Cibrarjo of t1\e trheolojical ^tminaty PRINCETON • NEW JERSEY PRESENTED BY Rufus H. LeFevre iun fails in that important function. Then 1 have a water-pitcher and a bucket, the necessaries (rather the indispensables) of a bed-room set. Goldsmith says : "Man wants but little here below, Nor wants that little long." Applied to this new world, the couplet of the impecunious poet is as true as when applied to the one with which you are so familiar, my darling. Yes, far truer. Few, I venture, dwell here who would not willingly abandon this utilitarian realm for the one they formerly knew, for the friends and the freedom they loved and enjoyed, so that what little v.-e want here is not ivanted long. Yet the terms of the "probation" of many are such that they are not permitted to go back to the world for many long, weary years, for the land where we dwell is very similar to the valley described by Surly Sam in his "Rasselas," in one respect at least. That valley, if I am not mistaken in my remembrance of childhood's reading, wa.s completely walled in on all side.s by rugged mountains tiuit barred all egress. Here we are "cramped, cribbed, confined" to a small spot of earth, within equally inhospitable walls. Were I in such a land as the island home of the positivists, or even in a laud as extremely utilitarian as this one, with you. dar- ling, if you were contented and happy, I shotild be supremely so ; but I know you too well, your disposition, your refinement, your tastes, your yearnings, your desires, to suppose such a thing as your hap- piness under such circumstances and with such surroundings, yet I feel sure, love, that even here, with me, you could not be any more thoroughly miserable than you are at home, in the midst of kind and sympathizing friends, without me. It is indeed a cruel blow, and unmerited, but it must be endured. I have set my mind, arranged my feelings, to dwell here the allotted time. Respecting my place and my work here, I have only to say that had I been fully acquainted with this laud of seclusion before visit- ing its shores, and had I been granted the privilege of selecting the place most to my liking, I could not have hit upon one more en- tirely agreeable to me and adapted to my abilities — whatever they may be T never was afraid of work, as you know. This is truly a "new life" to me, but not the new life the Good Book tells us about, and not the new life we all desire. Y'et, it furnishes me food for thought and characters for study. I shall be able to complete our new no\'el, "Henry Hurley," when I come home, and give the finishing touch to such villains as Mose Brau, Teddy Tulli\an, and Will Huff with an exactness not otherwise possible. Every condition and position in life has its advantages 82 2'he Criminal Classes and disadvantages. I hope to be able to make this, our great trouble, yield fruit that shall contribute to our everlasting happiness. Rideing ti-uly says that life is like a prism in the changing aspects which it has from different positions of sight, if not in the cer- tainty of resultant beauty. Tliis is certainly a standpoint that a person does not desire or care to look from more than once in a lifetime. You cannot see me in my new home, — in my "apartments," — but you can see me in the office. Ask to see me at the chaplain's office ; that is the best place. You can see me once in thirty days. I cannot write often. The rule is that only short letters are to be written, but the chaplain has kindly consented to look over one longer than usual for me. I will write as often as I am allowed, and always to you. May loving angels kindly guard thy pillow. M. Causes and Cures 83 XXVI. A Mother's Love. Or ail poems ever written, tiiere is no otlier wliicli, with tlie delinquent, can take the place of the following pathetic inquiry of Robert Lowry, coming as from the crushed heart of a mother longing for some tidings from a wayward son: WUERE IS MY BOY TO-NIGHT V Where is my wand'riDg boy to-night, The boy of my tend'rest care, The boy that was once my joy and light, The child of my love and prayer? Chorus. Oh, where is my boy to-night? Oh, where is my boy to-night? My heart o'erflows, for I love him, he knows ; Oh, where is my boy to-night? Once he was pure as morning dew. As he knelt at his mother's knee ; No face so bright, no heart more true. And none was so sweet as he. Oh, could I see you now, my boy, As fair as in olden time, When prattle and smile made home a joy. And life was a merry chime ! Go for my wand'ring boy to-night ; Go, search for him where you will ; But bring him to me with all his blight, And tell him I love him still. ILLUSTRATION. The following story of a reckless young man suggests a possible comfort in the case of other erring loved ones, and quite appropriately illustrates the force of the poem : 84 The Criminal Classes A lady in Baltimore had a wayward son whose reckless conduct cost her many tears. There were many things in her life to make her happy, but her anxiety for her head- strong boy saddened all her enjoyments and disturbed her peace. He grew more indifferent to her love, and finally left his home for a life of adventure in the West; but happiness did not come to him in his wild career, nor riches from his eager search in the mines. For a time the new freedom gratified him, but his restless spirit could not be contented even with that. By some means, his mother kept track of his wander- ings, and was able to send him messages of love, but they brought few or no replies. At a meeting in Baltimore, she heard the Rev. Eol^ert Lowry's touching poem, that has Ijeen so often sung, and the words exactly uttered her own feelings : "Where is my wanu'ring boy to-nightV" etc. The weeping woman copied the verses, and sent them to her son in a letter. Xo word from him ever reached her in return. At last she lost all trace of him, not even know- ing that he had received her message. Then, after weary waiting, tidings came, bitter tidings, strangely mingled with consolation. Her "wandering boy"' had fallen a victim to his restless passion. In some daring expedition on one of the Rocky Mountain trails, he had become separated from his party and lost. His body was found in a cave, where he had died of hunger and exhaustion. By his side was an unfinished letter to his mother. In it he craved for forgiveness, as he had already asked the forgiveness of PTeaven. He had re- ceived the poem she sent him, he said, and it had melted his heart, and bad led him to repentance. Causes and Cures 85 XXVII. A Mother's Call. Second only to "Where Is My Boy To-Xight?" it has turned many a wayward soul toward home, and started many, many penitent tears : COME HOME, MY BOY. my boy, with anxious feeling, Tlirobs my troubled heart for thee, While I watch amid the gloaming, For thy footsteps on the stairs ; But they come not ! no, they come not ! And my sad forebodings tell, As the deep'ning shades grow darker, With thy soul it is not well. Chorus. Come! O come! what makes thee linger? What allures thee thus to roam? ^lother's heart i.s almost breaking; O my boy ! come home, come home. Think, my boy, 't was I who loved thee, All thy helpless childhood years ; 1 who passed without a murmur, Sleepless nights of care and tears. Canst thou in my age forsake me. Thou, my pride, my cradle joy? Only God can ever love thee As I love thee now, my boy. In tlie window every evening, Still I leave a light for thee ; And it3 beams so bright and cheerful In the distance thou canst see. Come, and tell me all thy wand'rings — Lay thy burning cheek to mine. While I whisper hope and comfort From a Savior's Word divine. 86 The Criminal Classes One by one my sands are ebbing; Yes, my latest hours draw nigh, Let these eyes onoe more behold thee, I^t me bless thee ere I die. Oh ! thou wilt not now refuse me — Come, my boy, no longer roam, For my heart is almost breaking ; O my boy ! come home, come home I Causes and Cures 87 XXVIII. A Convict to His Mother. I 'VE wandered far from thee, mother, Far from my happy home ; I 've left the land that gave me birth, lu other lauds to roam : And time since then has rolled its years, And marked them on my brow. Yet I have often tliought of thee — I 'm thinking of thee now. I 'm thinking of the day, mother. When at thy tender side You watched the dawning of my youth. And kissed me in your pride ; Then brightly was my heart lit up With hopes of future joy. While your bright fancy honors wove To deck your darling boy. I 'm thinking of the day, mother. When with such anxious care You lifted up your heart to heaven — Your hope, your trust, was tliere. Fond memory brings thy passing words. Whilst tears stole down thy cheek ; Thy long, last loving look told more Than ever words could speak. I 'm far away from thee, mother, No friend is near me now To soothe me with a tender word. Or cool my burning brow. Tlie dearest ties affection wove Are now all torn from me ; They left me when the trouble came ; They did not love like thee. I 'm lonely and forsaken now. Unpitied and unblest ; Yet. still. I would not have thee know How sorely I 'm distressed. 88 The Criminal Classes I know you would not chide, mother, You would not give me blame. But soothe me with your gentle woids, And bid me hope again. I would not have thee know, mother. How brightest hoiies decay ; The tempter with his l)aneful cup Has dashed them all away ; And shame has left his venom sting To rack with anguish wild — Yet, still, I would not have thee know The sorrows of thy child. Oh ! I have wandered far. mother, Since I deserted thee. And left thy trusting heart to break Beyond the deep blue sea. Oh, mother, still 1 love tliee well. And long to hear thee speak. And feel again thy balmy breath Upon my careworn cheek. But, oh ! there is a thought, mother, Pervades my beating breast, That thy freed .spirit may have flown To its eternal rest. And while I wipe the tears away There whispers in my ear A voice that speaks of heaven and thee. And bids me seek thee there. Causes and Cures 89 XXTX. Special Temperance Service. A Prisoner's Address — The Tidal Wave — A Temptation to Drink — A Tender Caution — A Student — A Graduate — A Drunkard — A Felon. For two successive Sabbaths the time usually occupied for pra3'er-meetings and Sunday school was taken in the interest of temperance. Freedom was given to all to speak, and some most wonderful experiences were given. At the close of the second service, about three hundred, by up- lifted hands, pledged entire abstinence in the future. In response to a special request, the following was given, for the delivery of which eighteen minutes were allowed : THE TIDAL WAVE. (A Temperance Address delivered to tbe convicts of the Oliio Peniten- tiary in tlie Prisoners' Prayer-Fleeting, on Sunday, September 26, 1880, by Thomas H. Thomas, a five years' convict from Cincinnati.) If any of you have ever been in France, you may have observed the great number of fruit-trees that grow in that land. While the farmer has his orchards inclosed by the fences of his farm, there is, growing on the outside of these fences, along each side of the public roads, a continuous line of fruit-trees ; and the fruit that grows on these trees is free, so that there is always an abundance of fruit, in season, for the poor, the stranger, or the traveler who may be passing through that land. This is in accordance with the law, which compels a man, when he eats any kind of fruit, to cover up the seed in the earth. So that when a man eats any fruit, as an apple or peach, he collects the seed in his hand, and, stepping off to one side of the road, he digs a hole with a stick or the toe of his boot, and into this hole he drops the seed. He then covers it up, tramps it lightly down, and goes on his way. Now, in doing this, he complies with the requirements of the law. After he deposits the seed in the ground, it may rot there, or, springing up a few inches or a foot, it may be kicked over or broken off by some passer- 90 The Criminal Classes. by ; but with all this he has nothius to do. He must cover the seed, and then he is free. There his duty ends. In the city of Cincinnati, a few years ago, while a lady, a mem- ber of the Women's Christian Temperance Union, wa.s passing along one of the principal streets, she saw, walking before her, two young men. They were well-dressed, well-educated, and, apparently, had been well-raised. They had not preceded her very far, until she discovered, by their loud and boisterous conversation, that they were both intoxicated ; and, from their actions, she correctly Judged that they were, at that time, in search of some convenient saloon. Now, this lady was a Christian at work. She was one of those Christians who sow the seed of Christianity by the wayside, cover it up, and leave the rest to God's own great care. It might not bear fruit to reward her for her labor while she was on earth ; but she cared not for all this — her part was to sow the seed. Many a woman, seeing two drunken men before her, would have crossed to the opposite side of the street. Not so this woman. She was as sensitive and refined as any woman, but she had a work to do. She had partaken of the sweet fruits of temperance, faith, hope, charity, and love, and, exhaling the blessed fragrance at every breath, she was always in search of some favorable spot on which to drop the seed : and now her motherly heart went out in prayer and in pity for these two unfortunate young men; .she longed for an opportunity to do them good, she longed for an opportunity to speak to them, and it came at last. Here was ground on which the seed might fall ; hard and stony, it is true, yet with God's blessing might it not outgrow the thorns? She would at least try, and she got her seed ready. The young men passed along the sidewalk before her, looking up at each house and sign, until, at length, they came to a saloon of rather more than ordinarily inviting appearance. Before this they halted. There was a green screen inside of the door; the long counter was topped with marlile ; gay pictures decorated the walls; a handsome oilcloth covered the floor; clean Iwttles and glasses were arranged neatly upon the shelves ; the odor of fragrant liquors and cigars came from the door, and behind the bar stood the friendly proprietor, waiting to welcome with a smile all those who might favor him with a call. Now, right above the door of this saloon was painted the sign or title given to the house, by which it was known to its customers. It was composed of three short words. — an article, an adjective, and a i\ouu. — "The Tidal Wave!" On the window of this saloon was painted a picture; it was the picture of a ship in full sail. Under the ship was the sea. and. swelling up on either side was a great wave, and below this picture was painted again, in large, gilt letters, the suggestive title of the saloon, "The Tidal Wave!" As the young men halted in front of Causes and Cures 91 this saloon, one of them looked up, and, reading the sign, called out, loud enough for the lady to hear, "Hello, Charlie, here 's The Tidal Wave, let 's go in and get a drink." The words had scarcely left his lips when the lady was at his side, and, laying her hand upon his shoulder kindly, as a mother might have done, she said : "Yes, my voung friend, that 's The Tidal Wave I It is the tidal wave of rum, and it sweeps more young men's souls into perdition every year than all the waves of the sea combined !" One moment more, and she was gone. Her work was done. She had dropped the seed, and, departing with a prayer on her lips, she left the result to the great Gardener of the world. The young men stood upon the sidewalk until they saw the lady turn a comer of the street; and then — what did they do? Uid they shake hands and separate, and say that that lady's words were true, and resolve that they would never drink another drop while they lived? No, they did nothing of the kind. They did just what any two drunken men would have done — they passed into the saloon. At first neither of them spoke. They had been taken by surprise, and seemed at a loss for something to say, until the polite and attentive bar-keeper called them to themselves by suggesting that no doubt they had come in there to "take a drink." The glasses were soon filled, and as they were about to lift them to their lips one of them, hesitatingly, said : "Charlie, I wish I had not seen that woman ; I wish I had not heard her voice, for she puts me in mind of my mother, whom I have not thought of before for years, for that is just the way she used to talk to me before I left home, and that is just the reason why I left — because, you see, I drank a little, and mother was always talking about the evils of rum, rum, rum, until I could stand it no longer, so I packed up and left home, and I had forgotten all about my mother and her rum until that woman put me in mind of her." The other companion added something about it beiig time that women had learned to mind their own business and let men's affairs alone, and the matter was dropped. They swallowed their drinks, and before they staggered away from that saloon at a late hour that night they had drunken many times from the tidal wave of which that lady had so kindly warned them — "the tidal wave of nun. which sweeps more souls into perdi- tion eveiT year than all the waves of the sea combined." Now, my friends, it is not my purpose, at this time, to pursue the history of each of the three individuals that I have already in- troduced to you. The lady was lost sight of at the first comer; and, in a few days after the event to which I have just adverted, the young men separated, and never again met. But it is my in- tention, at this time, to trace the history of the one whose career has been the most eventful, if not the most unfortunate of the three. It is the one to whom the lady addressed her plain but pene- trating words ; the one who had not thought of his mother for 92 The Criminal Classes years; the one wlio wished that he had not seen that woman; had not heard her voice; had never met with any person nor any cir- cum-stance to recall tiie reproaches of a mother