human nature is so weak and imperfect that, at its best, it needs all the encouragement it can get. the comradeship of friends, and the attitude of the public and acquaintances are of the greatest importance in effecting the development of most lives. sooner or later the convicted man is turned out either on probation or parole, or at the expiration of his sentence. he was probably none too strong a man before his conviction. his heredity was poor in most cases, and his environment completed his downfall. he faces the world again with a serious handicap that he did not have at first. if he had just recovered from a severe illness, everyone he met would do all he could to help him; his environment would be made easier than before his confinement in the hospital; and especially from the conditions that placed him there, both society and his neighbors would try to see that he should, as far as possible, be saved. if he had been one of those who could live only by means of his own work, and if on account of himself or his family he had been obliged to over-strain, an easier place would probably be found for him. the chances of going to the hospital the second time would be very much less than they were the first time. even his experience in confinement would be of use, and through that experience he would be taught to live and preserve his health.
the discharged prisoner is met in an entirely different way. the ex-convict is under doubt and suspicion from the start. on the slightest provocation he is reminded of his past. he is always under suspicion unless, perhaps, he professes a change of heart. such a change implies a physical process which is impossible. some sudden exaltation may furnish him a new emotion for a time, but this can last only while the stimulus has power to act. it will soon pass away and the man will be himself again. it may be possible that here and there is a nature of such an emotional temperament, that religion or socialism or single tax or some other strong conviction may possess him until such time as his feelings begin to cool and change, when he will be safe. but most men are inherently the same when they come out of prison as when they go in. under right treatment they may gain a little more wisdom as to life that will help them make adjustments; or they may be relieved from some burdens, or placed in an environment of less stress and strain where it will be easier to live. in those cases, the attitude and help of the community are all-important.
society is not entirely to blame for looking on him with suspicion. it knows he once failed. it has been taught that this failure was due to a moral delinquency outside the law of cause and effect, and society is naturally suspicious that he will offend again or molest the community in some other way. had he been confined because he had not the strength to meet his environment; had the law put him in custody under expert control until he gained the strength for his battle with life; or had a new environment been provided under scientific direction as in the case of a hospital patient, society would then take another view and do all it could to help him. new comrades and associates would surround him to show him the way, and they would make his burden lighter. instead of this, he comes out with his ability to adjust himself to life lessened. if a crime is committed in his community he is blamed or at least suspected. he is known to the police and often "rounded-up." this directly interferes with his employment, places him at a disadvantage with his associates, and drives him into the company of others who feel that the world is against them and that a life of crime is all there is left to follow. it is not hard to see how men come to be "repeaters." it is hard to understand when they do not.
