The discharged prisoner is now in the hands and at the mercy of society.
If he is accorded a square deal he may become a useful citizen. If it is
his misfortune to become associated with bigoted zealots who taunt him
with his past degradation the chances are that he will become a criminal
again and prove a source of great expense to the state.
In closing this chapter it would be well to suggest that every ex‐convict
is not a dyed‐in‐the‐wool villian, but that persecution may make him such
in the course of events. Is he entitled to a square deal? Most assuredly
so, especially if he is employed at honest work and his every action shows
determination to lead an upright life. He has sinned against society, it
is true, but without question he has paid the debt of his transgression a
hundred fold by his imprisonment. Still, after all has been said, a bad
reputation is a difficult thing to live down, even that which clings to
the free citizen. The discharged prisoner’s chief reliance, therefore, in
the final analysis is to so circumspectly conduct himself as to place him
above the carping criticisms of his new associates. If he follows this
course his neighbors are not likely to keep their eyes on his “cracked”
reputation.
[Cell Door Decorative Illustration]