The U. S. Naval Disciplinary Barracks, Port Royal, South Carolina.
By Major Charles B. Hatch, U. S. Marine Corps, Comdg.
For some time the Department has believed that the method formerly in vogue, whereby the great majority of offenders against naval discipline were sent to naval prisons and discharged from the service, was a most expensive form of punishment, and one which did little towards the ultimate end in view, that of reforming the offender.
It had been found that a large percentage of prisoners confined in naval prisons were men who had committed purely military offenses and who, on completing their terms of confinement, would be dishonorably discharged from the service, thereby making it impossible for them ever to return thereto. Quite a number of these prisoners were trained men who, in a spirit of thoughtlessness, had committed themselves, and to sever permanently their connection with the service without making some effort to make them realize their mistakes, and at the same time save generally good men for the service, was considered far from meeting the modern idea of dealing with offenders. No attempt had been made up to this time to separate criminals from those confined for purely military offenses, and the whole idea in confinement seemed to be to make the offenders "pay" for their offenses, putting aside, as it were, what should be the chief resultant of all punitive institutions, reformation of character.
To devise means for separating the military and criminal offenders, and to give the former an opportunity to regain their self-respect and remain in the service, if they so desired, the Department convened a board composed of Captains Robert L. Russell and Henry B. Wilson, U. S. Navy, and Major Charles B. Hatch, U. S. Marine Corps, with orders to investigate the conditions of the service, and to recommend such changes in the system then in vogue which, in the opinion of the board, would give the best results. After a careful investigation as to existing conditions in naval prisons the board recommended as follows:
Enlisted men convicted by court-martial should be classed under three heads and dealt with as follows:
(1) Those Convicted of Crimes not of a Purely Military Nature.—It is believed that men convicted of criminal offenses should not be confined with those convicted of purely military offenses, only. All cases of filthy nature, theft, and cases where the offenses are not of a purely military character should be sent to state prisons. Arrangements were made with the New Hampshire State Prison at Concord, N. H., in December, 1910, for the confinement therein of naval prisoners, and such arrangements are now in existence with the Connecticut State Prison, Wethersfield, Conn., and the California State Prison, San Quentin, Cal.
(2) Those Convicted of Military Offenses whose Separation from the Service is Necessary or Desirable.—Men convicted of desertion from the navy or marine corps must in all cases be sentenced to dishonorable discharge, and their enlistment is expressly prohibited by law. Other cases arise where the offense committed or the record of the offender is such that the retention of the man in the service would be undesirable. All such men should be confined in naval prisons, and dishonorably discharged upon expiration of confinement in accordance with the terms of their sentences. Should the sentence not include dishonorable discharge in such cases, other than desertion, the man should be discharged as undesirable upon expiration of confinement.
Prisoners confined in naval prisons should be allowed only such plain, wholesome rations as may be necessary for their health and general welfare. The selection of guards for naval prisons, their pay, and period of service should be governed by the recommendations made below with reference to guards for "detention quarters."
Persons confined in naval prisons should be worked ten hours per day, » possible, and some means of useful employment should be supplied. The manufacturing of coal bags is suggested as best serving this purpose. However, if this is impracticable, any form of labor which would be beneficial to the government should be allowed.
(3) Those Convicted of Purely Military Offenses Who may be Developed into Desirable Members of the Service.—In our opinion, enlisted men convicted of purely military offenses, with the exception of such cases specified in class 2 above, should be confined in detention barracks or camp, termed "detention quarters." Rigid discipline should be maintained at such places of detention, officers being detailed for duty thereat who are known to be good disciplinarians, and, also, who possess a good knowledge of human nature. Enlisted men who may be thus confined should wear the service uniform and should not be known as "prisoners" as the term is usually applied. They should be put through a carefully selected course in service drills and instructions so that at the end of their detention they may, if recommended as desirable, be returned to the service as proficient as possible. During the time under detention their pay and leave should be stopped as at present, the men being allowed only their uniforms and such other articles, including tobacco, as may, in the opinion of the officer in command, be deemed necessary for their health and comfort.
