STRANGE "HOBBY."

Auckland Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue 49, 27 February 1937, Page 4 (Supplement)

STRANGE "HOBBY."

. GOING TO PRISON. WORE BORSTAL "SCHOOL Tit* FVGTJ-nM AN S K\ PFriTNCEg A few » X r, > iaj , fror|) ] ,1,2 ' tic 11..111 Nt.'li t,;r> world'* j 'jUi-'T-t "•''••• •;• H, .. M- A!.-Minder | 1 .it'-r-on and i:.e. to 2 H "-- Kv ' n ? -- f> narder.od "old !''- ~in hm kno wn nM I." a mere tvrn c,, n -p arfl(l W j f v Mr. Pater-..,,. it, ,> :,.a:•or of is!!• >\\ i.f T-r>.-n , !r*. So f,„.d of ? a..; ii 'o-.-tft. middle, nv-i.-lioo] teacher tha* ho j» nnw - -'" - tlioii-an<U of 7ni!<>o to th« Wo*' Indie- and South Ameriej , M for himself how convict* are treated it tho-e part-. f H-incr ••'ld"** •« not onlr a "hohbr" " Pa' ' ai= he i»i a fTrr'ionatelr • known to tno'i-andi of Mnn-fti and ex. r ' ,r ' x? '" s " w " '' ,0 wr "'-d. It i« a job ot \v. >rk a - I As """ nf " known and mod ;enerzetie ot Hi- Ma i"-» \'s Prison Co B . inN-i.-nrr*. s,.d liir».-*n r of C-onvjrt T'rv'iiiis, ho ha- \ :-:?M every jj Britain, \*"h a-i »rore* in America and otiier part- of the world. "An Accident." "I hope to SO to nPNir? Inland on tlsia 'rip." )io paid. "I am tp"kir,z perm*, -ion from the Kronen <io\ernment to do co. 1 sha.l ha\p to present A report tn t iio Colonial #.n my return on tlio conditions in British prison* in tlx colonics. ''I I'fame a prison eommi»»ioner more or l"«s l.y a.-rident." he wpnt on "It was my connection with the Borstal Association, and advocacy of priaon reform that ltd niP to this jo-.," On occa-ion "Put" i,as iieen known to "■ear t iie Borstal 'Vchool tic." He > i mine of information on. cvervthin;: that has to do with the Borstal system.

Following the famous "mutiny" it Dartmoor, he assumed command at the I prison, and by his tact and diplomat-? iand hard work, i.e helped wry greatly :n the ta-k of making there. His report on what he s«w ar.d the , conclusions he reached atter \; -t tn ■ Sing >ing and other famous Anifi?ii pri-ons created a great sensation in the I'nited States. | In Sing >ing he met several notorious gangsters. j ".Tack Diamond and Al Capone were , not then 'in*idr.' " he said, "hut I wi» • given every facility for interviewing 1 prisoner* privately. I came to the eon--1 clu-ion that KnglUhmon convicted in America receive real justice. I apoks .with a number of them."' Hut Mr. I'atcrson al'o sa»r lot* of 1 things that surprised, and tome that ' horrified, him. If saw men chained to paten for c:g',t hours, and other men who wera contii.ed m dark cell* for a week. He was shown another man wh.i had bed i%e-o in his cell for eight years. "t had many «urpri»es." he said. "On,> or" the rno-t st.i'-tiitig of these «» «::c 11 a man serving a life sontM* •lr, n e me 170 miles t., n . . •, > town— and then returned a! -e to »;< prison'" Mr. Pateivoii ;a- !.i it down that three tiling,, are necessary in coamis--i,»n of every cr-ime. " I here i- frj-t the desire to -J ■> said'thing wrong." lie has sa : d. "Tii * desire that cvervhodv has had s r snpe ; t inie or et her. "Secondly, there ir.u-1 he t*<e oppoftun it v to ati -f v that dcrirp \nd thirdly, ah-ence of arv urge to the con! ra rv." i -