Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XIV.djvu/22

PRISONS AND PRISON DISCIPLINE the day, with cellular separation at night. A few of the departmental prisons are cellular, but even in these the strict separate system is not practised. Three prisons in Paris, how- ever, are constructed and conducted on the cel- lular plan : Mazas, a part of La Sante, and La Petite Roquette; the last named is a prison for persons under 16 years of age and persons sentenced to an imprisonment not exceeding six months. The law of May, 1875, provides that persons awaiting trial shall be confined in separate cells, subjects those sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment or less to solitary con- finement, and gives those with longer sentences the privilege of choosing separate confinement. Penal as distinguished from industrial labor does not exist in the prisons of France. In- dustrial labor is obligatory upon those serving sentences, and optional with the arrested and the accused. Extensive workshops are organ- ized in the central prisons. In the male cen- tral prisons about 50 or 60 industries are car- ried on, the principal of which are weaving, tanning, and the manufacture of boots and shoes, buttons, hosiery, locks, and hardware. Three of the central prisons are " agricultural penitentiaries," or colonies in the island of Corsica where the convicts are employed in agricultural work. Sewing is the chief indus- try in the central prisons for females. The contract system of labor prevails in most of the prisons, but in several important establish- ments the industries are managed directly by the state. Convicts are allowed a portion of their earnings, being in the central prisons from three tenths to five tenths, according to the grade of the sentence. A portion may be used by the convict while in prison, and the balance is reserved till his discharge. The prisoners contribute about 50 per cent, of the cost of maintenance in the central, and about 17 per cent, in the departmental prisons. A few of the central prisons are self-sustaining or nearly so. The more important prisons are generally provided with chaplains, schools, and ; libraries; but only about 12 to 15 per cent, of the population in the prisons for males, and 5 to 8 per cent, in those for females, are admitted to the schools. Corporal punishment is pro- hibited in all prisons. All the prisons of Bel- gium are under the jurisdiction of the minister of justice, and are subject to the supervision and inspection of commissions. Nearly all are conducted on the separate plan. There are three general classes : houses of correction, houses of reclusion, and convict prisons. In the first are confined prisoners sentenced to simple imprisonment for terms of 8 days to 5 years ; in the second, those sentenced for from 5 to 10 years; and in the third, those sentenced to hard labor for life, from 10 to 15 years, or from 15 to 20 years. Industrial labor pre- vails in all prisons, penal in none. The labor is directed in part by the government, and in part is awarded to special contractors, pref- erence being given to the latter plan. A sys- tem of apprenticeship prevails, by which pris- oners are taught various trades. The prison industries are varied and extensive. The pris- oners receive a portion of their earnings, and rewards for good conduct, including reduction of sentence. Every prison with 50 or more inmates is provided with a school or a teacher, and school attendance is generally obligatory. Libraries are found in all prisons. The three great central or convict prisons of Belgium are those of Louvain, Ghent, and Antwerp. All the prisons of Prussia are subject to a central authority, the large penitentiary estab- lishments or central prisons being under the minister of the interior. There are 29 prisons exclusively for hard labor, 15 for imprison- ment and simple detention, and 11 of a mixed character. The capacity of all is about 26,500. In 47 there is an aggregate of 3,247 cells for solitary imprisonment by day and night ; but in only one of these is the separate system ex- clusively adopted ; in the other 46 the cellular and the congregate systems both exist. The punishments prescribed by the penal code are hard labor, simple imprisonment, imprison- ment in a fortress, and detention for minor offences. Sentence to hard labor may be for life or from one to 15 years. It subjects the prisoner to compulsory labor without restric- tion, both inside and outside the prison, and disqualifies him from serving in the army or navy, or in any public office. The judge may add civil degradation. In simple im- prisonment, limited to five years, the convict cannot be compelled to work outside of the prison, or at occupations not in accord with his capacity or previous social condition. If the sentence is for three months or more, the judge may add civil degradation. Prisoners sentenced to hard labor or to imprisonment may be liberated provisionally at the expira- tion of three fourths of their sentence, provi- ded they have been at least a year in confine- ment. Imprisonment in a fortress may be for life or for a term of years, not exceeding 15. The punishment is simply privation of liberty. The chief classification of prisoners in Prussia is the separation of the young from the old. Penal labor does not exist. Industrial labor comprises not less than 50 different trades car- ried on by men and 10 by women. The con- tract system prevails almost exclusively; the labor of the prisoners being let out, not to a few general contractors, but each industry to a special contractor. Prisoners are allowed a variable portion, not exceeding one sixth, of the product of their labor, to be used partly while in confinement and the balance after re- lease. Amopg the punishments permitted is castigation in the case of men, limited to 80 lashes, anil only when authorized by the direc- tor of the prison at the request of the 'superior officers, including the chaplain and surgeon. Chaplains, all forms of worship, schools, and libraries exist in all important prisons. About 15 per cent, of all the prisoners receive scho-