who had once chided him for his errors,- — one who had yearned over him with a mother's love ; one who had smiled upon him with a mother's smiles; one who had wept over him with a mother's tears, until at last he left her. and then, even then, had followed him with a mother's prayers. This is the one. my friends, of whom I wish to speak to you for a few moments on the present occasion. The young man that I have alluded to was the son of pious par- ents. He was brought up in the church and Sabbath school, and a happy future seemed to smile on his infancy. He was the youngest and petted one of the family, a mother's pride and a father's joy. He lived in luxury and affluence through boyhood's years, but at last as manhood began to dawn uiwn him. there came a change, a sad. eventful change, over his once happy household; for he had learned to look upon the wine when it is red, and when it gave its color in the cup. until, in the end, it bit like a serpent and stung him like an adder. He afterward became a student of medicine ; at another time a student of theology ; and finally a graduate of one of the first col- leges of our laud, though his attainments did him but little good. As his whole after life was marred by indulgence in the intoxi- cating bowl, his whole history since has been one of misfortune and crime. And now, my friends, we will bring this young man to the city where he was first addressed by that dear woman who took so much interest in him — in him. an unknown stranger, simply be- cause she was a Christian at heart, and a faithful, working member of the Women's Christian Temperance Union. And, having brought our subject here to Ohio, he seems to be almost near us. or even with us, on the present occasion, for he has often stood upon the same ground on which some of you have stood ; he has often passed you in your daily walks upon the street ; he has often engaged with some of you in conversation. Yes. and he has often drunk fro;'-i that portion of the tidal wave which passes over the city of Colum- bus, sweeping its quota of souls into perdition ; robi)ing mothers of their sons and wives of their husbands ; making little children orphans, and filling the penitentiary with its victims. Now, there seems to be such a close connection between the his- tory of this young man and the prodigal of the Bible, such a coinci- dence of circumstances, as it were, that we may be pardoned for placing them side by side, and making the language of one apply to both. Soon after leaving college, he. like the prodigal, demanded of his father the portion of the goods that fell to him, and his father having divided with him his living, he took his journey into a far country, that is, to the city of Cincinnati, (it was far from his former home and the scenes of brighter days,) and there he Causes and Cures 93 spent liis substance in about the same manner as the prodigal had spent his — in riotous living, irle had the division of his father's money in his pocket at the time he was addressed bj' the lady in front of the saloon. Oh ! had he never entered it, never drunken another drop again, where might he have been standing to-day V There is no honorable position in society which he might not have been qualitied to fill. But, no I He passed into the saloon, and her words were soon lost in the delirium of drink. They were soon forgotten in his revels with the demon rum ! Forgotten, like the words of his mother, and not thought of again for years. For- gotten, till God, in his own good time, saw tit to recall them in a prison cell. They came back to him, and sank deep down into his heart like arrows of remorse penetrating the fountains of life. At the time the lady spoke to him, he had nearly ten thousand dollars in his pocket, and in two years from that day he did not possess enough to purchase him his breakfast as he stood in front of a Vine Street restaurant, moneyless, hungry and without food. All gone inside of two years ! Swept away by the tidal wave ! But his money was not all spent in Cincinnati ; Columbus, Chicago, and other cities were visited and did their part toward diminishing it. The tidal wave of rum is boundless in its course. It is not confined to any one locality or place. AMien the day came on which he spent his last dollar, he was in St. Louis. He must have money, for lie must have drink. So he went to a pawn-broker and secured $100 on a handsome watch that had cost three times that amount. He returned to Chicago, and was a second time moneyless. Here he parted with his studs and other jewelry. The proceeds soon vanished, and he found himself without anything moi'e of value on which to secure money, so he longed to return to Cincinnati, where he felt sure of a wel- come by those through whose hands most of his money had de- parted. If he could only reach the Tidal AVave Saloon and some other of his former favorite resorts, surely he would be provided with drinks free for some time, until something better would turn up for him — fatal illusion ! Let us see the end. He reached Cin- cinnati. He hastened to the Tidal Wave Saloon, but it had changed hands. The picture had been partly washed from the window. The floor was covered with dirt and cigar stumps. The bar was attended by a woman who seemed more anxious to secure money than to give it away. All was changed there but one thing, and that was the tidal wave of rum — it flowed on the same. More fiery and jjoisonous now, no douI)t, since it had fallen to a lower grafle of evil. He then visited a saloon on Central Avenue. Here he had spent hundreds of dollars in a month. Surely he would meet witli favor there. He looked in. His heart beat fast. Oh, yes. that house was all the same, it had not changed. Tlie proprie- tor was so glad to see him that he jumped clear over the counter 94 The Criminal Classes to greet and embrace him ; but after a second look he stood back in surprise. No watch, no jewelry, no money ! The clothing threadbare and soiled. "What," said he, "spent all your money?" "Yes," he replied, "1 went West and got broke, so I thought I would come back and ask a little favor of those with w^hom I spent so much at first ; and you know that I left a great deal of it with you." "Yes, I know you did, but you always got the worth of your money. .Where is your watch V" "1 sold it to a Jew at St. Louis." "You used to have some fine studs?" "Yes, I left them with a pawnbroker at Chicago." "Your trunks?" "Pawned in this city." "Have you nothing you can turn into money? Write to your friends." "No ; I have spent my money, pawned my jewels, sold my clothing, and have nothing more to fall back on." "Well," said the cunning proprietor, "you are a fool to have got away with all you had ; here is a pint of brandy, it is all I can do for you. You had best go to work, and as soon as you find times better you can come and pay me seventy-five cents for this drink." The young man put the flask into his pocket and stepped into the street ; alone in the world, with no friend but that bottle. There was nothing for him now but hard work, and he even found trouble in securing that. So, at length, having failed elsewhere, like the prodigal again, he joined himself to a citizen of the coun- try, who sent him into his fields to feed swine — which was really a portion of the work he had to perform, for he was employed as a farm-hand, to feed stock, in the middle of winter, only a few miles from where we now stand. Now, some might ask why he did not follow his profession as a druggist. I have but one answer to give — he was a di'unkard ! Saloon-keepers and distillers want nothing to do with the drunkard. They meet him at the door with a smile. Always welcome him to their place of business, that i.s, while his money lasts ; but when that is done he is sent adrift. But. to return to our subject. He soon found that he was un- fitted for the heavy work of the farm, and tried various other occu- pations, but all with the same result, for out of every dollar earned seventy-five cents of it went for rum. He might be deprived of food, but he would not be deprived of drink. In the meantime, he had very unwisely taken to himself a companion, one who was destined to l)e the sharer of his sorrows — joy. there was none in stove for him. A loving wife now hung upon him for support, now clung to him for protection ; but he could not support himself, let alone another. He could not protect himself against his one single enemy, rum; how, then, could he sui)i)ort or i)r(>tect niiy ono else? No, he wa? now as a blighted plantain, standing alone amidst the sandy desert, with nothing to smile or live beneath his care. His wife and dear ones must share his disgrace and suffer with him. He was no longer the bright, promising young man of six years before; he was a drunkard. And though, for a time, his wife clung Causes and Cures 95 to him with all the tenacity of woman's devotion and love, she was unable to save him, powerless to redeem oi- rescue him ; until at last, in an unguarded moment, when reason was partially de- throned, and his idol, rum, reigned instead, he committed an act, or series of acts, for which he was sent to the Ohio Penitentiary. There he became sober — the first time he had I'eally been sober since leaving his father's roof six years before. In a prison cell I Oh, what horrors hung over him, what anguish possessed his soul, when he came to himself and realized all that had taken place ! Then it was that the words of that dear woman came back to him. He recalled the whole scene as it had taken place in front of the saloon. In the darkness of midnight, as he sat in his lonely prison cell, on his hard and uncomfortable bed, awakened from a fright- ful dream, dimly at first, thread by thread, little by little, it re- turned to him. What was it that that woman called it? She said it was the tidal wave of rum. And what else":' Something about men's souls. She said that it swept more souls, yes, more young men's souls into perdiction every year than all the waves of the sea. And, oh, how true her words appeared to him then ! It had not yet swept his soul into perdition, but it had swept his body into a prison cell. It was even worse than death to him. He was confined in a living tomb, and could he have seen his own natural grave one hundred feet deep, gladly would he have stepped into it and been covered up from the gaze of the world. "Man proposes, but God disposes," and so it was in this case. The words of the lady returned to him, and became as the balm of Gilead to his poor, breaking heart. He saw the cause of all his woe, and resolved on bended knee, before Heaven, that, by God's help, he would become a better man, and never drink another drop so long as he should live ; and he will never break his word. Mow. my friends, I wish that I could bring all three of these persons here to-day and place them before you as they appeared in front of the Tidal Wrfve Saloon at that time, but I cannot do so. I cannot bring the lady here, for I never saw her before, nor have I seen her since. I cannot bring the two young men here, for, about two years ago, the one whom I called Charlie, while walk- ing along the C, H. & D. track, near Cincinnati, with a pint flask of w'hisky in his pocket, was struck by a locomotive, and they gath- ered him up in fragments a mile along the rails : but it is my privi- lege to present to you the one of whom I have been speaking on the present occasion. He stands before you, dishonored and disgraced, it is true, soon to be cast back again on the world, to battle anew with the same temptations to which he once yielded so willingly; but, my friends, he stands before you to-day as a monument of God's unchanging love and exceeding great mercy. He has sinned and he has suffered ; but knows that God has forgiven him, and "what God hath cleansed, let not man call unclean." 96 Tlie Criminal Classes And now, I stand i)efore you to-day as a warning, a lighthouse, as it were, on the sea of rum ; no longer borne on the tidal wave, but liaA'ing been s'lipwreeked and cast naked upon the rocks, having floated upon its red surface till I was almost near enough to look into the mouth of hell, I have at last returned from the painful voyage and stand before you to warn you of its dangei"s. If you were about to go on a journey to some unknown part of the world, and some one who had been there before you would come to you and say that he had nearly frozen to death ; that he was for many days without food, and found it impossible to obtain any ; that danger and death surrounded him on every hand, and that all the money in the world could not induce him to perform the journey a second time, what would you doV Would you go? No, not one of you. You would shrink back in horror at the prospect before you. and never again think of going. Now, my friends, I am just such a personage. Ou and on, farther and farther from the shores of earthly happiness; nearer and nearer to the death-line of de- struction, until at last my frail bark was dashed upon the break- ers : and it is only through God's mercy that I am alive and in the world to-day. Have I spoken plainly enough, or is there any one here who fails to compre!)end my meaning fully? To such I would add that I ha\e been a drunkard. I have suffered all that a man could suffer and live. Once I was rich, but my money all went for rum. Once I was loved and respected by all who knew me, but whisky took away my character and caused me to be disgraced. Once I was a meud>er of God's house, and superintendent of the Sabbath school, where I loved to hear the children singing praises to the Redeemer, but whisky made the songs of the bar-room and theater seem more melodious to me. Once I lived with a loving, affectionate wife, but whisky caused me to be parted from her, and thus robbed me of the dearest friend on earth. Once I was free and happy, but to-day I fill a convict's cell. Rum robbed me of my money. It robbed me of my character. It robbed me of my liberty. It robbed me of my wife, and almost laid me in a drunkard's grave. Causes and Cures 97 XXX. Drivex nioM Home. (Note— When Queen Prohibition extended her blessed scepter over the rum-cursed city of Wellsville. Ohio, a few months before my arrest, one of the saloon-keepers, whose place had been closed by the Prohibi- tory ordinance, moved just outside of the corporation limits and began business anew, with the following legend or motto painted above his door: "Driven From Home." A few days later he found the following touching lines pinned to his door:) ^^'HAT ! driven f'rom home — can it really be. In this great land of plenty and home of the free? Come, answer me fairly, if this can be true. Is 't the wife and the child of the drunkard, or ijcru? You seem well-provided, your bar-room is warm ; You ha^e food, fire, and shelter from every storm, AVhile the cold blasts of winter seem piercing one thro' — Then surely this motto, it cannot mean you ! Then look at your household, — your wife and your child.- They are all warmly clad, while the storm rages wild ; On the child of the drunkard no stocking or shoe. Made homeless and hungry thro' drink sold by you! See yon poor mother, she is tired and weeping ; All swollen her eyelids, the clock striking two, Still sewinsr for bread while her husband is sleeping. Made stupid and senseless on drink sold by you! Poor, tired fingers, oft pierced by the needles. How glad would they rest, liut her rent is long due ; Poor, tired limbs, e\er aching, but, heedless, She toils for the pittance that oft goes to you! Once she was happy, and glad, and contented : The smiles of her loved one each hour she knew ; Now broken-hearted, with husband demented. On the verge of starvation thro' drink sold by you! 98 The Criminal Classes Ere driuk had destroyed him and made him a demon, He sought all her pathway with flowers to strew ; But rum changed his heart to a desert, inhuman. With thistles and thorns where love's roses once grew ! Out on the hillside where willows are keeping Kind watch o'er the graves of the dear ones she knew, At midnight she steals to their mounds oft and weeping, 8he longs for a bed by their side 'neath the dew ! There 's a wail from the poor-house, where widow and orphan Lament the lost pleasures of life which they knew ; There 's a wail from the scaffold, the mad-house and prison — "IVe were driven from home thro' drink sold by you!" (Note.— One month later the saloon-keeper sold out and engaged in other business. These facts can be attested by any citizen of Wellsville, Ohio.— The Atjthor.) Causes and Cures 99 XXXI. Mekcy Sought and Obtained. Josephine Tho^ias, who said she was a governess, was arrested for being drunk and disorderly. The day follow- ing, Justice Morgan sent her to the workhouse for three months. Shortly after, the justice received from her the following : TO JUSTICE MOEGAN. Now, honored judge, these lines I send ; The freedom please excuse, And kindly list to what I say, Nor my re= more intolerable, the lines Ijetween right and wrong axe more clearly drawn, and the machinery for the detec- tion and punishment of crime is more effective. If an ad- ministration under a good state of culture were turned within a population where ignorance predominates, the criminal population would doubtless appear greatly in- creased. 