Prison Reform.

Maoriland Worker, Volume 2, Issue 19, 14 July 1911, Page 11

Prison Reform.

By F. R. COOKE.

We are led to believe that in this country at least we have left the old system of revengeful punishmen'b behind in the ages of time —that the law-breakers of our day tare not punished until they lose all semblenoe of manhood and become more like wild animals than men. Our statesmen and tho editors of our newspapers have informed us that New Zealand has founded a system of prison reform such as exists in no other part of the world. In fact, amongst many people there is a belief that going to prison is like taking a rest —a change as it were, the only disadvantage being loss ol liberty and character. Some of our judges have told the lawbreakers that they -were being sent to a reformatory to give them a chance to retrieve themselves and that they would not bo brought into personal contact with hardened .criminals. Such a statement is a deliberate lie, in fact it is a disgraceful and infamous lie. In our gaols the mixing of prisoners, the most hardened with those in for some small misdemeanour, is still in vogue. The working gangs are made up of old timers steeped in crimo and men doing very short terms for some small breach of the law. Young men sent to serve three to six months with a term of reformatory work afterwards are in constant contact with men who have done very

serious crimes and many of whom have served several sentences. - Cruel punishments nave never yet been abolished—such as limiting the food, taking away blankets., solitary confinement in a darkened cell which is made so cold that it is almost as bad as a refrigerator. This punishment was condemned by society fifty years ago as being the most cruel ever invented by the ingenuity of fiends in the shape of men. Now-a-days, the victim is sentenced by the visiting justices, and the sentence is carried out to €he letter by the gaolers. One victim giving his experience said two of his blankets were taken from him and he was shut or sealed in a cell with two safe like doors, the darkness being intense. Such a darkness he had never felt before and the cold was awful; for some time his reason hung on tho balance; he jump-

ed and walked and,raved; tihen he appeared to gather his scattered wits and formed a plan to retain his reason. He had been supplied with sixteen ounces of bread and a pannikin of water, his day's supply. He bit a piece of the bread, rolled it into ball shape, -threw it away in the darkness and then commenced to search for it; when he found it he rewarded himself by eating it; then he went through the same performance until he had used up his bread. These proceedings must nave taken up a greai. amount of time—but, oh ! the horrible time he had to wait for his next supply of 'bread was such as in his opinion no human being could ever have experienced before. He was in a kind of stupor when his next supply of bread, came, and on being roused begged of the gaoler to either get him ou* or kill him; but., no, he had to stay there the whole time. The same man has been punished the same way several times since, and every time it acts similarly on him. Wsien asked why be becomes refractory and brings about such punishment, Sis answer is he goes a bit silly at times and commences to break things, for which the most severe punishment is invariably given, viz., solitary confinement in rtihe dark cell.

This is not happening in Russia, nor Mexico. No, it is happening home here in our midst; it is haopening in Lyttelton Gaol in New Zealand; it is happening to (the workers' sons who have fallen from grace. What percentage of rich men's sons are allowed to get into Lyttelton gaol? Is there one per con*? That's about it. Tho workers' sons, if they happen to go a little wrong: and are unfortunate enough to be caught are sent to gaol. In ninety per cent, of cases Dante's words can be applied "All ye who enter here, abandon hope." Workers, are you going to turn P It is time. William Morris's words should inspire you i "For whom and for what are you waiting While your comrades droop and die And on every wind of heaven A wasted life goes by."