all
indignities suffered are forgiven, and you dress
out. But what then? The avenue leads directly
to town, and the town leads to what? You know.
It certainly is a problem which must be solved
before all who leave can be expected to make
good. You leave here poorly equipped to fight
the battle, but if you are sincere in purpose and
if your experiences have taught you there is

nothing in being crooked ami that the best you
can do is the worst, then, and not until then,
can you go out into the cruel, merciless world
and make good.

There is never a time in a man's life when he
must be dishonest. No. you don't need to go
hungry either, but you must work. One who
will not produce should not be a partaker. Of
course this docs not apply to people who, through
misfortune, are physically unable to cope with
life. Lint there are so many who think the
world owes them a living, and proceed to steal
it. Show me where you beat it from any angle,
and I will admit that I am wrong.

Is not one's liberty and free agency worth
more than all ill-gotten gains? It certainly is
to me. Having tasted the bitter I want the
sweet, and the only way to get it is to be a man.
Make all around you recognize you as a man.
and you will find it pays. It means a fight, but
see how sweet the victory is. Was there ever
anything of note accomplished that did not cost
heart blood? I-Mnd the one that has gained that
knowledge where he can say to all, "1 am a
man," and see if it was not gained by privation
and sacrifice, and see too, if it could be pur-
chased or otherwise obtained.

There are many roads for you to travel, but,
my dear brother, there is only one safe one and
that will have to be narrow. We must labor
diligently and with patience, but the reward is
great. We may not be able to enjoy all the
little things we think are so necessary to us,
nor be able to dress as nicely as some, but costly
thy habits as thy purse can buy. Not expressed
in fancy, rich, not guady, for while the" clothes
often proclaim the man, it does not necessarily
make one, and if he stands as a man it will not
he long before he is recognized as such. The
])ast has gone, and no man knowcth what is in
the future for him, so why worry? The ever
l)resent "Now" is the time to act. You can be
the man of the hour in your own little world,
and while you may never be a Napoleon, Wash-
ington, or a Lincoln, you will ri.se to heights
you never even dreamed of. If we have taken
to heart the lesson gained through our expe-
rience, we can go out into the world far better
and wiser, for we are the ones that know, and
knowing we can more easily avoid temptations

136

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

First Year

in the future and be of great help to our weaker
brother.

It is said, "Opportunity knocks but once at a
man's door," but I hardly agree, for it is in
each of us to benefit by his experiences, for that
is the mother of all learning. Opportunity, like
time, never waits for anyone — we must be ready,
and, if we are, there is no reason why we should
not succeed, even if we have fallen once. There
is now a good opportunity for all of us here to
remodel our characters. Our old mould was
faulty or why are we here?

We have abundant opportunity here to be-
fit ourselves to meet conditions that will exist
when we again take our place among men.
Let us be workers and not drones. We can
live down the past, but we can not put anything
over on the public. We must first stand 100
per cent perfect with ourselves.

To thine own self be true, and it must follow
as the night the day, thou cans't not then be false
to any man. — Lend a Hand.

Day School at Joliet Prison

A school for convicts taught by convicts has
passed the experimental stage at the Illinois pen-
itentiary here. It was organized by Chaplain A.
J. Patrick last summer and attendance is volun-
tary, but any convict who expresses the desire to
attend the school is excused from other employ-
ment while the classes he enters are in session.

The principal is a Harvard man and has an
Annapolis Naval Academy diploma. He is serv-
ing a sentence of from one to fourteen years for
forging a check for $3. — Saturday Blade, Chi-
cago,

Ball Park for Prisoners

Having proved that penitentiary convicts can
be put upon their honor and sent outside the
prison walls without guards to do road con-
struction work, Thomas Tynan, progressive
warden of the Colorado penitentiary, proposes
to go a step farther and build an amusement
park for the prisoners. This plan is proposed
to furnish more adequate outdoor amusement for
convicts who are not in the "trusty" class and
have not gained the privileges accorded pris-
oners who work in the road camps. In an

exclusive statement today, Warden Tynan dis-
cussed the plan as follows :

"While our 'trusty' prisoners have plenty of
outdoor exercise in the way of sports, we have
never been able heretofore to take care, in the
same way, of prisoners not considered trust-
worthy. I have decided to create an outdoor
amusement park for this class of men. We
are now constructing a wall alxDut a six-acre
enclosure back of the prison, where such men
can play baseball or indulge in other sports
during their leisure hours.