2. A difference in race, a difference in social and politi- cal positions, may exist producing different results. I would not aflfirm that education is an antidote for all criminal propensities, or that ignorance is the chief cause of crime. ISTo, I know from personal observation that among the worst criminals are some well educated : they are criminals from other causes, criminals in spite of both culture and moral influences. Then, too, some criminals who have studied the sciences and graduated in the clas- hes may have received only the education of the head. There may have been great defects in the methods and character of the educators. The true education touches both the intellectual and moral faculties, both the head rnd heart. If this be true, then here is a powerful ar.sr^i- ment in favor of the higher education under the control of the church. One of the chief objects of education is the preparation 146 The Criminal Classes of individuals for social combiuatioii by incuk-atiiig the sacrifice of the animal proclivities to secure a higher well- being in comrannit}' life. Crime is the action of an indi- \idual against the objects of education; it attacks tlie forms of social life and asserts the right to persist in sav- age deeds. Dr. Harris has said: "^lan as an animal is a ravage; as civilized, he is an ethical being who has set up within himself a S3'stem of duties and obligations which he observes at the expense of neglecting the impulses of his merely animal nature." Aristotle said: "Man, properly educated and trained, is the best of animals, but if unedu- cated he becomes the worst of them." Criminal acts are sometimes the result of superstition, the belief in extraordinary or singular events, omens and })rognostics. Superstition is the offspring of ignorance, and therefore ignorance is the source of such acts. During my official connection with the penal and re- formatory institutions of the State I became acquainted with quite a number who were influenced by siiperstitious ideas to commit criminal acts. For want of time and space I shall mention but one : He was the son of illiterate parents; was a single man, aged about thirty years, of ro- bust frame and apparently in good health, but entirely des- titute of a knowledge of letters. He had spent most of his time on the farm of his father. He believed that dreams f re omens of good or evil. His crime was the murder of his father, whom he cut down with a corn knife, and he was sentenced to the Ohio penitentiary for life. His onlv plea of defense was that he must either kill his father or be killed by his father. He gave as his reason for the plea that the night before he committed the crime he dreamed that his father came to him and assaulted him with mur- derous intent, and that a voice said to liiiu, ''You must de- lend yourself." Tie interpi-cted if according in his plea. Causes and Cures 147 While in the fiekl cutting corn he saw his aged father ap- proaching him bearing a vessel of water to quench his thirst, and without hesitation, as he approached and of- fered the water, he cut him down. He frequently said to me that he was fully convinced that he would have been killed had he not killed his father. WHAT STATISTICS PROVE. At the international congress in London, some years aii'o. the following summary of statistics from the United States was presented: 1. In sixteen southern States, two-thirds of all the prisoners were illiterate. 2. In the other States more than one-third were so. 3. In Xew York, out of a population of 942,242, then enumerated, there were 62,238 unable to read and write. That same year there were in the prisons of that State 51,466, of wiiom 19,160 were illiterate. This last statement shows that, of the ignorant, one in three committed crime, while of those who could read and write (one beyond that) the proportion was as one in twenty-seven. From an address of Wm. T. Harris, LL. D., before the National Conference of Charities, at Washington, D. C, in 1885, I gather the following : 1. Of an aggregate prison population in Xew York and Pennsylvania of 12,T72, thirty-three per cent, were very Ignorant, and over sixty per cent, were below the standard for common-school education. 2. That the census of these States show that of the entire population only four per cent, are illiterate. These statements demonstrate that the four per cent, of illiterates furnish at least thirty-three per cent, of the criminals, while the ninety-six per cent, of the educated population 148 The Criminal Classes furnish sixty-seven per cent, of the criminals — twelve times as many from the illiterate as from the same num- ber who are educated. To state it in another form is to say that eight illiterate persons furnish as many criminals in these States as ninety-six educated persons. 3. In the central northwestern States, including Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, ■Michigan, and Wisconsin, three and one- half per cent, of the population are illiterate, while forty- six per cent, of the prison population are totally illiterate, or very ignorant — thirteen times their portion. 4. In the West and Pacific sections, three per cent, of the population are illiterate. These three per cent, of il- literates furnish thirty-one per cent, of the criminals, or tenfold their quote. 5. In three southern States, Maryland, Kentucky, and South Carolina, of 2,400 prisoners sixt\' per cent, were totally illiterate, twenty-five per cent very deficient, mak- ing a total of eighty-five per cent, totally or very deficient. In these three States twenty-two per cent, of the entire population are illiterate, so that the twenty-two per cent, cf illiterates furnish at least sixtv per cent, of the crim- inals. (See N". C. of C. 85, pp. 229-230.) Dr. E. D. Mansfield, in his report to the Bureau of Education, said : "With the criminal statistics before mo from nearly all of the States, I reach the following con- clusions: 1. That about one-third of all criminals are totally uneducated, and that four-fifths are practically un- educated. 2. That the proportion of criminals from the illiterate classes is at least tenfold as great as the propor- tion from those having some education." Mr. John Eaton, then United States Commissioner of Education, in a circular entitled "Education and Crime," said : "With the testimony before us we reach the fol- lowing conclusions: 1. That about one-sixth of all the Causes and Cures 149 crime in the country is committed by persons wholly il- literate. 2. That about one-third of it is committed by persons practically illiterate. 3. That the proportion of criminals among the illiterate is about ten times as great as among those who have been instructed in the elements of common-school education or beyond." Dr. E. C. Wines, who is the best of authority on this sub- ject, said: "Taking the entire mass of inmates of all classes of prisons in the northern and western States, the proportion of those wholly illiterate to those who have re- ceived a moderate degi'ee of education, often very mod- erate indeed, may be stated, with substantial correctness, at about one-third. In the southern States the propor- tions are about reversed, being two-thirds illiterate to one- third partially educated." Doctor Wines also gives the following on FOREIGN STATISTICS. "Of 444,133 persons arrested in France, . . . 442,- 194 were reported as unable to read, making over ninety- five per cent, of illiterates. Of the illiterates there was one arrest for each forty-one persons, but only one arrest for 9,291 persons who could read." He further states: "In England, out of 157,223 committals to prisons, 53,256 were illiterate, or thirty-four per cent. In Switzerland the average of criminals unable to read is eighty-three per cent. In Belgium one-half of the prison population is wholly illiterate." PERSONAL KNOWLEDGE. While chaplain of the Ohio penitentiary, reports over my signature show that there were 1,152 prisoners re- ceived. In my office, and under my personal direction, the statistical record of prisoners pertaining to mental, moral. 150 The Criminal Clauses and social training and habits was taken. I was careful to secure reliable data touching the relation of certain conditions and habits to crime, among which was illiter- acy. Of the 1,152 received there were of those who could not read 106; who could read some, but not write, 133; who could read and write some, 771; who had common- school education, 108; who had high-school education, 14; who had taken full or partial course in college, 20. Of the 771 reported who could read and write some, a very large per cent, were unable to read so as to gatlier important in- formation from what they might be induced to read; nor Avere they able to write so as to correspond satisfactorily with friends. In the face of the facts presented can any person con- sistently claim that education does not tend to prevent crime? ♦Is it not apparent that, for the development of man as a social being, the protection of society, the per- inanency and safety of governments, the onward march of civilization, and the final triumph of truth, man should in the broadest sense be educated? If so. what is the duty r.t the state, of the church, of individuals ? Causes and Cures 151 LI. Conventional Standards for Social Life May Prompt to Misdeeds. Ambition to Cope with Others — Living Within Legitimate Income — Wives Without Estimate and Comparison Involve Hus- bands — The Motto, Live Within Your Means. Ambition to attain to and maintain a social position, determined by a kind of conventional standard of exterior signs, is a source of crime, especially in America. At this altar gradually and frequently are sacrificed parental hope, domestic bliss, and flattering business relations. While integrity whispers. Live within a legitimate income and expect social recognition on the higher basis of loyalty to righteousness, this ambition cries, Make haste to enter the circle and maintain a social position according to rule, at all hazards. Blinded by vain hopes, and too often prompted by a thoughtless and inconsiderate but aml)i- tious wife, without estimate of cost or comparison of in- come, obligations are assumed, risks taken, accounts over- drawn, trust funds used, and the overt act performed. In quick succession follow the sensational announcements, nervous shocks, broken Inisiness links, criminal arrests, and man's confidence in man is weakened. For convinc- ing evidence on this point the skeptic needs only to read the criminal records of the past few years, or interview the several clerks, agents, treasurers, and cashiers now en- vironed by stone walls and iron bars. "Live within your means" is a good motto for all. Un- der it as a caption somebody has appropriately written : 152 The Criminal Classes "When the man with moderate income endeavors to live as expensively as a man of wealth, his future can be easily written; a little enjoyment, periods of anxiety, burden- some debts, a desperate struggle to keep up appearances, ultimate bankruptcy, and a red flag to notify the neigh- bors that the sheriff is master of the situation. One-half the dishonesty of the present age springs from this foolish practice of imitating the style of others. The man of a thousand a year wants to live equal to the one who re- ceives five ; he in turn aspires to make as big a show as the one who receives ten ; and the receiver of ten labors to keep ])ace with the one who counts his income among the fifty thousands. Is it any wonder that so many fail in busi- ness? Life is altogether too short to destroy its enjoyments by taxing soul and body to keep up false appearances. Con- tentment comes with moderation ; mental suffering and keen anguish with extravagance. To the young man ju-^t starting in life, to the man of business pursuing success, to the office-holder who hopes by honorable conduct to merit promotion and distinction, to all who labor for honor or profit, we commend the motto as a safe and sensible one, and one that will pay compound interest in the end. A faithful adherence to it by old and young, rich and poor, will restore confidence in business and ofiicial cir- cles, and fill tlie land with ha])py homes, from which will emanate a spirit of purity essential to the maintenance of public virtue. Causes and Cures 153 Lll. Criminal Examples axd Associatioxs. Cri3»iixal examples and associations are causes of crim- inal life. Crime is not only inherent, but contagious. Ed- ward Livingston said, "Vice is more imfectious than disease." Children are both observing and imitative. Man}^ innocent and promising youth, like Longfellow's maiden, "Standing, with reluctant feet. Where the brook and river meet," are turned by force of associations and counsels into the swift stream and lost — lost forever — in the whirlpool of crime. Numerous examples of criminal contagion and confirmation by associations might be cited by those fa- miliar with the corrupting influences in our jails, in- firmaries, and not infrequently in our reformatories. One who is good authority said, "It would be more reasonable to put a man in a pest-house to cure him of headache than to confine young offenders with confirmed criminals to ef- fect reform." "Keep good company or none." 154 The Criminal Classes LIII. UxBRiDLED Passion Leads to Crime. Anger often leads to criminal conduct. To love is le- gitimate, but love out of bounds leads to infatuation, idol- atry, suicide, and homicide. To hate is legitimate, but that out of place leads to anger, malice, insanity, and man- slaying. One improper indulgence of a passion adds strength to it, and produces moral weakness elsewhere. Anger out of bounds, like a tempest, destroys by its own velocity. Most of the life prisoners in our penitentiaries are there because of uncontrolled passion. Every life, especially every young life, is a stream, possi- bly some "undiscovered Niagara, leaping on its way toward the great ocean of eternity."' If there is no purpose in that life, no aim, no definite determination, no self-control, tliat life must not only be a failure, but a wTcck. But if coupled with that life there be a great purpose, a steady aim, self-possession, and self-control, then it will l)ecome a power for good. "Though passion be hair-strained, it must not break over bounds" (Lincoln). A man of even temper may reverse liimself l)y indulging in fits of passion. A man soon augry may. by self-control, soon rise above his natural inclinations and possess him- self in patience. It is possible to lose or gain much by lit- tle. A classic case is that of the royal granary which was depleted of its stores by a succession of "one rat came and took one grain away, aud another rat came and took an- other grain away." Causes mid Cures 155 LIV. Preventives of, and Cures for Crime and Criminals. Cultivation of Public Sentiment — General Education^ — Suppres- sion of Vile Prints — Stay Intoxicants — Provide for Better Care of Homeless Children — Discipline of Prisoners. By inference, at least, some of the antidotes for crime have been suggested in the discussion of the several causes thereof, among Avhich as deserving special notice and emphasis are : 1 . The cultivation of public sentiment in favor of integrity. 2. A general education, under moral and religious influences. 3. The suppression of the false and vile prints. To this end, the vividly true and pure must be substituted for the impure, and their more liberal circulation maintained. Also by civil enact- ments and their enforcement must the vile be suppressed. 4. The suppression of the manufacture and sale of intoxi- cants as a beverage. 5. Both the church and state should provide for the better care of homeless children and those of profligate and inebriate parents. The influences and discipline within prisons may l)e very helpful or may be quite the contrary. The chief officer of a prison, to do his part in this respect well, should know the particular moral condition of those com- mitted to his keeping, and personally, as Avell as through his subordinates, seek to overcome every evil inclination manifest, and give all possible aid to those who indicate a sincere purpose of reform. The most perfect finish in prison equipment will be of very little value if the execu- tive department be in incompetent hands. 156 The Criminal Classes Somebody has said: ''In the army, politics have some- times played a prominent part in the selection of officers and those in command. In the navy this is not possible, because the risk to men and ships is too immense, iVn error in judgment on the sea, either in battle or sailing, cannot be easily overcome; but the risks attendant on and error in the selection of a chief of a penal institution are even greater, for unskillful management may mean disas- ter to many lives, morally and physically." The reformation and uplifting of the incarcerated, to a very great extent, depends upon the moral character and general fitness of those in charge of them. Count Sollohub well said, "There is a contagion of good as well as of evil." Under this general topic, "Cures," there are some agen- cies not named which deserve more than a passing refer- ence, and which I would particularly emphasize in the fol- lowing pages. Causes and Cures 157 LV. Indeterminate Sentences. No Release \yithout Reformation — The Administration of Law on Scientific Basis — Held for Protection of Society — Placed Under Best Reformatory Influence — Opinion of C. T. Lewis, of New York State Prison Association. Instead of the limited, we should have the indeterminate sentence, with the provisions for parole, pardon, and final discharge only upon evidence of innocence or genuine reformation. This method is both economical and benevo- lent. An outlaw who is determined to live by violence and fraud should be held until he changes that purpose. The State should no more turn loose upon society a known criminal than it should release from an asylum a lunatic. The problem of criminal reformation and the administra- tion of law should be put upon the same scientific basis as that of insanity. When once the mark of Cain is stamped upon an individual, or he is by criminal conduct known to be an outlaw, and as such held by the State, he should, for the protection of society and his own future weal, be detained until it is quite evident that he has fully reformed. A code providing for indeterminate sentence should also require that prisoners be placed under the best possible reformatory. influences. On this subject of indeterminate sentence, Charlton T. Lewis, Ph. D., President Xew York State Prison Association, said : "The only satisfactory principle with which to set out in the study of the problem is this : It is the duty of so- ciety to protect itself, to secure civil order and private 158 The Criminal Classes rights, and to extirpate the criminal chiss. Crime must be controlled where it exists, and every effort must be made, f.rst to prevent it, and then to destroy it. "Prison life is an unnatural life, and the worst prepa- ration for a place in society and among men is to cut a man off from human associations. But one justification can be offered for imprisoning a man, and that is that it is not safe for society that he be at large. Let this be established, and he should unquestionahly be shut up. If it is satis- factorily proved that, while it is unsafe to leave him at liberty to-day, it will 1)e perfectly safe to-morrow, or next week, or next year, then it is reasonable to sentence him to confinement for a definite term ; but if he is so unfit for freedom that it is dangerous to the rights of his fellow- men that he be unrestrained to-day, only omniscience can forsee when that unfitness will end. 