PICTURES IN PRISONS.
The screening of a motion picture film inside Paparua Gaol yesterday wa.‘ but another step forward on the lone trail towards the ideal system of prison management. Recent yeans ha*re seen
the introduction of many important re forms in prison system, and it must be admitted that the results have justified their introduction. It is not very long since men who were imprisoned for offences were regarded as hopelessly beyond reform. They were not treated like human beings and the result was that when they were liberated again, they felt that they had practically no chance of making good and leading decent, respectable lives. The consequence was that the same men returned to the gaols time after time. Under the new system of prison management, the idea is that the men are encouraged to become- better men. and the success of the system is to be seen in the Bin all number of men who return to prison for subsequent offences. The men are kept under severe discipline, but they are provided with food for the mind as well as for the b>dy. Something is done to return them to the world with the determination that they will noc come hack to prison again. It ha 6 been found that if a prisoner is placed on his honour to faithfully observe the rules of the gaol, he is unlikely to break those rules. Even the hardest of criminals have responded to the touch of kindness, and society generally has reaped the benefit. There is still a section of the community that holds strongly the opinion that men who are sent to gaol should he punished and punished severely, and that as part of that punishment they should be de barred from every comfort in life. Happily that sentiment does not now prevail. If it did it is quite possible that there would be more instead of le«s crime. It is a fact that the worse n n.an is treated the worse he becomes, and the better he is treated the better he becomes. The prisoners at Pa puma, with their weekly allowance of tobacco, their facilities for reading and recreation, are in some cases better off than they would be with their liberty They gain a new outlook on life, and make up their minds that they will steer clear of crime when they get outThe film which was screened yesterday was more than an entertainment for the prisoners. Further experiments along these lines should be welcomed Prisons exist for the purpose of protecting the public from wrong-doers, and if the number of criminals can be reduced by humane methods, those methods should be encouraged. The path of prison reform is a long and thorny one, and much remains to be done. No country has yet discovered the system which never fails to turn the prisoner into a- better citizen. It is gratifying, however, that progress is being made, and that the old idea of continuous labour and punishment is disappearing.
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Bibliographic details
Star (Christchurch), Issue 16797, 28 July 1922, Page 6
Word Count
504PICTURES IN PRISONS. Star (Christchurch), Issue 16797, 28 July 1922, Page 6
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