Our country is called the land of the free, but could we at one glance
behold the thousands and tens of thousands now behind the prison-bars
and know their irksome lives, there would be an awakening in hearts
that have never known the bondage that exists in our midst.
A crime is perpetrated. Some one is arraigned before the court to
answer the charges as to whether he is guilty or not. The jury renders
a verdict, “Guilty.” The judge pronounces the sentence a term in
prison. The poor unfortunate is now considered a convict. Shackles are
brought to make him secure, in order to prevent his escape. An officer
accompanies him to his prison house, where he is to be in servitude
according to the length of his term of sentence. No one but the
prisoner realizes the awful feelings as the prison door shuts behind
him with a clang, and he hears the click of the lock fastening him in
an iron cell. Whether innocent or guilty, he feels the awful disgrace
upon himself and his friends. It would not seem so bad if only the
guilty were brought to justice in this way, but ofttimes the facts
reveal that not only hundreds, but thousands, of innocent persons are
thus sentenced and brought into disgrace, many of them serving a life
sentence.
There are two sides to prison life—a bright side, and a dark side. It
may be a query in the minds of some how there could be any enjoyment or
any bright side to such a life, but this will be clearly shown in other
chapters in this book. There are many things that go to make the prison
life a dark one. Viewing the matter from a natural standpoint, with no
one to look to but human help, the way does truly often look dark and
dreary. There are prisons where men are cast into dungeons and left to
almost starve to death, or they are bound hand and foot and beaten with
the cat-o-nine tails, or hanged by the thumbs, or made to pass through
some severe ordeal of punishment that is almost beyond human endurance.
Even in our own country there are yet stockades wherein prisoners do
not receive treatment that would elevate them nor fit them for the
higher circles of society. Many of these stockades wherein prisoners
have been kept during the years past have been but little, if any,
better in many respects than were the Andersonville or Libby prisons
during the Rebellion. There are exceptional cases to be sure. During
the past year a number of the states have not properly provided for
their prisoners. It has not been an uncommon thing in some of these
stockades to see a gang of men shackled together with chains, obliged
to go about with the clanking chains to their feet, under rigid rules,
and having to suffer the severe treatment of wicked and ungodly guards.
The National Prison Association, which is generally represented by
officers from the various prisons throughout the United States,
have for a number of years met annually to discuss the best modes
of handling and caring for the prisoners. Various methods have been
set forth. Experiments have been made, and too often it is the case
that hard-hearted officers have used the most excruciating means and
hard-heartedness in their dealings toward their prisoners, in order
to keep them in subjection. Some officers deem it necessary to speak
to prisoners in the sternest possible manner, imagining that being
cross, gruff, and surly toward them will make them feel a subordination
that can be brought about in no other way. This only deepens the
sorrows of the poor unfortunate prisoner and tends to harden his
heart and affections. Such officers forget that kind looks, gentle
actions, and words of encouragement fitly spoken will elevate a man
and encourage him to show his manhood and return the love by putting
forth his best efforts to show his appreciation of kindness. It is
true there are hard-hearted men in prison, men who would kill a man
for a trifle, whose consciences are seared over, as it were, yet there
are comparatively few men so hard-hearted but can be touched by love
and kindness. There are times when more severe punishment must be
inflicted, but the warden and prison officers who continually show
forth kindness toward the prisoners, greeting them with a smile and
words of encouragement, have but little trouble in bringing about a
great reform in the lives of those under their charge.