'No sentence to im- prisonment, therefore, is rational unless it is an indeter- minate sentence ; that is to say, a sentence to confinement until the prisoner has proved himself fit for freedom." Causes and Cures 159 LYI. Educatiox a Meaxs of Reformatiox. As a means of reformation a proper education of pris- oners should be made compulsory, and one of the condi- tions of release. Touching this, Z. B. Brockwaj' has littingiy said: "All true education is increase, advance- ment of the soul : and soul-growth is ever toward its creator, God. The prisoner's mind must he expanded. In proportion as a prisoner is educated, during his imprison- ment, will his conduct, when relegated to common life, be changed. It is by education in this sense that moral train- ing is best begun; it is the natural avenue to the seat of tlie moral emotions, and paves the way for those super- human influences that are believed to radically change the character." "While serving his time under sentence, a man writing for the Oliio Penitentiary News said: "Education is des- tined to be the redeeming force of the future prison man- agement. It will be the power that ^\'ill elevate the pris- oner's mind to higher aims in this life. It will create a better understanding of what the true aims of this life should be." 160 The Criminal Classes LVII. Child-Saving Institutions. As agencies in the prevention of crime and the reforma- tion of young criminals, too much importance cannot well be attached to the private and public institutions de- nominated ''Child-saving institutions," "Schools for the little ones," and "Homes for children," in which the little children from two to eight years of age nuiy receive both instruction in the right and protection from the wrong. Experience has demonstrated that the best means of preventing crime and improving society is in the right training of children. This training cannot begin too soon. The celebrated Protestant, Oberlin, in Alsace Lorraine, about the middle of the eighteenth century, touched with the sad condition of the children in his parish who were too young to attend school, and who were running at will, gathered them under his own care and guarded them from evil influences without, and instructed them in rules of right. "Then and there," said Doctor Wine, "was estab- lished the first infant school in a rural population ever known." Xo doubt the germ of the kindergarten is here found. A French poet, it is said, in imagination pathetically described the origin and utility of such child-saving schools. TTo in his stretch of imagination sees. "Among the seraphim who forever hvnni the glorv of Cod, one who sometimes stood aloof from Ihe rest, lost in thought, his forehead inclined to thi> earth." He became more and more pensive. At length, knlin2: before the Eternal, he Causes and Cures 161 said: "When thy Son Jesus wept, and was cold in the stable of Bethlehem, my smiles consoled him, my wings sheltered him, my breath warmed him. Since then, when- ever an infant cries, its voice touches my heart, and for this reason I am in continual sorrow. Suffer me to de- scend to earth; there are so many little ones who, shiver- ing with cold, mourn far away from tlie breath and kisses of their mother. I long to shelter them in warm cham- bers ; I long to lay them in cradles, and cover thein well ; I long to be their nurse; I wish that they all may have twenty mothers, who will rock them to sleep, after having well suckled them." The angels applauded him. Spread- ing his wings he descended rapid as the lightning and in- fant nurseries were opened wherever the angel of the little children passed. These private and public "child-saving institutions" are doing much good, but not all that they might, nor all they should. By far too many of them are mere places of de- tention, only prisons, prisons in charge of political parti- sans who were placed in charge, most likely, because of party service rather than fitness for such important work. They seem able, however, to detain those committed to them until they reach the age when by statutory provis- ions they must be discharged. They are then able to in- form them that they are free, and may go out, possibly back to their inebriate or profligate parents, or to former associations with deleterious influences, and that, too, with a meager outfit of clothing. To prevent delinquent children from becoming crimi- nals, our institutions for them must be controlled bv those who possess the elements of reform, and who will strive to cultivate the moral nature of those committed to them ; and better provisions must be made for homing and pro- tecting those discharged therefrom. 163 The Criminal Classes LVIII. Moral axd Religious Efforts. ]MoRAL and religious instruction and example are power- ful agencies in the work of reform. Such instruction has often proved a ready antidote against criminal thoughts, criminal propensities, and criminal character. In an annual report of the hoard of managers of the Ohio penitentiary they speak of gratifying results in re- formatory and moral training of the convicts under the immediate care and instruction of the chaplain, and say: "Abundant evidence is not wanting that permanent good is being accomplished daily for these unfortunate men, as seen in the constantly decreasing offense list and in the cheerfulness and improved discipline of the prisoners." At the same time in his own report the chaplain devotes some spaee to the important topic of reforming the pris- oners, and gives a numl^er of instances where men have led honest and industrious lives after their discharge. In addition thereto he said : "Of those who could neither read nor write on entrance, about fiftv have learned to read withiu the past year, and nearly as many learned to write respectably ; a numl>er have systematically studied mathe- matics, geography, grammar, and history, and a few science." TTnrlcr the loiiic. "Religion in Prison." are cli]ipod the following: "Prisoners uchhI a constant stinnilns io good behavior, the daily presence of a motive to do right gradually trans- forming itself into a habit of doino: ricrbt. Such a motive must be sn])])lied iind reinforced liy moral ;ind religious Causes and Cures 163 teaching. Xo mechanism, however perfect, can take the place of the divine work in regenerating the heart and re- forming the life of sinful men." — F. B. Sanborn. "To reform prisoners, or to make them better as to their morals, slionld l)e the leading view in every house of cor- rection, and their earnings should onl}^ be a secondary ob- ject. We owe this to them as rational and immortal be- ings, nor can any criminality of theirs justify our neglect in this particular." — John Howard. '"Prison reform, as now understood in the world, is the outgrowth of Christianity, as certainly as the oak is the outgrowth of an acorn; and all future growth and prog- ress must be rooted in the teachings of the Divine ISTaza- rene." — Rutherford B. Hayes. 164 The Criminal Classes LIX. Special Religious Service. Personal Experience and Observations in Direct Religious EflEort with the Incarcerated. While chaplain, each day, when the men were seated in the dining-hall for dinner, a short prayer was offered which doubtless served to elevate the thoughts and inspire a degree of gratitxide and reverence due to the Giver of all good. I devoted some time Sabbath afternoons to visiting the men in their cells, and conversing with them. By this method I not only became personally acquainted Avith them, but learned from them something of their past his- tory and present state of mind, without which one must labor for their reformation at disadvantage. I also aimed to visit the hospital every alternate day and seek to ad- minister consolation to the afflicted. In these personal in- terviews with the men, my own heart has been wonder- fully moved with pity and sympathy for them, and espe- cially for the young men. As I have thus alone with them pointed out the better paths of life, and told them of Jesus and his love, T have witnessed tears of deep contrition, pledges of reformation, and evidence of saving faith in the "I^amb of God that taketh away the sin of the world." In a few instances I have watched over the dying, and in the absence of loved ones heard their last faint whispers of prayer, and received from lips, alreadv cold, their message, "Tell mi/ friends for me, farewell." Tn these personal and intimate relations with the un- fortunate, T experience joy in the belief that eternity will Causes and Cures 165 reveal that such visitatioiis were not in vain; and as there flashed upon my mind with new luster the words of Jesus, "I was in prison and ye came unto me/' I was enabled to pursue with pleasure and comparative ease what may have seemed to others overwork. I also held a special service each Sabbath morning at eight o'clock in the hospital. This consisted in singing by the choir, reading of Scripture, with remarks and prayer. This service was for the benefit of those employed therein and the sick. The interest manifested by the sick during these services at times was peculiarly affecting. As the choir sang of "home," "heaven," and "the sweet by and by," and as some precious words from the Bible were read, one might witness the sick lifting themselves and resting their heads on elbowed hands, or turning faces toward us, with countenances aglow with emotion, while anon a tear-drop was brushed hurriedly from the pale or fevered face. 166 The Criminal Classes BEHIND THE BARS. Observations. To AID in the further study of the criminally delinquent classes, and enable the student to take some note of their spirit and conduct while under penal service, I present the folloAving pages, consisting of notes, personal observations, additional miscellaneous facts, and contributions from the incarcerated, most of which will, I think, prove to be in- teresting and quite suggestive to the reader : LX. A Prisoner's Review. Extracts from Preface and Contents of Prison Poems — "'The Bard Behind the Bars," by T. H. T.— An Intelligent, but Weak and Unfortunate Man — The Present — The Future — The Hu- man and the Divine Sides — Faith on Wings — Prisoner's Hope. With the Union veterans I stood in many hard-fought battles. The Confederate veterans taught me the sting of rebel lead. Wounded five times in battle, I survived the four-year conflict of our long, cruel war. To-day, alas ! I am wounded and bleeding in the great battle of life. The scars of flesh have healed ; the wounds of disgrace never can. There was not a soldier in the war, wearing blue or gray, who would not have risked his own life to bear a wounded comrade to a x>lace of safety ; but how sadly dif- ferent now. I Avas a Union soldier. Through misfortune such as few men ever meet, T have been stricken down. The Loyal Legion priest and Grand Army Invite pass l)y on the other side. The pioneers who have gone before are Causes and Cures 167 preparing to pontoon us over the Rappahannock of death. The struggle of life is nearing an end for each of us. Then comes the greatest honor that many of us ever knew — the honor of the grave. In life we are often crushed and kept down by selfish men. In death our graves are covered with flowers, sweet songs echo over them, and we are called heroes, brave men who ofEered life and limb in their country's defense. Make one misstep in life, and you may go down forever. Com- rades, in a few months more I shall be laid aAvay on the hill- side. The pardon I craved in life in vain will then be mine. I shall fill a soldier's grave. The very ground where I lie will be called sacred — a hallowed spot. Kind hearts and loving hands will mark my resting-place. They will place a cross of lilies on my breast, lay a wreath of roses at my head, and scatter flowers all over me, and say : "He was one of our country's brave defenders ! We will honor his memory !" my friends, when it comes to that, pass on to the next silent vedette and give my honors to him. I will not need then that which was withheld from me all through life. Pick up the withered wreaths from my grave and hang them up on the walls of the Grand Army temple. I am an enrolled inmate of the Soldiers' Home, at San- dusky, Ohio, and was on my way to that institution, some years ago, when arrested for a crime I never committed. I was arrested from photograph resemblance, and the de- tective received $100 for convicting me. Why do we wait and coldly stint our praises, And leave our reverent homage unexpressed Till brave hearts lie beneath a bed of daisies. Then heap with flowers each hallowed place of rest? For every year the veteran ranks are broken, And every year new g:raves await our flowers ; Oh. why not give to living hearts some token Of half the love and pride that throb thro' ours? 168 The Criminal Classes Bring blooms to crown the dead — but, in your giving, Forget not hearts that still can feel and ache ; Oh, give your richest garlands to the living Who offered all in youth for honor's sake ! THE PRISOA'ER'S HOPE. . . . Within a dungeon dark. I breathe my Savior's name ; His love ignites a heavenly spark, More bright than earthly fame. Tho' iron door exclude the day. And make it dark within, It can't shut out the faintest ray Of heavenly light let in; Tho' fetter bind each aching limb, And countless sorrows roll. They cannot bar the ways to Him That liberates the soul ! Then let the world, inhuman, cold, Exulting at my fall, Take back her gaze — oh, peace untold, Christ hears the convict's call ! A bruised heart he will not break, Nor quench hope's feeble flame ; And when all earthly friends forsake, I find him still the same. —2'. H. T. Causes and Cures 169 LXII. A Letter fko:\i a Coxvict Father to His Son. Brodie Willis, Columbus, Ohio. My dear Sox : Through aa imfortuuate combiuation of circum- stances I have been taken from my family and so situated as to be unable to act the part or perform the duties of a parent toward you. Yet I wish you to bear in mind that you possess a father's truest and warmest love, and that when I can, I will take your young life from the darkness that for a while has clouded it o'er and try to lead you out into the sunshine of a brighter, happier, and a better life. This I will do if I live; but, lest anything should occur to keep us forever separated, I will leave these words for your consideration, hoping they may, to some extent, mold your future, and leave impressed upon your mind indelibly the fact that your father loves you and wishes for your future happi- ness and welfare : 1. Be select in your associations. A man's whole life is judged by the company he keeps. 2. Be honest, for a man who is not honest is a fool. He may be educated, he may be cunning, he may be successful as the world calls it, still he is a fool. I would have you be honest for your own sake, though nobody were to know it, just as you would be clean for your own sake, though no body were to see you. A man can be happy only when he is strictly honest, when he has a conscience void of ofiEense toward God and man. 3. Be choice in your language. Use no profane words, but be candid and courteous to everybody, be they rich or poor. 4. Be industrious, for by industry you carry in your own hands independence, and will, in time, surround yourself with home and home comforts that will make your latter days comfortable and pleasant. 5. Store your mind with useful knowledge. Read works that appeal to your reason, and you will add many things to your store of information that will serve to improve your mind and place you above the petty and useless things of life. Among other books, read the Bible ; it is a great work. Its code of moral laws is the best the world ever knew ; and you will be profited by following the rules there laid down for the government of man. The char- acter of Christ is a grand and praiseworthy one. Follow it as well as you can, for he was a man of goodness ; his heart was 11 170 The Criminal Classes filled with love and charity, and by emulating his actions and by following his teachings, your life will be an exemplary one. Take his teachings into your life, make them a part of yourself, that those with whom you come in contact may regard you as a true man ; and that, in the grand summing up of life's actions, you may not be displeased with the part you have acted. Be just to God, to man, and to yourself. Keep heart an hands clean, and by so doing show your obedience to one who, though unfortunate, is still pleased to call you son and happy to be your father. From your ever-loving father, B. B. Burn. Causes and Cures 171 LXIII. A Letter from a Wife to Her Convict Husband in Prison. Danville, Illinois. Dear Husband : I intended writing you before this, and thought surely I should on our darling boy's birthday, which was last Mon- day, the 28th. Did you think of it? Charlie, I have had no girl for three weeks to-morrow. I had a colored one for eight or ten days, to get wood, coal, and water, but did all the rest myself, even my washing. I feel to-day I cannot go a week longer with my work. I wi'ote to Urbana for a girl, but have not heard from her. It is almost impossible to get a girl here, there is such a cry for help. I have only had the four boarders for the last three weeks, and doctor and wife have been in Chicago this week, so Ralph and I have been alone. I got Mrs. Black's girl to stay nights with us, as the other boarders are day ones, and in this great, large house it was very lonely. Oh, my, such stormy, bad weather ! While I am writing it storms fearfully out. It will seem good to have pleasant, warm weather again, for the cold weather has lasted so long. Well, as usual, on R's birthday I let him invite in a few of his most intimate friends, to take tea with him. He looked up at me and saw me looking around, and he said, "O mamma, we only need one more here to he so vei-y happy, and that is my papa." Charlie, words fail to express what I wish to say when our dear little one asks why I won't tell him where his papa is and why he did not send the express wagon he said he would on his birthday. 