The Journal of Prison Discipline and Philanthropy (Volume 1)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: Art. III.?Nineteenth Annual Report of the Board of Managers of the Prison Discipline Society. Boston, May, 1844, pp. 110. An almost incredible amount of valuable information upon the state of prisons in the United States, has been collected and distributed by the agency of this Society, in their nineteen Annual Reports?the last of which lies before us. They must be allowed the credit of having furthered many important improvements in the construction of prisons, as well as in their management and economy. The cause of philanthropy is indebted to them for most valuable aid, in searching out and exposing the horrible oppression and cruelties endured by the lunatics and maniacs in gaols and alms-houses; and for exciting and sustaining public attention and sympathy toward this group of sufferers, until effectual provision could be made for their relief. God speed them well, in all their efforts for such ends! To the other side of their account must be placed the long- continued and earnest inculcation of many false principles? the suppression of important facts, conflicting with their favourite theories?and the countenance they have given (unwittingly, we would fain hope) to palpable misrepresentations, and to prejudices which have been thereby engendered against what is known as the Pennsylvania, or separate system of Prison Discipline., The present Report relates to?1. Lunatic Asylums. 2. County Prisons. 3. Penitentiaries. 4. Houses of Refuge. In the cursory examination we have been able to give it, we marked a few passages for second reference. We will call attention to them in the order of the topics. 1. Provision for Lunatics. Our trans-atlantic friends will probably laugh at us a little, for not knowing the names of our own States. The report before us elevates the...