PRISON REFORM. 209 



Conditional Liberation. — Conditional liberation or the parole 

 system is almost a necessary'- accompaniment of the indeterminate 

 sentence system. It is a modification of, and an impi'ovement upon, 

 the English ticket-of-leave system. The prisoner is not released until 

 employment is found for him and he is required to report periodically 

 to some officer designated by the prison authorities. Failing this he 

 is recommitted. So long as his conduct. is good he is encouraged and 

 given substantial aid if necessary. In 1864 a new Penal Servitude 

 Act was passed in England embodying the Crofton system which in- 

 cludes indeterminate sentences and conditional liberation. Since 

 then crime has steadily decreased in Great Britain. At Elmira, 

 N. Y., it is claimed that fully 80 per cent, of all prisoners who are 

 discharged on parole are permanently reformed. 



Education. — Another important requirement in prison I'efoi-m is 

 education. A large proportion of incarcerated criminals ai'e quite 

 illiterate. It is from the illiterate and the idle classes that a very 

 large percentage of the criminal class is recruited. Industrial train- 

 ing should be incorporated with our education system and attend- 

 a,nce at school should be made compulsory. In industrial schools and 

 reformatories, a good common school education should be given, and 

 proficiency both in studies and in acquiring a trade should be made 

 both an incentive and a sine qua non to a discharge. At the reform- 

 atory for young men at Elmira, K. Y., no one is discharged until he 

 has thoroughly mastered a trade and passed the required examination 

 in his studies. The discharge is quite independent of outside in- 

 fluence. 



Religion. — For the reformation of prisoners religion is the highest 

 motive power that can be brought to bear. No permanent progress 

 in prison I'eform can be expected without it. The religious influence 

 of the chaplain or Sunday-school teacher should be supplemented by 

 that of God-fearing prison officers and employes, otherwise all 

 eflForts in this direction may be completely neutralized. No reforma- 

 tion can be expected in a prison where there is a profane or intem- 

 perate official. 



Prisoners' Aid Associations. — The cause of prison reform has also 

 been promoted by Prisoners' Aid Associations. These societies extend 

 a helping hand to prisoners on their discharge from prison. Employ- 

 ment is found for them, and, when necessary, tools or money is 