1 told him last fall that you said Christmas or on his birthday you would send him a wagon, and he has not forgot it. I got him a new pair of shoes for a present, but wished I was able to get him something more. I have to be very saving now, with so few boarders, for it takes so much to keep up fires. Do you keep well? There is not a day passes over my head but I think of you, and of how lonely the evenings and Sundays must be for you, for I suppose you are at work during the day. It seems hard, even if you are in prison, to think that from your labor your wife and child get not one cent. It is not right. And must I tell you? Yes, I must. I have been having palpitation of the heart, and> since I have been trying to do my work, I have had several spells. The physicians say that I must not do housework, and since I have to do it, there is no telling what the result will 173 The Criminal Classes be. Dear, oh, dear ! it nearly sets me wild to think of it, and of my dear little l)oy left homeless, motherless, and fatherless. Oh, if you were only home, how much of the burden you might take from me. Ralph is iu school, but has not been well all winter. I don't want him to go while the weather is so bad, but he doesn't want to miss any. Well, changing the tenor of my letter, mother and Aunt Lizzie, from Salem, were here on a short visit in February. They seemed to enjoy their visit very much, but aunt said mother was worry- ing so much about me. Jennie is having two weeks vacation, as the measles and mumps are so bad in her school, so I wrote for her to come and stay next week with me. I think she will. She is not well, and I don't like to I)e alone so much, of nights especially, for you know I am afraid. Well, the fourteenth of this month, one week from next Monday, is our ninth anniversary. Time, O Time, where are you taking us? And what will be the future before us? God, and he alone does know. I send you a little piece of poeti-y which I came across and liked. Soon as I get time I will have Ralph's picture taken and send it you. He has spoken of it several times. Wliat are you doing? Do you have sermons preached, or Sunday school, or any- thing to read? And. oh, what kind of a place is a prison? I never have seen, and never want to see such a place, for the name of it has clouded my whole life. Well, write when you can, and always let your last thoughts at night and first in the morning be of your wife and child, no difference what may happen. From your wife, Marie. Causes and Cures 173 LXIY. Token of Appreciation. Befoee leaving my office, one noon, I learned that one of the prisoners was quite indisposed. Eetiiming in the after- noon, I sent to him a lemon, and received in return the following expression : Platk Shop, September 9. 1880. Chaplain. Dear Sni : I received your ambrosial repast last evening with a grateful heart. Not because I stood in need of it, but because I appreciate the tender consideration that prompted the humble gift. For men like you my heart beats true. But niggards I detest ; I 'bominate the heart of stone, That lives but for itself alone, Whilst others go uublest. —H. Coles, 10059. 174 The Criminal Classes LXY. A Platonic Address. When the hour is past that of midnight. Sweetly dream I, fair stranger of thee, And wish in my dreams, with ecstatic delight, To fondle the face when awake I would see. Seraphic vision in my sleeping hours, Sure harbinger of sweetest waking thoughts, Canst thou conceive I would resign all powers To dream of thee as of my chaste consort? 'T is so. Yet hold your ready censure, pray. Nor feel alarmed, nor say that thou dost veto Sucli holy love as I have heard some say Was felt by that great Grecian lover, Plato. Such love, fair maid, can ne'er be bought. And such is mine ; and, being such, it seems I might be safely left to indulge the thought. When full awake, and so realize my dreams. If thou consentest. then, to he addressed In my 'wake moments, and by such a love. I truly shall account me the most blessed Of mortals here on earth, or saints above. Accept, unsought, this guerdon truly pure. Be.stowed with thoughts most holy and sublime Nor think the largess intruded to allure And to deceive the one I call divine. Wilt thou forego such happy bliss and charms Because the tender made is by one proscribed? Accept, nor think it pregnant with foul harms To own thyself beloved as here described. Such love doth make a troubled life serene. And turns this hellish earth to paradise. Prepares one for the place wherein convenes The angels "in that home beyond the skies." Causes and Cures 175 Wilt thou ignore, refuse to accept the gift, And send me wandering again in streams So shallow? Wilt thou cut me adrift And bid me have thee present only in dreams? Thou mayest choose far worse than have the name Of choosing to be loved by such as me, For though, unlike Plato, I am lost to fame, My love is chaste as his was said to be. I may be painted black — a wretch most craven, Reviled and traduced and under ban ; But love is love, and mine immutable as Heaven, And pure as ever was indulged by man. Discard we all bad thoughts and join we hands In friendship everlasting, true and pure, As our kindred nature and our God commands, If of that rich reward we would be sure. —John Doe, O. P. 176 The Criminal Classes LX^'I. Sad Thoughts. Forbid me, good stranger, to call thee by uame, Forbid, lest I, in so doing, sliould smear tliy fair fame. Forbid, lest in time you should have aught to fear, Forbid, lest in time you should shed some sad tear. Forbid that the felon, behind bolts and bars, Should teach thee some day to curse thy fell stars ; Forbid and forget that thou ever didst see So vile a man as 't is said I must be. Forbid me your presence, spurn me as the rest, Nor grant me the sight of one of the blest. Forbid me to think that thou dost live. And forbear in the future thy bounty to give. , Entombed in this dungeon, alive, but in tears, And dead, as it were, foi* full fifteen years, Proscribed by the law, deprived of all right, I may not aspire to have thee in sight. Trod on by fortune, forsaken by all. Leave me, fair stranger, and stay beyond tall. Leave and forget me ere it be late. Leave me to conquer or l)o comiuered by Fate. Forget, by all means, that one such as I Met your fair gaze and darkened your sky; Fear and hate me for what you wot not. As the rest of the world, and here let me rot. Yet, for your deeds and Christian-hearted bent, I give you some leave my fall to lament : But pray that your sorrow and pitying tear Is felt and is shed for my illegal stay here. How great my fall ! From Fortune's topmost round. Yet now to deepest depths of hell be bound ; Alive, yet though living, quite dead. Since all hope is from my sad bosom Hed. Causes and Cures 177 And doomed to die here, and interred like a dog, Nor any requiem chanted for my soul, if but by a frog ; None but a dear mother left to starve and groan For the inglorious ending of her distant son. All glory fi-om me gone, by all mistook, By all my whilom friends forgotten and forsook ; None to lament my death, nor shed a tear, Nor march in sable black behind my bier. No headstone and no friendly epitaph, No flowers around me save some grassy chaff Growing there, and by my corse manured, to mock Me for the faults in life that I took stock. The only friend in here, when dead, I '11 find. Perchance, in some mild zephyr, or soft gust of wind, Which, when weary otherwhere to moan and fly. May come to moan sad music where I lie. Nor can I hope to have such music play At length to awake me on the eternal day ; But all that it will do will be to come and sigh A while around my grave and o'er me die. O God. this is too hard, too hard a fate I Save, oh, save rae, 't is not even now too late. And in thy greatest tnercy raise me a friend That will, in this my sorest need, assistance lend. Forgive, O God. and teach others to forgive. That I may have respite and longer live ; Nor let me live exiled from home and friends. For though alive, yet without these, my living ends. My soul, now thus enrapt in gloom and grief. Pours out this orison to thee to grant relief : And not to let me die here, but be released and live To praise thee for a second gift of life thou once didst give. — A Convict. 178 The Criminal Classes LXVII. CoxcEALED Identity. Ix chapter fifteen, reference is made to the death of a ^vay^^'ard brother, some years ago, who sought to perpetu- ally eo]iceaI his identity from his friends, and who would have succeeded but for the information furnished by a criminal associate after his death.. This is not an isolated case. No, there are many who succeed in keeping their relatives and honorable friends in what they term "blissful ignorance" as to where they are and Avhat they do. If they correspond with relatives at all, they do so through some criminal or other personal favorite, who usually resides at some distance from the place of incarceration, generally outside of the State. This favorite receives and remails all correspondence, l)oth to the convict and his friends. Only occasionally does the out- side world obtain such information through some gossip or favored individual. Cases, however, constantly come to the surface within prisons that would surprise those outside. Many who are acquainted Avith such convicts, as well as their own fam- ilies, only know that they have disappeared, that they have been reported missing. Some suppose them dead, yet all opinions as to what has become of them are based only on conjecture, except among those familiar with the secrets of prison life. There was a young man in the prison from a town not far from Columbus, and the people of that to\^^l had no knowledge whatever of it. He came from another county. X colored man from Springfield once wrote to his friends Causes and Cures 179 that he was in Columbus, Ohio, sick, in the hospital. A friend concluded to go to see him. After going to St. Francis Hospital and making inquiry of u^any persons without succeeding in finding the patient, somebody sug- gested the liospital at the prison. He went there, arriving one day too late to see the prisoner alive. A man who was pardoned left his papers at the prison. They would "give Mm away" where he was known. His letters to his mother were addressed to a man in Illi- nois, who forwarded them to her. Her letters came through the same channel. Her place of residence was not known to the officials. A man died at the prison. At the last moment, he wrote to his Adfe in Philadelphia. She didn't know where he was until then. Here is a case given in the Indianapolis News, in 1903 : "Confined within the walls of the reformatory at Jeffer- sonville, serving an indeterminate sentence, is a man who is a puzzle to the authorities, and who has caused the board of managers to ask each other the vexing question, What manner of man is this that prefers imprisonment to identi- fication?' Two years ago, there was received at the re- formatory a prisoner from Marion, Grant County, to serve a sentence of two to fourteen years for forgery. His iden- tity was unknown, and the man was a living mystery to the Grant County officials, being a stranger in Marion. He was arrested and convicted of forging a check, refusing in court to give his name or address. Tlie presiding judge had him arraigned under the name of John Frazee, and by this cognoment he was received at the reformatory. His conduct as a prisoner has been exemplary, and, being a bright, intellectual man, evidently possessed of a college education, he was placed in charge of the prison library. His penmanship is excellent, and he does much of the prison correspondence. 180 The Criminal Classes "During his two years' confinement he has never been reprimanded, and is liked by all the officials. He has never written a letter to any person or entertained a visitor since his term began, and he stolidly refuses to disclose his identity to Superintendent Hert. As he was elegible to parole, he was before the board of managers last week, but when he was requested to give his proper name and ad- dress he absolutely refused to do so, saying he would rather remain and serve his full term — fourteen years — than to accept parole under those circumstances. He further said that he did not propose, under any consideration, to dis- close his identit}', as his family never should know of him through his disgrace. "The rules of the board are such that the managers could not parole him unless they were cognizant of his former life and identity, and Frazee went back to the library deter- mined to remain the full limit of fourteen years rather than let the world know of his downfall. The board is indulging in much speculation just now as to who Frazee really is. He is a good-looking young man, of the blonde type, about twenty-six years old, and carries himself with the air of a gentleman. He is an excellent conversation- alist, and does not bear the imprint of a criminal. He re- funded the money he had secured on the forged check, but this did not save him from donning the convict garb. Senator Duncan, who is a member of the board, says that all the convicts in the institution know of Frazee'? actions in the matter, and are watching the outcome with much interest. INfany believe that he will keep his word and re- main the full fourteen years, rather than tell who and what he is." T have been able several times to discover concealed identity, confidentially, after announcing in chapel that T lind received letters of importance from certain parties residing at certain places, which had important informa- Causes and Cures 181 tion to give to siich as could answer to the name and description given, and asking such to report to me, if within the prison. 182 The Criminal Classes LXVIIL Field and Forest, Liberty axd Exile. [By a prisoner about forty-two years of age, when completing his sec- ,ond term of imprisonment, malting in all an aggregation of aboiit four- teen years of penal service. The consideration of this fact will serve as an explanation for the pessimistic expressions iind views of life. The pict- ures here drawn, and the statements herein made, are however, too true to be ignored, but well deserve repeated careful reading and candid con- sideration.— D. R. M.] An Elegy— m tivo parts. Past I, Fain would my muse some nobler song berhyme, Some notes that echo with a sweeter chime ; Fain would I celebrate my native hills. And draw sweet music from the purling rills ; Like Arion chant, like Thilomela sing, Like fabled Orpheus make the valleys ring. 'T is love fraternal prompt's my rising song ; To piteous themes more piteous strains belong. Through bolts and bars the self-same spot I view. Where once the oak and stalwart cedar grew, In days primeval, when the world was new. With sad dismay I gaze upon the lawn. Where grazed the stag and skipped the bounding fawn ; Where once the dusky chieftain wooed his squaw, When right made might, and liberty was law ; And sylvan beauties here their charms displayed And woke glad echoes through the glimmering glade. Scioto's shores the swarthy Indian roamed ; Scioto's waters once his paddle foamed ; And darksome bevies through the forest strolled, Ere hands profane had stirred the virgin mold. How changed the sight ! The trembling trees can tell, — That once gave shelter to the dark-eyed belle. The trembling trees, a thousand tongues reply, With aching hearts that answer with a sigh. By flowers, beasts, and birds the story best is told, — The braves have perished and their tongues are cold, — By swaying pines that wavered in the breeze, By tinkling rills that whispered to the trees, By browsing herds that fed among the hills, By gurgling streams that murmured to the rills, Causes and Cures 183 By warbling birds that sang among the glades, By black-eyed nymphs that slumbered in the shades Ere hostile bands their artless foes beguiled, When woodbines flourished and the forest smiled. These sights and scenes no longer greet our eyes ; Where once the trees, now hoary walls arise, — Beleaguei'ed walls, whose dismal round contains Sepulchral holes, where ghostly silence reigns, A pompous structure of imposing height, Where frowning arches throw a somber light O'er concave stones that busy feet have worn. By the world forgotten, and by hope forlorn ; Full many a tear upon these cold stones fell. From eyes long closed, who 've bid the world forewell ! What though the tears like dread Niagara flow, The walls relentless still presume to grow. As hapless wights by cruel laws are clutched. The halls are widened and the cells retouched. High, and more high, th' imposing arches rise ; \ The domes mount upward and salute the skies. Wide and more wide the lengthening shadows run Till shade meets shadow and they blend in one. O'er all the ground the noxious shades disperse And blight the whole scene with a withering curse. Ah ! woeful sight this dismal wound displays ; A motley group stands open to our gaze. Dense as the bees that roam the woodland o'er To forage honey for their winter store ; When at the close of each glad summer day They quit their toils and homeward wend their way, And throng the hives, in slumbers for the night. Till fiery Phcelus with his amber light Invites his guests to sip the fragrant dew. Resume their journey, and their toils renew. Here sires their sons behold with tearful eyes, Here frantic mothers vent their piteous cries ; Here statesmen wise, from many quarters trend, Their wants solicit, and their selves commend. Here heedless Hymen sends the nuptial train. The pale-faced maiden and the rustic swain. The poor, the rich, the master, and the slave. The great, the small, the valiant, and the brave. The buxom youth, the tot'ring, gray-haired sire, With ling'ring steps, reluctant to retire, — The victims ponder and the walls admire. 