"Of course, we have in the prison chapel the
regular motion picture shows, yet there are a
great many men, who are employed in our cell
houses, prison shops, boiler-room., etc., who do
not get enough exercise.

"It has long been my theory, and I think it
has proved correct from the experience we have
had with men in our road camps, that it is hard
to build up a man morally or to strengthen
his character without first building him up phys-
ically. We purchased all the buildings of the
Fremont County Fair Association and are plac-
ing a grandstand in this inclosure for the use
of the prisoners. There will be an opening to
this enclosure, to what is known as the south
gate of the prison, which opens onto the street,
and one portion of the grandstand can be used
by the public to see ball games or other athletic
amusements participated in by the prisoners.

"The main feature will be that men, after
completing their tasks for the day, will be al-
lowed to go into the park for such exercise as
will do them the most good. Each prisoner
in the institution will be provided with an honor
button and will be allowed to have access to the
park during his leisure hours, so long as his
behavior is what it should be. Should he violate
any of the rules of the institution, he will be
deprived of his button and will not have access
to the park.

"We found, when we installed the motion
picture apparatus at the institution, that it helped
us to keep discipline, for the reason that men
who violated rules were excluded from the pic-
ture exhibitions for all the way from three to
six months. I feel that with the park in opera-
tion it will not only add to the efficiency of the
work of the men, but it will have a tendency
to reduce violations of the prison rules.

March 1. VM4 THE JOLIET PRISON POST. Kv

"Of course, our men in the road camps are he be taxed to keep violators of the laws of tlie

well provided for in this way, and they consti- land in even comfort? They decide with but lit-

tute half of our prison ixtpulation, but I have tie thou^dit that they should not he taxed, and

have felt the need of something of this kind at when a new and advanced idea for the real re-

the institution for a long time, and with the co- form of i)rison affairs is mentione<l, thev oppose

operation of the penitentiary commissioner, we it.

are endeavoring during this year to put this Here and there, but of the great general pub-
park in operation." — Star, Peoria. 111. lie. comparatively few. you will find a man who

^ ^ will ask: What are prisons for? Arc they

for the purjiose of revenge or of reformation?

Luxuries for Honor Men Are they for the puqxyse of aiding fallen man

Columbus. Ohio. Feb. 5. — Ohio's "make men" to be a man again or for the purpose of damning

policy, now governing what was formerly the him forever? Do they make worthy members of

most notorious State penitentiary in the country, society or make enemies of law and of order?

will advance another step in a few days, when This thoughtful man will consider the enormous

Warden P. E. Thomas will open his "hotel" for expense the State now goes to in protecting itself

"perfect record" prisoners. One hundred and from the criminal, and he usually decides that the

twenty yeggs, burglars, porch climbers, pickpock- present system of handling the prisoner, in the

ets, "bad men," embezzlers and plain thieves with majority of prisons, is radically wrong; but how

"clean records" will be removed from their cells can it be remedied. He certainly decides in this

to a roomy, well-ventilated dormitory. connection that men convicted of crime should

Every one of them will sleep at nigiit in a not be pampered and live in luxury, and from

comfortable iron bed of the hospital type; will the prisoners' standpoint (^(wd Words can say

have a locker, a bag, roomy rocking chair, a that prisoners arc the last people in the world

plain oak stand, and an electric drop lighl. A who wish to be pampered. They do not belong

prison bar won't be in sight. After the day's to that class of people pink teas appeal too, and

work is done and the prisoner disrobes for the they prefer good soup to ice cream,

night he will neatly crease his grav regulation The question though can be asked : Why

Irou.sers, hang his coat on a hanger and place should not prisons offer an opportunity for self-

the api>arel in a steel locker built for the purpose, culture and improvement, instead of being, as is

