DEPARTMENTS CALLING

White Ribbon, Volume 18, Issue 2, 1 March 1946, Page 2

DEPARTMENTS CALLING

WORK AMONG SEAMEN Report and Balance Sheet Preaented by W.C.T.U., Timaru, for Year 1944-1945 at Trustees of South Canterbury Sailors’ Rest I lie I imaru Branch of the Women’s C hristian Temperance Union presented ♦vitli pleasure the report and balanceMieet for the year ending November JO, 1945, and in so doing, thank most sincerely all who ha\e helped them in this most important branch of their work.

We give thanks to God that at last hostilities have ceased and we pray that after the strife and turmoil of these post-war months true peace may come to our troubled world.

The past year has seen a considerable increase of shipping in our port and this has meant a greater number of seamen and particularly gunners visiting the Timaru Rest, and taking advantage of its homelike comforts. Mr. and Mrs. Woodward have neen only too delighted to welcome all servicemen and our committee is deeply grateful tor all they have done. Letters of thanks and appreciation are constantly coming to hand, not only from the men themselves, but also from appreciative wives and mothers. One says: “Here in England we are more than grateful to you and to others like you for your goodness to our ser\ icemen.” And another, “Thank you for making my husband so welcome in your home.” We truly feel that the 1 imaru Rest is doing all its promoters planned. During the year we celebrated duly the twenty-first anniversary of the present Rest building and to mark its majority and to give greater comfort and accommodation we ha\e already accepted a tender for the glassing-in of the front \erandah. We arc sorry that this work could not be completed this vear.

Dur thanks are due to the Timaru Spinning Guild for woollen comforts, the W'aimate Navy League for so often forwarding biscuits, to Mr. C. Martin, our honorary auditor, the “Timaru Herald” for interesting articles on the Rest and our work for the seamen, to local firms and organisations that have sent donations of goods and money and ajso to all those branches of the W.CTU. that show their interest and yearly forwarded gifts of comforts and money.

The following is the list of donors: Timaru Harbour Board; Timaru Rorough Council; Timaru Gas Co.; Timaru Spinning Club; Westport Coal Co.; Linton ( oal Co.; Canterbury Farmers’ Association; Rruce’s Ltd.; Wilson & Co.; Rattray & Co.; Waimate Navy League; W. Evans Si Co.; Turnbull & Co.; Timaru Milling Co.; Mr. G. T. Dawson; Mr. C. G. Baker; Mrs. Norrie; Dr. Burns; Miss D. Austin; “Air-

man" and Ashburton, Temuka, Napier, Karori, Oamaru, Riccarton, Rangiora, Carterton, Woolston, Hamilton, Te Awamutu, Tinwald, Opotiki, Dunedin Central, Christchurch and Timaru branches of the W.C.T.U, Financial Statement of Timaru Sailors’ Rest RECEIPTS

EXPENDITURE

Audited and found correct. A. C. MARTIN, Public Accountant, 25/1/46. Auditor. PRISONS AND REFORMATORIES Prisons: Do They Fulfil Their Objects?

In an article published in our October number, 1945, we saw that the function of the piis’on was to reduce crime by operating along three welldefined lines. The protection of the community, the just punishment of the offender against community laws, and the bringing about of a desire and will to live so that neither the crime nor its retribution will recur in the life of the criminal were the objects to be served.

The question we set ourselves to consider was whether these three aims were, in fact, fulfilled.

So diverse are the opinions of people as to this point that it can only be as

An individual that one can speak. Natural diffidence because of paucity of knowledge prevents anything in the least dogmatic from finding expression here. The words of L. N. Robinson, a L T .S.A. authority on the subject of crime and punishment, apply particularly at this point: “No writer on prisons should depend solely on the words of others. He must see for himseif and, if possible, take part in the work. . . . No one can know all there is to know about jails and the institutions that are now* helping to bear the load of caring for misdemeanant prisoners.” This writer also speaks of the extreme difficulty of obtaining any information from those in authority, and of the conflicting statements made by various people regarding the life of prisoners. What applies in his case is intensified for the ordinary investigator; who has no official status to give him the right to seek information. To begin with, it conies as something of a surprise to find that a school of thought exists which asks the question,

“Why Prison.?”

We have probably never dreamed of a civilisation in which the prison has no place. From the time of Joseph’s'incarceration in the king’s prison by Potiphar, and probably earlier than that, imprisonment has been an easy and ready means of dealing with offenders. In long-past days in England the feudal lords were at liberty to imprison any of their serfs for as long as they chose, without any reason except that of having been offended in some way by the unfortunate culprit. Dungeons w’ere a part of every feudal castle, and strange it is to wander down the ancient stone stairways into the darkness and airlessness of these dreadful places. The Apostles of the early Christian Church knew what imprisonment meant. Our Lord spoke of those “in prison” on many occasions. And so we have grown up in the tradition that the prison is an indispensable adjunct to the'preservation of law and order. The very idea of its being abolished is revolutionary, yet it is true that some very far-seeing, able students of the question feel that a case exists for this very thing to happen.

Does the Community Benefit? In the matter of the first purpose supposed io he served, that of the protection of the community, it is plain that the shutting away of offenders for periods of varying length is, in itself, a protection, hut of a very temporary nature. To be sure, the criminal can do nothing to injure his fellowcitizens during his incarceration; hut we all know that when he returns to ordinary life eventually, unless some lasting change in his outlook and powers of self-government has occurred, he is as much of a danger as ever. So that, at its face value the mere fact of his having been placed where he could do no harm for a wdiile, is not justified by its results as an effective

way of protecting the community. Doubtless, much more could be said on the subject. This is merely touching ou one aspect of the matter.