184 The Criminal Classes Here souls benighted to the fanes attend. With broken spirits to their Maker bend. With shriving priests they bow the knee in prayer, Not from devotion, but from bh\ck despair. In search of aid, and for a happier state. They bovp and worship at the shrines they hate, Nor leave untried to soothe the troubled breast What Heaven affords or fiends of hell suggest'. Here petty rogues in silence pass the day, Bemoan their fate and greater rogues obey ; Here petty lords, with poud'rous clul)s are seen. In coats of mail, go stalking o'er the green : Here great divines in sweet luxuriance dwell And snatch poor sinners from the jaws of hell. And for their Avounds a wond'rous balm procure — "Try this, try that ; the remedy is sure" ; But to be skilled and perfect in their trade They should themselves a pris'ner be made,* Discard their priestly gowns, and doff their shirts. Find where the sore will break and where it hurts. By pangs and throes be made to feel the smart That craze the brain and lacerate the heart — This, only this, will plenteous grace impart. Part II. None but the vanquished, careworn prisoner knows A prisoner's cares, nor contemplates his woes. Committed once, within tyrannic arms. Existence loses all its sacred charms. -I once knew a young man in the city of Boston, who thought to ac- complish himself in the art of running the steam-engine by reading books devoted to that science witliout the aid of practical experience. After carefully perusing several authors, and studying many pictures, he thought himself a most scientific engineer. And when taken into the engineer's examination office, he could answer many questions con- cerning the generation of steam, its momentous power, Its mode of oper- ating, etc.; but when asked what he would do in case of emergency,— If so and so was to happen to his engine,— he couldn't tell. And when taken before a veritable engine, with flre in the furnace and steam in the boiler, and blowing at the safety-valve, and told to start, stop, and reverse the engine, he couldn't lay his hand upon a single lever— not for want of genius, but for want of experience. The same is true with all other professions. Genius suggests how a thing should or might be doni»; experience walks boldly up and says, "I can doit"; pulls oft his coat, rolls up his sleeves, and perforins the task. Genius, considered in the abstract. Is enviable; experience, considered in the abstract, service- able. Genius and experience united are sublime. Experience teaches by astern command— His rules the lazy truant must obey: Tlie precepts taught arc good as cash in hand, Tliat time, nor space, nor aught can take away. Causes and Cures 185 What soul but enters these sequestered walls, A prey to ruin and misfortune falls. Once the stern law peals forth its clarion sound, His doom is sealed, incurable his wound. The curse decreed by Heaven for wicked Cain Rests on his head and with his seed remain ; On all the line the pois'uous shafts descend, Nor powers of earth can dodge, nor Heaven forefend. His future years loom dark with threatening clouds ; Oppression, toil, and woes his present life enshrouds. Ten thousand whispering tongues his dee^ls proclaim, Ten thousand more exaggerate the same ; With light'ning speed the startling rumor flies, Grows on the tongue, and swells to 'normous size. His past misdeeds alone are held to view. His virtues vanish like the morning dew. The generous heart that once with passion burned Has changed to gall and misanthropic turned. No more his thoughts to noble deeds aspire ; Quenched is his thirst, and quenched the vital fire, As into space the subtle vapors roll, And on the gales they waft from pole to pole. So flees ambition from the captive soul. This vital spark that many ills can cure, Nor bonds, nor chains, nor shackles will endure ; With proud disdain it takes its airy flight. And leaves its victim in the realms of night. Subject to every scheming demagogue that rules, — Few wise, all selfish, some famous fools. Compelled witli grovling swine their food to share. By turns compelled a heavier yoke to wear. To rigid rules and artful laws a prey ; And greedy wolves, more subtle yet than they. Fight for his carcass and his steps waylay. Designing men his bootless toil subserves. Consume his flesh, and feast upon his nerves. His shattered frame like sand they sift for gold. His mind purturbed like melting wax they mold. A floating wreck, upon the tide he 's borne. Their fields to replenish and their homes adorn. Poor, hapless wretch ! fell victim of despair ! No brother's arm his irksome task to share. No kindred eye to shed a genial ray, No sister's hand to wipe the tears away ; No spouse for him the bread and milk prepare. No fairy forms to sport around his chair. 12 180 The Criminal Classes Thus uncondoled the seasons wax and wane, With nerves unstrung and half distracted brain, And bones prepared to lay upon the shelf, A ghastly image of his former self. His exile past, he coldly bids farewell To callous hearts, where love nor piiy dwell. Impoverished and penniless, he 's rashly hurled Upon the cold sympathies of' a selfish world ; His works forgotten, but on scrolls of shame Bemains a lingering transcript of his name. With joy elate, like birds that 'scape the cage, A thousand thoughts his raptured soul engage. Freed from the raging hell he left behind, A thousand themes perplex his wand'ring mind. New scenes enchanr, new music charms the ear, The birds sing sweet, the bells peal loud and clear. New sights allure, and strike the usual ray. And flood his wand'ring orbs with sudden day. Not certain quite which course to take or way to go, He leaps triumphant like the bounding roe. Deluded wretch ! how brief his ravished joy ! How vague the fancies that his thoughts employ. Short is his bliss ; he feels the fatal wound. The vipers tooth that pins him to the ground ; The scoffing world his meager wants deny And on the culprit fix a vengeful eye. Imperious souls that never learn to weep. Nor at the shrines a midnight vigil keep ; With hearts too hard to melt at others' woe Or on the poor a single tear bestow. Too stiff to bend, too great and wise to mourn. Point at the offender with malicious scorn : "Lo ! that 's the man who once, with fetters bound, In Dayton court, of theft was guilty found. In yonder walls and mighty institution He paid a just and righteous retribution. His clumsy frame reflects a knavish cast — ■ How strange his looks with other men contrast ! The whole configuration of his head Denotes how basely born, how meanly bred ; His snakish eyes a cursed rogue betrays — How odd his gait, how sinister his ways ! His apish nose denotes his want of pluck : Behold his ears, — how far behind they 're stuck ! How coarse his hair I Now listen at his brogue — Lord, but I hate a thief and spurn a rogue !" Causes and Cures 187 Whispers are heard, and curses here and there, And every tattling tongue supplies its share. Through every street the baleful malice flies, And meets the culprit with a sad surprise. Loud and more loud the threatening mischief grows ; First taunts, then threats, and ends in cruel blows.* By threats and blows at length compelled to yield. He drags his battered carcass from the field. What with his wants, and what with broken heart, And sorrowing breast, reluctant to depart ; With wounded pride to distant lands he roves, Still glancing backward to his native groves — A poor, lone wanderer through a trackle-ss wild. His home a ruin and his name defiled ; His goods by lawless creditors distrained. His sisters tarnished and his mother pained : Marked with a brand that' naught but death can fade. His children shunned and worse than orphans made. The doting wife that nestled by his side Ignores his name and scorns to be his bride. To him the world is but one dark abyss. No peace, no joy, and no domestic bliss. Surging within his breast are waves that naught can calm ; For him the opening buds give forth no balm. Chill seem the dews, and cold the summer showers. Not bright the sun nor sweet the morning flowers. In vain for him the rose and lily bloom ; He flnds redress alone within the tomb ; Death, only death, can soothe his aching breast And waft his spirit to a land of rest. "'Should the critical and not very well informed reader think this picture caricatured and overdrawn, by referring to the records of the Tuscarawas County Court of January, 1874, he will find there was a discharged con- vict. In or near the village of Rogersville of said county, brutally mur- dered without cause or provocation, and the offenders (four or "five in number) arrested, put through a formal examination, and exonerated from all blame, on the very substantial plea that "the murdered man had served three terms in the penitentiary." Our good philanthropists call this an isolated case. Let them cherish the idea if it saves them the ex- pense of a blush. Had I space and leisure at command, I could mention a score of well-authenticated cases in which discharged convicts were assaulted by a furious mob and compelled to leave the town, although their conduct was unexceptionable. All this in a land of Bibles and boasted civilization, where statesmen are exulting over their benign in- stitutions, and parading their sympathies for the prisoner; and preach- ers shouting, "Glory, hallelujah! " with tears of gladness, that the mil- lennium is about to dawn, and the long-predicted period at hand when "the wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the lion eat straw like the ox." 188 The Criminal Classes LXIX. Sympathy. By Julius Ring, O. P., No. 14G4G. Men who, for sins committed, in prison penance do, Convicts tliough they are, still their hearts are large and true. See how quick the appeal is answered, when suffering needs their aid. How quick to show their sympathy, when once a call is made. Even they, tho' rough and sinful, still show they have a soul ; Tho' suffering and hardened, you may see the teardrops roll. Perhaps some thought of mother and of happy bygoue days. Like a golden, fitful shadow, across their memory plays. They have known the anguish of a heart that 's crushed aud bruised ; They have felt repeutance, while over sins they mused. Perhaps you think they 're hardened to whisperings so mild. But remember that, not long ago, they, too, were called "My child." What matter if they formerly took part in sin and strife? It needs only a little faith to gain eternal life. What matter if they formerly took part in sin and strike? They know that for repenting His love they will recdve. Now tell it to the outside world, for they must also know That some of us are trying for a new harvest to sow. Oh, let the crop he golden, blessed with God's holy love. And when we leave this earthly home go to that one above. Columbus, Ohio. Causes and Cures 189 LXX. Eemaekable Cases. All Escaped Man Is Returned to Prison after Twenty-three Years. In jMay, 1856, llichard Cassibone was convicted of kill- ing a man named Bill Hyde, of Muskingum County, and sentenced to six years in the penitentiary. He, with five others, broke jail, and, escaping to the hills of Vinton County, he settled down under the assumed name of Isaac Brown. When the war broke out, he enlisted in the Eigh- teenth 0. V. I., under the above name, and, during his three years' service, saw many hard fights. His health was ruined in the "war, and he is now a pensioner, getting about twenty-four dollars per month. At the close of the war, he returned to Ohio and settled near Chillicothe, where he was regarded as a quiet and unobtrusive citizen until his identity was marie known. He was brought to the peni- tentiary, put in stripes, and initiated into prison life. He was so weak and feeble that he could scarcely hold up his head. He gave a detailed account of the circumstances which led to his killing Hyde, his after life, and his pres- ent unhappy condition. He stated that the crime and conviction had haunted him for a fcAV years, but of late he had felt secure, and it appeared more as a dream of the past. He had a wife and children living. Eobert Donley, number 11507, voluntarily returned after an absence of two years. Having served three years before his escape, he had about one year yet to serve. On his return, he said : "I come, voluntarily, to serve the 190 The Criminal Classes remainder of my time, and go out a free man. I came in the night, so as to prevent any one recognizing me, and claiming tlie reward, that I might save it for the State. I did not feel free outside." Causes and Cures 191 LXXI. Melody of Tears. {From a prisoner's standpoint.) When the silent, restful darkness, At the close of each sad day, To the couvict's prison Labor Brings a brief but welcome stay. Back his troubled memory wanders To the scenes of other years — • To the home of happy childhood. With its many hopes and fears. Then again upon the threshold ■ Of our earthly lives we stand, And discern the future glowing Like the Hebrew's promised land, Witli the hopes of coming manhood Putting forth their fragile leaf. Like the fairest blooms of summer. And, alas ! like them as brief I With a shudder we remember All that then we meant to be — On life's battle-field a hero, Alwajs crowned with victory ; But, discredited and beaten. We were quickly forced to yield. With the battle not yet over. Wounded, bleeding on the field ! On our brow no crown of laurel, We can claim no honors won ; Not for us the song of triumph. When the long, sad day is done. Other hands have reaped the harvest That we hoped some time to reap ; Other feet have gained the summit Of the hill we found too steep I Others gather sweetest flowers, Blooming all along their way ; 192 2'he Criminal Classes We have but the thorns to pierce us, (Jii our journey, day by day ; Others sing the song of gladness, All life's peaceful, happy years; ^^ hile we chant the dirge of sadness — Chorded melody of tears ! Tho' at times the kindly sunshine Briefly dazzles, 't will not last ; Prison gloom can never brighten, With all hoi'e of freedom past. Heeded not the orphan's pleading. Mother's tears cannot atone, Wives come vainly interceding; Human hearts seem turned to stone I Soon Heaven's high court will open — AVho will cry for mercy then'/ Earthly rulers — judge and jury. They who crushed their fellow-men I Mercy? Nay ! Like Dives they '11 cower At the Judge's just decree : "No mercy hast thou shown in power. No mercy canst thou claim from me I"* Oft we feel the depth of sorrow. Looking back upon each scene. While i-emorse, in cruel whisper, Tells of all that might have been. For a moment then true manhood Tries to put the sorrow by ; Strives to crush the bitter anguish And repel the rising sigh ! • Till some holy resolution Makes us hope the past forgiven ; Ended earthly retribution. Prayerful eyes upturned to heaven. Then once more we set our faces Sternly toward the battle front; Brace anew each nerve and muscle For the daily prison brunt. Hopeless! with success or failure We have nothing now to do ; Doomed to bear life's cruel burden All the bitter journey through. — A Convict. *'"For he shall have judgment without mercy, that hath showed no mercy" (James 2 : 13). Causes and Cures 193 LXXII. Written 1878-SO. Here is a contribution in rhyme added to the circulat- ing original literature of the Ohio Penitentiary by a convict evidently displeased with his fare: CHEESE. I 'm sitting in my prison cell ; It is to me an earthly hell. I cannot help but cough and sneeze, 'Cause I 've been eating rotten cheese. We get that cheese just once a week ; It 's almost strong enough to creep, I;ike chloroform, it turns your head, And strong enough to raise the dead. That lively cheese I Ml ne'er forget, About it I will ever fret. Sad thoughts will rise whene'er I sneeze, Which calls to mind that rotten cheese. 