On an upper shelf he will find his clean clothing the case in many prisons, the very hot-beds for

and in a lower compartment he may deposit his ^'^^ conservation and intensification of criminal

shoes and draw forth a pair of bedroom slippers, tendencies, and for the organization of criminal

seat himself in a big rocking chair, light his pipe enterprises? Nevertheless, there are now a few

and under the rays of his adjustable electric P'''^«"s conducted as far as the law and regula-

lamp read the latest papers and hook,.-Satur- ^^^^"^ ^^•^ P^""'^' ''^''''^ ^^^' '^'"'^' ''''°"8: the

do\ Blade, Chicago. ''"^' °^ reformation and redemption of the pris-
oner may be confidently lacked for, nor is there

® ^ any doubt that these will be increased as the

Pampering Prisoners elements in the situati<»n emerge and are recog-

In recent vears along with all that has been "'^^''- ^^''^'^ ^'''^""'^ ''''' ""•'^'' '^'' '"'''"af^'^''"e"t

said and done to better prison conditions, there ^'^ "^^" ^^•'^" "^^'^'- ^•'■^^'" ''^ i>am,KT,ng prisoners,

has been as much said against such reforms. '^^'^ ''^'^ ^'""'^ "^ '''^'''^ ^''^' '"'-'" ""^'^''' ^''^''" ^''"

These antagonistic ideas can be summed up un- ''C when they are released and free to roam an<l

der the one head, u.sed contemptuouslv and sar- '•" as their minds dictate.

castically, "pampering prisoners," and are. for The crowning curse of. the pri.son system has

the most part, advanced by demagogic politi- been, and still is in some states, the convict lca.se

cians, narrow-minded journalists and ignorant or system. Under it nothing but misery and degra-

vicious officials, but regardless of their origin gation can come. The knell of this system has

these ideas find a fertile field in the mind of the been sounded and its doom sealed, but the idea

average taxpayer who asks himself why should <u\\ prevails in most prisons that they are for

138 THE JOLIET PRISON POST. First Year

the purpose of punishment and "getting even," over the doors of our prisons. This inscription

instead of reclaiming those unfortunates who can be left off without "pampering prisoners." —

have fallen by the way, and with this idea in Good Words, Atlanta, Ga.

the mind of the prison officials, prisoners are not ^ ^

made useful members of society, but instead are , . . „

made confirmed and hardened criminals. The ^he Superlative in Stupidity

writer, has no thought of pampering when he The prisoners are not allowed to write letters

suggests that prisons should be regarded as a ""til they have been incarcerated two months,

place for withholding a man temporarily from After that they are permitted to write only once

the companionship of evil-doers and from his a month. They can be visited only once a month

own worse self. Why should not the object of a —the visit, of course, being in the presence of

prison be to preserve and build up rather than an official— and they must not come in contact

destroy the prisoner's manhood and self-respect, with the visitor, as by an embrace or handshake,

to teach him that potentialities for good are dor- They must not speak to one another at all,

mant and may be awakened in him and to afford except during fifteen minutes each day.

him every available means for their awakening They must not even smile at one another,

and development? Instead of despair and re- For smiling, a prisoner is made to stand in the

sentment as cell-companions he should be given corner, face to the wall, until the foul crime is

rational hope for the future and intelligent in- burned and purged away. During the precious

terest in practical means for rehabilitating him- fifteen minutes they may speak only to those sit-

self . Then his hours of solitude will not be spent ting next to them in the workroom ; they cannot

in cursing his fate and plotting revenge on his move from their seats to speak to someone

enemies — real or imaginary — but he will take at a little distance.

stock of his own instruments for useful co-opera- Such are conditions in the women's prison at

tion with the world's work, in polishing those he Auburn, N. Y., as described in The Survey by

finds that he possesses, and in acquiring such as two female investigators who got themselves

would complete his equipment. Here, the prison locked up for the purpose of finding out ; but

authorities can come to his aid by supplying him their equivalents can be found in scores of other

with work commensurate with and suitable to penal institutions.

his special powers and proclivities ; and paying Just what a state thinks it will gain by main-

him for this work such wages as will give him taining an elaborate machine for dehumanizing

heart to do it as well as he can, and will leave prisoners, carefully squeezing every drop of hu-

him a visible residue after the cost of his own man interest and sympathy out of them, we are

support has been defrayed. The library should unable to imagine. We expect the state is also

be arranged so as to furnish special books and unable to imagine. — Saturday Evening Post.