The Punishment of the Offender This second object for which the prison exists presents a very much more complicated problem. In the early days of history the prison was usually only used to keep offenders in custody in readiness for their punishment. This, in manv cases, was torture, maiming and death ■ while such means of inducing a better frame of mind in the culprit as the stocks, the pillory, the ducking stool, and the “Scold’s Bridle,” were resorted to in less heinous cases. The use of the prison as a place of authorised punishment gradually arose from a variety of causes.

As stated in the article above referred to, there is a strong natural feeling in the minds of most people that the person who has caused injury and suffering to another by wanton evildoing should be made to suffer in some »roportionate wav. It is natural, without doubt; natural law fulfilling itself thus every day. The ob\ious danger is, of course, that this urge for the prisoner to suffer is vciy apt to degenerate into a mere desire for revenge. The tact that the crime committed is the result of something else, which needs to be discovered and dealt with, may very easily be completely ignored, and it may be imagined that all has been done in the matter when the offender has been put where he will have a thoroughly unhappy and uncomfortable and hard time lasting long enough to make him very sorry for himself and very much afraid of repeating the experience. For the difference between justice and revenge the student is recommended to read an essay by G. K. Chesterton entitled "The Twelve Men," contained in a collection called “Tremendous Trifles.”

' he great difficulty about punishment is that of making any discrimination between those guilty of the same crime because of some difference in motive, or circumstances, or physical conditions. The same crime, however caused, involves the same hardship for the sufferer from it, and it is not easy to differentiate in the treatment of the criminal. In fairness let it be said that much is done to avoid injustice in this regard. Menial illness, previous records, and other circumstances are taken into account when sentence is pronounced, and this is a great advance on the procedure of earlier days. But, it is not yet the rule for e\ery prisoner to be the subject of close study so that the ounishment may have more effect than merely to make him suffer in his turn. How pointless such punishment becomes without some understanding of the criminal’s individuality. A great deal has been written and spoken on this subject. Its ramifications are endless because human beings are so various. So far as our observa-

tions go for the purposes of our study, it would seem that, whether the punishment suffered in prison has the effect of deterring the prisoner from further crime or not, some more definite attempt to bring him to a better mind is needed. In any case, the numbers of “recidivists” make for a sceptical attitude as to the value of punishment alone.

The Prisoner * Attitude What is the attitude of the prisoner to life as it is to be when his term is ended? The individuality factor is of course, the deciding one. The same treatment, the same general circumstances, may cause quite different reactions in different people. It would he good if there could be any certainty that his imprisonment would bring about in any man the desire to live so that his experience would not recur. But no such certainty exists. Our concern should be as to whether his treatment in prison has been directed towards this end, or whether the mere punishment was all that influenced those that administered it. This is too complex to be dealt with here; but a quotation from an article by John A. F. Watson, J.P., vice-president of the National Association of Prison Visitors, and chairman of the London Juvenile Courts, maj give us something to consider in the meantime. He says: "The history of the English prison is the history of a war between two schools of thought. On the one side were those who regarded all criminals as social outcasts, and who believed that the best way to combat crime was to inflict a retributive punishment so horrible that people would lie frightened into good behaviour; on the other were those who believed that the interests of the community were better served by a penal system which, though unpleasant enough to remain a deterrent, made some attempt to reform the offender.”

If we can bring ourselves really to think of the criminal as a possible asset rather than a liability to the community, we shall be interested to learn something of the steps taken to produce the change. Our own attitude is important enough to be well examined.

METHODS Poll Year Suggestions 1 )ear White Ribboners, This is election year. Every member of the Women's Christian Temperance Union will, 1 know, he willing to do her part in winning votes for the abolition of the liquor traffic. Let us start our campaign now by first organising meetings for prayer. If each union, no matter how small, would meet and pray for God’s help what a sure foundation that would be to build a strong organisation for the campaign.

Then, begin now to enclose literature in letters, to paste temperance facts on envelopes. The public needs educating. When you give or write medical temperance facts, always give the name of the doctor or scientist responsible for it. It will carry more weight.

A valuable method of gaining more votes would he to increase the names cn our L.W.R. Cradle Roll, and to foim L.T.L. or Bands of Hope. In this way we wou'd have the opportunit> of contacting the parents.

Are we giving as much help to the “Y" branches as we could? Our “Y" branches need building up. We know there will be thousands of first-voters this year. What are we doing to catch their votes? If we are going to succeed let us start now.

Every month your officers and superintendent will try to make some plans of work for the poll, and I would like to suggest that unions be asked to report how many they carried out at the end of the year.

Yours in the Master's service, AMY KASPER, Superintendent, Methods Department. A further suggestion as to our efforts for this momentous year is sent in anonymously:— At each meeting of the union let the following questions be asked: “Have you attempted any definite temperance work during the past month? \re you trying to influence a child, or an adolescent, to become a total abstainer? Hands up for an affirmati\« answer?” And if not, why not?

1944: i s. d. £ s. d. Credit Balance— General Fund.. 202 3 5 Special Fund .. 300 0 0 — 502 3 5 1944-45: Donations— General 26 13 0 Unions 10 !6 6 37 9 6 Interest— r.o 4 5 10 Debentures 12 0 0 1555 18 0

£ s. d. S.S. Stamps 4 10 0 Bonus, Mrs. Woodward .. 10 0 0 Telephone .. 7 10 0 Radio Licence 1 5 0 Stamps .. 0 13 6 Insurances .. 3 17 9 Reports . 0 7 3 Mrs. Woodward. Chairs 6 0 0 Sundries . 0 3 5 34 6 11 Credit Balance .. 521 11 10 £555 18 9 B.C. I)ebentures .. 300 0 0 Balance in P.O . 221 8 3 Cash in Hand . 0 3 7 £521 11 10