194 The Criminal Classes LXXIII. An" Ackostic. (To D. B. Miller.) BY STQART C. ROSS, O. P. Deal bountifully with thy servant, that I may live, and keep thy word. Remove from me reproacli and contempt, for I have kept thy testi- monies. Make me to understand the way of thy precepts ; so shall I talk of thy wondrous works. I have chosen the way of truth ; thy judgments have I laid before me. Let thy mercies come also unto me, O Lord, even thy salvation, according to thy word. Let those that fear thee turn unto me, and those that have known thy testimonies. Except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it ; except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain. Rivers of waters run down mine eyes, because they keep not thy law. Columbus, Ohio, January 19, 1S81. Taken from the Psalms of David. Causes and Cures 195 LXXIV. The Humming-Bird. When this was written one of the methods of punish- ment was in the application of electricity. The punish- ment was severe, and of questionable propriety. By an order of Noah Thomas, warden, a noble-hearted man, it was discontinued. The men gave it the name, "Humming- Bird." This "hummer" is a little bird, the worst you 've ever seen, And if you don't believe it, make a call on Mr. Dean ; Now when you go to see this "bird," they strip you to the skin, And down into the little tub they gently drop you in. Your hands are cuffed behind your back, your eyes are bandaged tight. And when the bird begins to hum, you yell with all your might ; When your courage is almost failing and your heart begins to flop. Then by a sign from some one "sailing," this bird will always stop. This little bird will not let you go for money or for love. But will pounce right down upon you like lightning from above. And when this bird begins to hum, it will almost make you say, "Please 'let up,' good little bird, make your haste and fly away." You have heard of the American eagle with its loud, terrific screams : But this little "bird" is the king of all, this little bird of Dean's. 196 The Criminal Classes LXXV. Exciting Scene ix Prison Chapel, Ohio Peniten- tiary, :\[ay 18, 1881. Attempt to Assassinate Deputj- Warden Dean — A Note Dropped on the Bible — Religious Services Disturbed — Would-be Assas- sin Taken. Augustus Canton, a Cincinnati convict with a vicious prison record, conceived a deadly desire for revenge upon Deputy Warden Dean, and assaulted him in the dining- room, and would have killed him but for the deputy's quick movements. Cauton's enmity seems to have been caused by his frequent punishment and loss of time for infrac- tions of the rules. During the former administration. Canton was set back seventeen times for bad conduct, and lost eighty-one days under that administration. He had been set back only once under the present administration; that was for the assault on Mr. Dean. The directors took from him one hundred and thirty days, all he had gained. Had his record been good, he would he out now. At the chapel exercises, the platform was occupied by Warden Thomas, Deputy Dean, and Assistant Deputy Parsons, together with visitors, including several meml)ers of the Legislature. The visitors were seated behind the chaplain's desk. During the opening prayer Canton motioned to the guard that he wanted to go out. The guard would not lake him out then, but he was so persistent in his calls that as soon as the prayer was concluded the guard complied. He passed out the door on one side of the chapel very Causes and Cures 197 quietly and then made a dash. Kunning around one side of the building, he rushed into the chapel and right up on the platform, as the chaplain was about to begin his dis- course. Canton dropped a piece of brown paper on the open Bible before the chaplain, exclaiming, "There is my apolog}'- for what I 'm going to do." Then he turned around, pointed to the warden, and said, "They want to murder me for the sake of this man." He was apparently on the point of making a dash at the warden, when the latter grabbed him with his only hand. The one-armed visitors' conductor also seized hold of him, and together they held the desperate fellow until four or five guards came up and marched him off to close confinement. The whole affair occurred in a minute of time, almost, but it was sufficient to create intense excitement and con- fusion, which was soon allayed, after Canton had been safely removed, \yy the ui)liftGd hand of the chaplain. After the murderous fellow was taken out of the chapel,, he was searched, and a pair of sharp-pointed shears about a foot in length found on his person. It is evident that he intended to kill somebody. The note dropped on the Bible was as follows : Rev. Mr. Miller. Sir : .Appreciating your interest for the welfare and good of the prisoners, and for me personally, I deem it my duty to state that a circumstance may occur to cause you annoyance. To show you my respect and that I regretted to do so, I make this state- ment. Necessity prevents me, or I would act otherwise. Hoping you will not judge me harshly, respectfully, Gi-s Caxton. 198 The Criminal Classes LXXVI. Turn Your Glasses Down. Here is a poem the origin of which 1 am unable to give. I had it, however, on file with prison clippings, and sup- pose it comes through that source. I give it because of its good suggestions : TURN YOUR GLASSES DOWN. Tnm your glasses clown, boys, Turu your glasses down, AMien with sparkling liquors Men the banquet crown, Though the smile once friendly Changes to a frown, Turn your glasses down, boys, Turn your glasses down ! Lest the tempter win you, In an evil hour, Lest he overcome you By his subtle power, Lest a draught seductive Resolution drown. Turn your glasses down, boys, Turn your glasses down ! Joyful be the laughter. Pure the words that fall From the lips of comrades In the festive hall ! That no crime nor folly May the banquet crown, Turn your glasses down, boys. Turn your glasses down ! If among the nolde Place you 'd surely win. If you would not wander Into paths of sin. Causes and Cures 199 If you value virtue, Honor and renown, Turn your glasses down, boys, Turn your glasses down ! While your eyes are beaming With the light of youth. While your heart is earnest Seeking for the truth. While your cheeks are ruddy, And your locks are brown, Turn your glasses down, boys, Turn j'onr glasses down I Prove yourself heroic ; Dare to take your stand With the self-devoted. To redeem the land ; On the proifered tipple Ne'er forget to frown ; Turn your glasses down, boys, Turn your glasses down ! 200 The Criminal Classes LXXVIJ. Poetical Correspoxdexce Betweex a Convict axd the PuisoN Clerk, or Bookkeeper, at Ohio Penitentiary. The law of the State provides that for good conduct prisoners shall receive credit on their time of service, and thereby be released in advance of the date to which they must otherwise serve. This credit, however, may be for- feited by subsequent violations of rules, at the discretion of the board of directors. Each month on the Sabbath following the monthly meeting of the board of directors the clerk reads the corrected list of all entitled to freedom during the succeeding month. In this case the prisoner's accounting of his time and that of the bookkeeper's, who makes up his account from the reports of the deputy warden, were in disagreement, therefore the controversy. A POETIC MESSAGE. To Mr. Reeves, Clerk. Dear Sir : The uudersigned, with pen in hand, And pleutj- of words at his command, Suspends his toil and quits his work, To write a message to the clerk. And, much preferring rhyme to prose. In verse I shall my wants disclose ; In scrawls, but easy quite to trace, I '11 file a statement of ray case. To speak quite plain, I think that I Ha\e been neglected and passed by. While you your last two lists have read, I hearkened and li.sten'd with all heed ; But hearkened and listened all in vain. For neither did my name contain. Causes and Cures 201 Bj' some mishap my name you 've missed, Forsooth, 't was uot upon the list. i[y number 's ten thousand and tifty-nine ; Beliold the digits and tlie sign 10050 ; In this there no mistake can be. And further down my name you 'II see. 'T was seventy-four, that fatal year, As by your records will appear, And in September, the 2Sth day, When in these walLs I chanted to stray. I 'm mighty anxious, long have been. To find the hole where I got in ; I 've been detained nigh seven years, Which three times seven most appears. INIy sentence eight years was at best ; The judge who gave it 's now at rest — Laid down his arms and quit his post, And gone to join the heavenly host. Or else the host of hell below, The place that he 'd most likely go. Some seventy days or more I lost, By Ijeing too severely l)ossed. When G. S. Innis and Warden Grove Their nets for catching suckers wove ; AYhen we like brutes were made to bow. And rules more stringent were than now ; And all a haggard visage wore. And men were punished by the score. The time I 've forfeited and lost I now have served, and paid the cost, Including all. It 's plain as day, RIy time should have exi)ired in May. The moons of May waxed full, and waned. And yet I found myself detained ; June past the apex now has flew, Still I my wonted way pursue. In ignominious stripes arrayed. When I atoupinent full have made. Pray tell me, sir, how this can be, That we in figures don't agree. Soon as these pithy lines you 've scanned. Your prison docket then expand. And when my record there you spy. Compute the same, and please reply. 13 202 The Criniinal Classes A message send that will contain The whys and wherefores — make it plain ; State in explicit terms, and clear, AVhen I mv barqne may homeward steer ; And view once more the vine-clad hills, The fertile fields and inirling rills! Revive emotions felt of yore. Old friends renew, cold hearts restore, That once my raptured boyhood knew. When days were bright and friends not few. Your obedient servant, Ohio Penitentiary. Henry Cole, 10059. THE clerk's reply. Mr. Henry Cole, 10059, O. P. Sir: This morning I received your rhyme, Relative to your short time ; And. after having read it through. Not having very much to do, I hied me to the records quick. And .shai-pened up my leaden stick ; And at once began to rack my brain How I could explain and make things plain. I turned to the ninety-seventh page Of the record that is sere with age. And found among that sad enroll The name and crime of Henry Cole : And that you came here, as you remember. On the twenty-eighth day of September, And for eight years from that day It was the edict that you must stay; And. your full sentence all to make. Till eighteen hundred eighty-two will take. Until September, twenty-fifth day, Unless you sooner get away. Now, by the Legislature's wise decree, A man may shorten hi.s time and thus be free. He who can from infractions of rules refrain Will be rewarded by a monthly gain. And thus view once more the vine-clad hills, The fertile fields, the purling rills. And sooner meet his old-time friends. And for his failings make amends, And join in i>leasures as of yore. To "go thy way and sin no more." Causes and Cures 203 But he who by "bosses" will not be bossed Finds to his sorrow his good time lost. This seems to be the case with you. For, as the record now I view, Like a battle hero, full of scars. Their frequency the whole page mars ; And, more or less, through all the years Full many a scratch 'gainst you appears. You seem to have been in the fix Of tliose who "kick against the pricks." But, to help you out of your vexation, I '11 now begin mj- exi)lanation. Under the old rules which you dejilore You could gain five hundred days — no more. But recent time, Ijeing more humane. Would have given you much larger gain; And had you all your good time gained. You would not now here have remained. But as it is, it is too late : Your gain is but four thirty-eight, And while your lot I do deplore, I cannot make it any more. So in this prison you must lie Until the thirteenth of .Tuly. I should be glad if this were all ; I cannot cease, though it you appal, Foi", from the time by conduct won, Mu.st be deducted one forty-one. The number of days that you have lost Because you would not be bossed. Will fix the day that you are free, Novemler the nineteenth. Ah, me! I 'd make this better if I could, But can no better if I would ; But. to help you out, this much I '11 do, I '11 give some good advice to you : When the board next do meet. You hie to them, and there intreat. As you intend to sin no more. Tltat they your lost time restore. Plead as only man can plead Whose boon is liberty. You '11 succeed. T close by hoping that in .July I can bid you a long good-by. Sympathetically yours, S. L. Reeves, Cleric O. P. 204 lliH Criminal Classes LXXVIII: Gleanixgs from the Bible. Jesus Christ he is the chief corner-stone ; Faith built on otiier founchitious will surely fall ; Let us look to that light which so resplendently shone And caused the conversion of blessed Saint Paul. Sinners are the same now as they have been of old ; They still continue to sin, revile, and blaspheme; Offenses will come, as our Savior foretold. But woe unto them who dishonor his name. Their eyes they are blind and they cannot see, Nor will they acknowledge or worship their God; They are like the Scribes and the proud Pharisee. Nor will they huml)le themselves under his rod. Let us trim our lamps while there is light : The lamps of our lives, the good spirit within, \^'ith the oil of salvation, prayers day and night. It will shield from temptation and keep us from sin. In the eighteenth chapter of Ezekiel you will find The most gracious promise l)y Him who cannot lie ; In his almighty mercy he wishes to save all mankind; There he says, "Uepent ye. repent ye, why will you die?" — A Prisoner. Causes and Cures 205 LXXIX. An Interview Between Chaplain and Prisoner. At a Prayer-Meeting — God's Love to Man, Evidences of — A Last Sabbath in Prison — On a Desert — A Dream of Mother. One Sabbath morning, the theme in the prisoners^ prayer-meeting in the penitentiary chapel was "God's love to man, evidences of." Quite a number had spoken, when George Wilson, a prisoner for two years, a man over fifty years of age, arose and eloquently addressed the men on the theme, but spoke especially of the evidences of the existence and love of God as seen in nature. He urged upon his fellow-prisoners the importance of loving and serving God, and said, "I go out from you this week, and cannot consent to go without speaking to you at this time on this subject." His address was listened to with marked attention, and had a good effect upon all present. In the afternoon of that day, I visited him in his cell, and had an interesting interview with him, the principal part of Avhich Avas as follows : Chaplain : "Mr. Wilson, your speech this morning im- pressed me with the conviction that you have seen better days and been educated for a higher sphere and more honorable calling than that of a criminal." Wilson : "Yes, sir ; I was reared in a Christian home by devout parents, members of the Presbyterian Church, and educated at Iron City, in Pcnn Avenue School. My father died in 18fi3." Chaplain : "Were you ever married ?" Wilson : "Yes, sir, and now have a son occupying a good business position in Pennsylvania. My wife died in 1869. 20G The Criminal Classes I am sorry to say that, through no fault of hers, we parted^ some years before she died. It was all my fault." Chaplain: "What kind of a life have you led in the past ?'"' Wilson: ''Principally a roving life. I have traveled over the entire western portion of the United States, and much in other portions of the country." Chaplain : "Were you ever a professing Christian and member of the church?" Wilson: "Xo, sir, never; but I could never get away from the conviction that I should be such, and, further, I have, since my youth, been impressed that God intended me to be a teacher of morals and religion. This conviction I cannot shake off ; for the past eighteen years it has come to me with greater force than previously." Chaplain: "Do you think that your inclination to roam and your misfortune is the result of your neglect of what you lielieved to lie duty, and that God suffered you to be thus overtaken because of your disobedience ?" Wilson: "I do; and that it was only for my good and to correct me." Chaplain : "When you go out from here is it your pur- pose to obey what you regard as the voice of your God. as opportunities may open "r"" Wilson : "It is, the Lord being my helper. And, more, I expect to try to push open the doors of opportunities and pray for divine aid." Chaplain: "Have you, while in prison. ('\]ierienced any demoralizing effects of prison life?" Wilson : "I have not." Chaplain: "In your remarks, this morning, you ex- pressed a firm belief in a supreme overruling Providence, and that this supreme Governor is so minute in his super- vision of created objects that he takes i)articular notice of each individual creature. TTave yove it?" At another time he came into the library and asked me for the "axle-tree of understanding." I asked, "What do you mean ?" After some hesitancy and blundering of words, he said. "I want a little book with leaves which will flop in my face, make its pictures on my mind to stay." I handed 212 The Criminal Classes him a primer, and he said, "That 's it ; that is what I want." Because of his manifest interest in books, the officers, gen- erally, gave him all possible encouragement and aid, and he soon became quite a good reader. He frequently mem- orized passages of Scripture and recited them in the Sun- day morning prayer-meeting. One of his favorite books was "Uncle Tom's Cabin," which he read through several times ; another, Stanley's "Travels in Africa," One man learned his letters by cutting them out and pasting them on a cigar-box and keeping them before him in his shop while at work. He became a good reader within one year. Many, within brief periods, made rapid progress in the common-school branches, and quite a number became very proficient in the higher branches, and some in regular col- lege studies. The schools of our prisons should receive the hearty sup- port and sympathy of our State authorities. Causes and Cures 213 LXXXII. The Old Church Bell. A Prisoner Thinks of Home, of Early Associations and Influences. Do you love to hear the ringing, And to hear the people singing. Which the peals to church are bringing. Of the old church bell? Do you love to see the faces Of the pretty female graces, As they fill up all the spaces In the old church, well? Do you love to hear the preacher Explain the Bible feature To every living creature. And to hear of heaven and hell? Do you love to hear the praying, And believe what they ai-e saying? And are your thoughts a-straying Where righteous thoughts should dwell? You do not love to hear the tolling, And to see the dirt go rolling. While the preacher stands consoling. O'er a dead one loved so well? Yet the warn of death is rolling. And the bell will keep a-tolling. As the carriages go strolling. At the sound of your death knell. Think not, friend, you will evade it, A decree of God has made it-. And the past events portrayed it. By the tolling of the bell. 214 'Hie Criminal Classes LXXXJII. rjELIGIOrS IXFLUEXCES AND KeLIGIOUS IMPULSES. Religious Work in Prison — Good Results Manifest — Employment of Chaplains — Work of Chaplains — Response from Prison- er-*^ — Illustrations — Prisoners' Prayer-Meetings — Work In Hos- pitals. Under Christian civilization has Ijoen combined the idea of penance and reformation in the penal institutions. It is now liv very many believed that criminals, while suffering the penalty of violated law, may be so taught, so impressed, so influence(], so disciplined, that when returned to society their inclinations may be to virtue, and they Ije so fortified with good resolutions, so enamored of truth, so influenced with motives to piety as to successfully resist the evils which before lured them into the