courses of reading in various branches of science ^ ^
and industry. He should have substantial and

palatable food, and the sanitary conditions should Pointless Punishments

be of the best. Governor Foss reports that over ten thousand

Evil deeds committed by normal man carry persons were imprisoned in the Bay State last

with them their own immutable punishment and year for debt — that is, because they were unable

the very acme of suffering is often reached be- to pay the small fines imposed on them; and he

fore the term in prison commences — even if it is opined that the total commitments, numbering

in the worst of prisons. Let our jails then be something over twenty-seven thousand, must have

hospitals for human weakness and depravity, and brought financial disaster to fifty thousand per-

send forth their patients strengthened instead of sons, many of whom were innocent children,

weakened for the further battle that awaits them. Two-thirds of all commitments to penal insti-

The whole problem of prison punishment is a tutions were made for drunkenness or in default

complicated one, but the sentence which Dante of fines imposed for drunkenness,

inscribes over the gates of Hell — "All hope aban- Now what earthly good does anybody derive

don, ye who enter here!" — should not be written from putting a drunkard in jail? It would be

March 1, 1914 THE JOLIET PRISON POST. 139

far simpler, far less expensive to the state, and by the courts, have invariably been held uncon-

incomparably better for the culprit and the cul- stitutional on the ground that they interfered

prit's family if the court, instead of sending him with interstate commerce. The Boohcr-Hughes

to jail for a week or a fortnight, merely kicked bill has therefore been introduced into congress

him three times in the ribs. He might be lame and is supix)rted by the .\mcrican Federation of

for a day, yet he could return to work with only Labor and the national committee on prison la-

a small loss of time; and the magisterial assault bor. This bill is modeled after the Wilson lic|uor

on his ribs would have at least as much effect law which restricts interstate commerce in

in weaning him from a career of inebriety as a spirituous licjuors, and it is hoped in the event of

jail sentence does. its passage that the state branding and licensing

And no man should be locked up because he laws will be possible of enforcement,

cannot pay a fine, until he has been given a fair "New York city has long been the dumping

opjjortunity to earn the money and discharge the ground for convict-made goods and once it is

debt. Where a man's culpability is so light that possible to enforce the New York branding laws,

the state is willing to accept a small sum of the profits to be derived from prison contracts

money in acquittance, imprisonment should be ^y\\\ be reduced to a minimum. So great is the

the very last resort. contractor's fear of the cflFect of such legislation

The truth is that at least two times out of ^g the Booher-Hughcs bill that many contracts

three— as the Massachusetts statistics show— we contain the proviso that on its passage they shall

send a man to jail because we do not know any- immediately become null and void,

thing rational to do with him and will not take "The destruction of the contract system would

the pains to find out.—Saturday Evening Post. necessitate the building up of other systems for

^ ^ the employment of convicts. In the constructive

program which would be worked out in each of

Pushing the Booher-Hughes Bill ^,^^ ^^^^^,^ ^^^^ ^^^^,^^ indorsed as it is by the

'•The development of convict road work in national committee on prison labor and other
practically every state of the union will be the agencies for prison reform, would play a large
natural outcome of the passage of the Booher- p^^t. The passage of the Booher-Hughes con-
Hughes bill, now pending before congress, ac- yj^t labor bill is therefore of definite imjuirtance
cording to the American Automobile Association, ^q ^h interested in the movement for placing con-

"This bill which will limit interstate commerce ^i^ts on the public roads," concludes the state-
in convict-made goods by subjecting such goods ,„ent issued by the American Automobile Asso-
to the laws of the state into which they come will ciation committee on prison labor.— Record, Fort
strike a fatal blow at the contract system," states Worth. Texas,
the prison committee. ^ ^

"Under this pernicious system great quantities

of prison-made goods are annually thrown on Real Prison Reform

the open market, and because of the cheapness We have heard quite a lot about "Great Mead-

of their manufacture are sold at prices far be- ows" prison reform ; now we will give you some

low those at which similar goods manufactured real and substantial reforms. In North Dakota

under fair conditions can be sold. A cutting of we have grading and merit systems, the inmates

the selling price of goods manufactured in free are compensated for their labor to the sum of

factories and a consequent lowering of the wage not less than 10 nor more than 25 cents per day,

paid free workingmen is the consequence. and all over ten hours is known as overtime

"Against this unfair competition organized la- work, for which the men receive 10 cents per

bor has waged unceasing warfare, striving to hour. We have known men in this prison to

overcome it by limiting the output of the prisons, make as much as $50 in two months as overtime

Laws requiring the branding of convict-made money. We have no prison rules, only tho.se

goods and also a license for their sale have been that are laid down by the statute books of the

written on the statute books of New York and Mate: we have the best equipped cell house in

a dozen other states. These laws, when tested the I nifi-.I States, the dining-room is equipped

140 THE JOLIET PRISON POST. First Year

with tables and tablecloths, the men walk in, take well pointed out, but we forgot the auty we owed

their seats and eat their meals the same as any the man from whom we had taken liberty.

other cvilized man. the old relic of refusing the Depriving him of liberty, we hastened to as-

man in prison the privilege of speech is a thing sume, deprived him of all rights. Not so. Even

of the past in this state, there is only one place a man condemned to death possesses certain

in this prison where a man is not allowed to rights. Especially does the ordinary convict pos-

talk, and that is at chapel service, and any man sess rights which do not belong to the man who

with any self-respect will not want to talk there, has never been convicted of a crime. For, in

We have a moving picture machine for enter- depriving him of his powers of initiative, we as-

tainment purposes, we have a baseball team in sume those powers. Therefore it is his right that

the summer months, and not only play among he should receive from us the proper exercise

ourselves, but go outside and play with outside o^ those powers of which we have deprived him.

teams ; we have been as far as forty-two miles Century Magazine.

away from the institution to play an outside team. @ @

We have a life-term man herding cattle who is „ _ _^ • /-m_-

*= . . . Honor System m Ohio
from one to ten miles away from the mstitution ,t„ ,

: 111 1 IT X ' There s a spark of good m every man: the

every day on horseback; we have a life-term / . ° -' . ,

, , , , r/- 1 • blood will tell idea is bosh ; if a man isn t a

man as the wardens chauffeur; this man goes , . . , , , , , , ,

... , . thorough criminal he can be trusted ; normal men

all over the countrv in a high-power machine, , , , ^, i i- j

' . have honor and they can be relied upon to a

sometimes not returning until 3 a. m. in the ■ • . ■ i » t-u

*' certain extent, some more, some less. Thus

morning. When a man wishes to have his teeth p^^f^^j^^ ^,^ explanation of Ohio's new "make

fixed, or has any kind of sickness that he does ,^.,^,^., p^,j^^, ^^-^^^^^^ p -^ Tho^^^s, the first ex-

not care to have the prison physician attend to, ^^^^ criminologist ever in charge of Ohio's fa-

and has the money to pay expenses, he is sent ^^^^^^^ ^j^l penitentiary, told the United Press

to the best doctor in Bismarck for treatment, correspondent that the honor system among con-

This is what we call prison reform. And for ^/^^^^ j^, a success. Warden Thomas has experi-

fear that some that read this article may think mented with the honor system in Ohio a little

that Warden Talcott is giving the men too much over a year today. Here are a few plain facts

l)rivilege, we want to state right here that all of about the system as explained by the warden :
the privilege that is in the gift of the warden About 3.S0 men are working in the open air on

and Board of Control we receive. And what their honor. A big percentage of the men are

are the consequences? You never hear of any building roads for the state. Guards aren't

more assaults upon officers by inmates, you never needed ; an overseer bosses the work. The larg-

hear of a fight between an inmate and his fellow est per cent of "honor men" are life termers,

worker, a thing that was an everyday occurrence They wear blue overalls like ordinary laborers

not more than twelve months ago. The factory and have Sunday clothes. They go to church on

is running fifteen hours a day, the twine is better, Sundays. They work eight hours a day. They

because the men take an interest in their work; are paid five cents an hour; ninety per cent goes

the report blanks of the officers are clear ; sel- ^^ ^^^^^ dependents, the rest to them. Less than

dom does a report have to be turned m.—The ^"^ P^^ <^^"t have tried to escape in a year.

Reflector Bismarck N. D. Honor men have all served from one to fifteen

years behind bars.