paths of crime and. shame. This, indeed, should be the central idea in the management of such institutions. This must not, however, be thought the work of a moment. Nor should we become discouraged if all, or even the majority committed, are not reformed. Time, patience, sweetness of spirit and Christian zeal, together with the softening dews of God's grace, are all important in effecting such reformation, even to the small- est degree. I know, because there are those who go out from these institutions only to violate law, and return under a second or third conviction, that many arc disposed to scoff at the effort to reform men in prison. T would therefore record, for the information of such, that manv instances may be given of those "who have gone out and quiet! v settled down to habits of industry and Causes and Cures 215 frugality, and become respected and honored members of society, and not a few advanced to positions of honor and trust, who thank God that they were overtaken in their sins, turned into a prison, and there taught the way of life. Of course, they do not advertise themselves to the public as having served a term in some State prison, nor would it be prudent for them to do so ; but some know who they are, where they are, and how nobly they are succeeding in life. As a most helpful agency in the work of prison reform, most of the States now make provisions for, and give en- couragement to moral and religious work in our State prisons by the employment of chaplains, whose duty it is to provide religious service for the Sabbath and to attend to the needs of the prisoners in this direction. The chap- plain must also often see the sick in the hospital and over- see the library. He is generally recognized as a friend, and taken into the confidence of inmates and consulted pertaining to their personal interests. The chaplain will often receive notes criticising or commending his sermon, theme, delivery, and manner. Sometimes these are correc- tions of dates or events or quotations, sometimes they are enlargements upon his line of thought. Sometimes there are special requests for sermons on particular subjects, and often requests for prayers. ILLUSTRATIONS. One ]\ronday, after the completion of a series of dis- courses, on the previous Sabbath, in which the lives and characters of Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Isaiah, and David were discussed, I received from an intelligent prisoner the following note : "Chaplain : We have now heard vnth interest and profit from you about Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Isaiah, and David. Xow tell us. What about old Paul ? Yours, 21G The Criminal Classes The following Sabbath, at the regular ehapel service, I read this note, and announced for my theme, "What about old Paul ?" and stated that 1 wished to refer this question to every one present ; that I would have every man study for himself this most wonderful character to its finish; but that, to aid them, 1 would enter into the study with them, and that for this day's study we would consider Paul up to the time of the change of his name from "Saul." The following Sabbath, I renewed the question, ''What about old Paul ?" 1 spoke of Paul's missionary career and his oppositions. The next Sabl)ath, I again announced for my theme, "What about old Paul?"' In this service, I gave them Paul's prison record. There was in each of these discourses a manifest general interest, but when giving them Paul's prison record, and speaking of Paul's tedious and unjust incarcerations, of his forced companionship with soldiers, to whom he was bound with chains, of his friends forsak- ing him, and of his final trial and execution, they all seemed to warm up with unusual interest and sympatliy. After this service, and on their return to their cells, along the lines from cell to cell, and from corridor to corridor, could be heard the inquiry passing from one to another, "What do you think of old Paul now?" while the answer echoed, generally, "1 think more of him than of ," Avho generally executed prison discipline. Soon after these discourses on Paul, I received from a man serving a life sentence for the brutal killing of his wile, the following communication: "Chapliik : You have, in response to the requests of prisoners, been giving us sermons of late on fitting subjects and interesting topics and characters. I have never yet heard vou ])reach a sermon directly to the ninety-six life men here. For the good of tli"se men, and especially for Causes and Cures 217 my good, J request that you preach one sermon to us, and that you preacli it from the text found in Komans 3 : 15-18, 'Their feet are swift to shed blood : destruction and misery are in their ways; and the way of peace have they not known : there is no fear of God before their eyes.' Do not hesitate to preach it in full, without fear of offense. "Curtis." To this request I responded without reserve, and dealt out to this class some very plain statements touching upon the exceeding sinfulness of sin and the unlimited strides into crime to which the man is liable Avho goes away from his God and shuts his heart against all fear of Ms Maker. Before delivering this sermon, 1 read the man's note, which assisted in securing the attention of all present. The ser- mon manifestly took fast hold of many in that great audi- ence, the fruit of which I hope I shall see on the final reck- oning day. One kind of religious service conducted in many pris- ons, "the prisoners' prayer-meeting," is especially appre- ciated by a large portion of the prisoners. The exercises are all voluntary, and are participated in l)y a large num- ber of prisoners; old, familiar hymns are sung, and pas- sages of Scripture repeated. In this service, sometimes, the scene becomes pathetic, as some hymn, familiar in other days, swells upon the air from the choir or some invited guest, or as memories of home and loved ones are recalled by some man who speaks of mother or wife, and tears are seen to trickle down the cheeks of many who cannot forget the loves and prayers of other days., IK THE HOSriTALS. Here the chaplain sometimes finds himself Ijewildered in the midst of appeals and expressions. Here he must speak the last words of consolation to the dying and receive their 14 218 The Criminal Classes final messages to their friends. Here may be heard agoniz- ing expressions of anguish because of friends betrayed, lives spent in sin, God's offers of mercy and pardon re- jected, hopes vanished. Here, also, may be heard the peni- tent's cry and the final exclamations of redemptive joy. I sat once in the prison hospital lietween two men. Both were dying, slowly dying. One said : "Last niglit, at about half-past six o'clock, God, for Christ's sake, par- doned all my sins. I now have an inexpressablo peace. Xow I realize that I am, l^y faith, safe on the rock Christ Jesus. Good-by." The other, in response to my inquiry, said: "Yes, I think I am dying. I have no words to send to relatives, and have no friends. There are no persons whom I call friends. I have no feelings of friendship or love for any one. I thank you for your seeming interest in me, but for no one, not even God, have I any love. Why should I love him ? He has never cared for me." Then with curses on his lips, both for God and men, he groaned and expired. Here, however, are some of the grandest opportunities for direct religious work Avith immediate results I have ever witnessed. In my personal intercourse with men Avhile they were grappling with death. I have had some peculiar ex- periences and strange revelations. The reformation, up- lifting, and final salvation of the incarcerated criminal de- pend, to a very large extent, upon the piety and natural fitness of those Avho are placed over them as religious teach- ers. Somel)odv has fittingly said, "There is a contagion of s:ood as well as evil." Causes and Cvres 219 LXXXIV. Kept in Pekfect Peace, Hy Iv. A., a Prisoner in Ohio Penitentiary, after Listening to a Sermon from Chaplain De Bruin, on the Text, '"Thou Wilt Keep Him in Perfect Peace, Whose Mind Is Stayed on Thee : Because He Trusteth in Thee" (Isaiah 20 : 3). In the prison prayer-meeting the Sabbath morning fol- lowing after the sermon, P. A. gave substantially the following statement about himself: "I served a one-year term in the prison at Joliet. When I came out, I resolved to lead a straightforward, upright Christian life. I found employment in Chicago, attended one of the first churches in that city, and, after a while, was invited to unite with the church, which 1 cheerfully did. Everything went on nicely, until one day I was recognized as an ex-convict by a stranger, who told some of the church of that fact. The result was, I was asked to withdraw from their fellowship. It so disheartened me that I resolved to drown myself by drink, and again commenced a life of crime, which re- sulted in landing me in the Ohio Penitentiary for a num- ber of years. I did not change my last resolve until I heard this sermon preached last Sunday by Chaplain DeBruin, on the text in Isaiah 2G : 3. I went to my cell and lay down upon my bed all broken up. T thought over all my past life, and believed God would again forgive me. I no sooner thought tlian I got do'wn on my knees, and before I asked a word immediately felt forgiven. I arose and wrote these words : 220 The Criminal Classes KEPT IX PERFECT PEACE. "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace. Whose mind is sta.ved on thee," Because we trust In the Jjovd our (iod. Our strength and onr shiehl is he ; Strong city of God's salvation. Let the nation.s enter in. Who ha\e learned to trust in the mighty arm Of .Tehovah, our Lord and King. "Tliou wilt keep him in perfect i)eace. Whose mind is stayed on thee," The harp of the prophet of Israel sang With the heaven-sent melody ; And the harp-notes down through the centuries rinj From the east to the west they fall. For I hear their echoes from Zion's hill To-day in these prison walls. "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace." Was "peace" in that life of mine. Driven by the waves of passion, And fury of maddening wint-, Down to infamous depths in the darkness, Where men l)y fiends are torn. And I rose up a broken and shapeless thing, Tliat even the fiends might scorn V "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace." Will "peace like a dove" descend On him who would buy it witii gems and gold, That he steals from his fellow-men? I have taken the devil's wages, I kno\\- what his gold can buy. And the curse in his money has marred my life With a stain till the day T die. "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace." Is there rest for the weary feet Of the fugitive flying from outraged laws. And the doom of the judgment-seat? Tardon and peace for the guilty. — I'eace for the tortured mind? Then priceless that over all the gold That ever was gained by crime. "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace." Tlius spake Ood's priest to-day. Causes and Cures 221 And I lieard in words like a burning flame Tell how all who their Lord obey ]Might win that i:)€ace ; and my heart was fired, As the song of deliverance swelled, And I turned, and worshiped, and praised the Lord, Who brings peace to a prison cell. "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace," There 's a Voice that calms the sea. The voice of him who died for the sins Of the world, on Calvary ; Let him be our Lawgiver, he is our King, He will save us, turn to him. And the songs of the angels will ring through heaven. Over .sinners redeemed from sin. "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace. Whose mind is stayed on thee." Sweet promise to all who trust in God ; Their strength and their shield is he; He delivers their souls from prison, And safely to Zion brines All who trust in the everlasting strength Of .Jehovah, our Lord and King. —Reported hy J. W. B., Guard. 232 The Criminal Classes LXXXV. Good Advicf. fro:m Prisox. Speak No Evil — A Better Way — Cure Own Defects — Curses, Sorae- ^'.mes, Like Cliickeus. Come Home. Ix speaking of a person's faults. Pray, don't forget your own ; Remember, those in liouses glass Should never throw a stone. If you have nothing else to do, But talk of those who sin, 'T is better to commenoe at home, And from that point beain. We have no right to judge a man Until he 's fairly tried. Should we not like his company, We k!iow tlie world is wide. Some may have faults, and who have not? The old as well as the young; We may. perhaps, for aught we know. Have fifty to their one. I '11 tell you of a better plan, And I find it works full well. To try my own defects to cure. Before of others tell. And though sometimes I hope to be No woi-se than some I know, My own shortcomings l)id me let The faults of others go. Now let us when we commence To slander friends or foe. Think of the harm one word may do To those we little know. Remember curses, sometimes, like Our chickens roost at home; Don't speak of others' faults, until We have none of our own. — A Convict. Causes a^id Cures 333 LXXXVI. Executive Clemency. vSor.ght for — Conditioned. To THE incarcerated criminal, I think no other word in tlie vocabuhiry of words has such a charm as the word "■pardon," and no other person is so fascinating as he who is authorized to exercise the right of clemency. With many, to obtain pardon for the particular violation of law for \\'hich they were convicted and incarcerated is their a'plia and omega. This is about all in which many of them can he interested. For this they strive with all who, in any way, may be l)rought into relations with them. Be- cause of declining in several cases to give my personal in- fluence to obtain pardons for some whom I regarded as unworthy, there are yet pending threats of vengeance upon iny head. Appeals through personal letters, personal friends, and l)y employed attorneys at times become annoying, perplex- ing, and wearisome to the executive of State. To be just and generous toward all, and partial toward none, in this regard requires, at times, a stretch of effort. In the exer- cise of this power, 1 have known several governors of the State whom I regarded as cautious and honorable, fully set to exercise this power with discretion and fairness. Of all such, however, it is due that I say that, in my opinion, the State of Ohio never conferred this right upon any man who exercised it with more discretion or greater impar- tiality, and reached wiser conclusions, than did Governor Charles Foster. His certificates of pardon were not so nu- mrrous as several others, imt his decisions and reasons 224 The Criminal Classes given for so doing were generally regarded as wise and just, and accepted with .satisfaction by his constituents. As a rule, the temperance clause authorized by law, but left optional with the governor, was inserted in the certifi- cates of pardon issued by Mr. Foster, as follows, "The con- dition teing that he abstain hereafter from the use of intox- icating liquors as a beverage," with endorsements signed by the party to whom it was issued, as follows, "In pursu- ance of the provisions of section eighty-nine of the Revised Statutes of Ohio, 1 hereby accept the condition named in the within warrant, under the penalty of a forfeiture of the pardon for a violation of the same."' One party, to my knowledge, refused to accept a certifi- cate Avith this condition, saying he "would never sign away his personal liberty," and stayed within the prison. Several violated the condition, and were returned to serve out their time. ^lany, however, respected tlieir obligation and the condition imposed, to both their credit and better- ment. Causes and Cures 225 LXXXVJI. The Discharged Phisoner. It is more dilKeult to keep an ex-convict right in action than to get a convict right in purpose; therefore, the most important moment of a convict's life is when he severs his connection with the institution. If he is changed, — his character rehuilt while in confinement, — his first aim will be to find some honest work to do when his time expires. If he is trusting luck to find him something to do, luck will be lucky in but very few cases. "God helps the man who helps himself." JMany cannot find employment while in confinement. The lack of friends, or their want of faith in his newly-formed resolutions, militates against him. He is handicapped by his former life, and the most help- ing hand in the work of his reformation comes to him when he leaves prison — it may be State aid, some private organi- zation, or the philanthropy of an individual; no matter from what source, it is his friend in the hour of greatest peril. We require more zealous elfort in this direction than has been manifested by us in the past. The lessons taught in an industrial school or a model reformatory may fail in bearing fruit, not because they were unsound or unprac- tical, but rather because so much money and energy have been spent in fencing him in from the world, and so little done in restoring him to the world. "There is a tide in the affairs of men, which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune." But what are we to expect of fortune when it is ebb tide ? It is ebb in the heart of every true-souled man or boy on the day he leaves his confinement. We have seen young men with swimming eyes trying to crush back their 236 The Criminal Classes sobs as, with broken voice, they whispered, "My God, where can I earn an honest living?" The flippant malapert on such a day will soon )je back 2i,g2Lva..— Selected from Litera- ture. Cause H and Cures 237 LXXXVIII. COXCLUSIOX. By well-regulated reformatories and prisons, controlled by those moved by the spirit and example of the Xazarene, our criminal population can, and will l)e much restricted and greatly reduced. It is said that in curing the be- wildered demoniac "He took him hy the hand and lifted him up." "The best love man can offer To the God of love, be sure Is kindness to his little ones And bount}' to his poor." For "Mightier far Than strength of nerve or sinew, or the sway Of magic portent over the sun or star, Is love."