"The long term men are best," said Warden

Rights of the Criminal Thomas. And Warden Thomas is said to know

We have been shamefully neglecting our crim- his men from "A to Z." "Criminals are classified

inals until very recently. After hunting, convict- in four divisions," declared the warden. "They

ing and imprisoning them, we have seemed to are the feeble minded, criminal by choice; crim-

feel that our whole duty to them and society was inal by circumstances and criminal by environ-

ended. We forgot not only the duty we owed ment. The theory that 'blood will tell; like

ourselves, which the word.s of President Hayes father like son,' is all wrong. Men are good for

March 1. Iltl4

THE JOLIET PRISON POST.

141

three reasons: Those of higher mentality do
right because it is right to do right; a second
class do right through hope of reward; a third
class do right through fear of punishment." It is
the first and second divisions from which W'ar-
den Thomas recruits his honor men. Warden
Thomas has accomplished other things aside
from succeeding with his honor men. He has
eliminated stripes and substituted a light grey
material for prison uniforms; abolished inhuman
punishments, such as water cures, chain string-
ings and whippings ; put into operation the the-
ory that a full stomach contributes to discipline ;
built new and better ventilated cells and estab-
lished a dormitory for "good" jirisoners where
several hundred of them will soon have their own
tables, chairs and beds with no bars in sight. —
Tde<^raph Xcx^'s, Atlanta. Iowa.

The Honor System and Bullets

The honor system, so highly praised by penolo-
gists as the most enlightened way of dealing with
prisoners in penal institutions, cannot be a com-
plete success in pri.sons which restrain such des-
perate criminals as Chicago produces. Bold men
who frequently have risked their lives in lawless
enterprises are not likely to be l.;ss timiil in fac-
ing death when freedom from legal bondage is
the reward. Such incidents as the one yesterday
at Joliet, where a prisoner was sliot while trying
to escape, do much to hinder pri^iin reform.

When Warden Allen assumed control of Joliet
penitentiary, last year, he went to Colorado and
other states and investigated the application of
the honor system. On his return he announced
his enthusiastic belief in the reform, and he has
been applying the most humane methods in gov-
erning the great state penitentiary, if reports
represent the true facts. Every prisoner has
been given his chance and is being trusted as he
shows himself worthy of trust. The convicts who
worked on the public highways last fall did so
practically without restraint or guard, and they
remained at their posts.

Kindness works wonders among normal men,
but a large percentage of the prisoners in a penal
institution are not normal. For such tiiere must
always be walls, bars and bullets. The act of two
prisoners should not be sufficient to cause War-
den .^Uen to dismiss as entirely impractical his

humane system, h >huuld. however, convince
him that the armed guard is as necessary for one
class of prisoners as kindness for the other, and
that a constant show of firmness may prevent the
necessity of killing.— A'«cj. Springfield. 111.

Humanity Toward Prisoners

When Superintendcm I'eyton of the Indiana
Reformatory brought a Ixty |)risoner to Governor
Ralston with the argument that the lad would be
harmed more than helped by serving his long
sentence, he offered an illustration of ihc new
element that is entering into the official treatment
of offenders against the law and society, namely,
the humane spirit, the friendly personal touch.

Thomas Mott Oslwrne. member of the New
York State Prison committee, recently spent a
week in Auburn Prison in the role of a convict
for the purpose of learning how the condition of
the inmates might be bettered. He was follow-
ing out the same idea. The result of his obser-
vations is now shown in certain recommenda-
tions, the most important one of which is the ab-
solute indeterminate sentence for crime — all
crime. The only safe ground on which to build
a prison, he says, is the principle of the reforma-
tion of the prisoner. He adds:

We can not and never will be able to tell just how
guilty any man really is, because wc can not look into
his soul. .\s to a theory of prisons based on the de-
terrent effect they may have we are just as hopelessly
off. It never will be possible to tell whether or not
we are deterring a person from crime. Reformation is
the only safe ground because it is the economic attitude
toward the problem. It is the principle of keeping men
from coming back to jail.

Dr. Katherine iJement Davis, the new commis-
sioner of correction in Xew York, is proceeding
on the same principle when she does away with
striped suits and bedticking dresses for prison-
ers; when she demands m<»re space for the prison
pens in justices' courts, and plans for better ven-
tilation and less crt)wding in the Tombs Prison.
The .same humane and enlightened spirit