As respects rations, men in detention should be given the regular rations, except desserts, special holiday meals, and extras…
Upon being released from confinement in detention quarters, men not discharged should be placed on probation at the place of detention, allowed liberty, and given the same amount of work and responsibility as would be given them if they were placed on probation on board ship or at barracks. No man, with the possible exception of a very few special cases, should be placed on probation in the general service; that is, on board ship, at naval stations, or in barracks.
Officers on seagoing ships or in regular barracks have not the time to devote the necessary amount of attention to the cases of men serving tinder their command on probation.
The place selected for "detention quarters" should not be a makeshift. It should have good airy barracks, plenty of ground for drill and exercises, and should be located in a temperate climate so that outdoor drills could be carried on the year round.
The men to be used for guards should be carefully selected men of known excellent character, they should receive extra pay and be kept on this duty during good behavior. Owing to emergencies frequently arising which now require the detail of men on prison duty to other stations, it is recommended that men so detailed as guards be not transferred unless the call for their services elsewhere is extremely urgent. It is believed that in thus selecting men as guards fewer will be required and better discipline will be maintained.
We believe that in most respects the best location for the proposed "detention quarters" would be at the naval station, Guantanamo, Cuba. However, owing to the expense and other obstacles—especially the necessary frequent transfer of men to and from Guantanamo—it is recommended that for the present the proposed "detention quarters " be located at some place in the southern part of the United States where outdoor drills can be carried on the year round.
It is strongly recommended that the "detention quarters" feature be tried out for a period of at least one year, by the transfer of not less than three hundred men to such point as may be designated for the "detention quarters" where this idea could be thoroughly developed and given an opportunity to demonstrate its value to the service.
As wall be understood from the foregoing, the objects of the proposed system are, first, to prevent enlisted men convicted of offenses solely against naval discipline from being subjected to the stigma attaching to imprisonment, and, second, saving to the service of a large number of such men who give promise of becoming, under proper discipline, desirable members thereof. With this in view, it is recommended that there be adopted a form of punishment to be termed "detention" and that in cases that may be deemed worthy of such clemency the Department mitigate sentences of imprisonment to "detention."
In accordance with this report the Department directed that a detention barracks, to be known as the U. S. Naval Disciplinary Barracks, be established at Port Royal, South Carolina, placing in command the writer of this article, together with six marine officers, two medical officers and one pay officer, with the necessary-enlisted force to carry out the work.
During the fiscal year 1912 some four hundred fifty enlisted men have been sent to Port Royal instead of the naval prison for confinement, the terms of their sentences having; been mitigated by the Department to detention. These men, instead of being placed in prison garb, retain their service uniforms, are drilled and exercised as though serving at a regular station, and are at all times kept occupied in some form of healthy work or exercise.
On completing two-thirds of their sentence in the detention barracks, from which no liberty is granted, and where strict discipline is maintained, those detentioners whose conduct has been excellent are placed on probation for the remaining third of their sentence. During this period of probation they receive service pay, are granted liberty, and are treated in every respect like men on duty in the service at large. During this period the officers at the Disciplinary Barracks are able to judge just how these men will act in service, and whether or not their retention therein is desirable.
Those men who show during their period of detention that they are undesirable are discharged from the service in accordance with the terms of their sentences, or as undesirable in cases where their sentences do not include discharge, and men found desirable at the termination of probationary period are unconditionally restored to duty and sent to some receiving ship for general detail in the service.
If it happens that a detentioner's enlistment has expired in detention, or would expire during the probationary period, he is discharged from the service at the expiration of his period of detention, and if his conduct warrants such action, he is recommended for re-enlistment. In a number of such cases the man concerned has applied for re-enlistment the day after his discharge, and has been re-enlisted at Port Royal, the commanding officer there having been designated as a recruiting officer by the Department for such purpose. During the fiscal year 1912 one hundred men who, under the old form of confinement in naval prisons, would have been lost to the service, have been returned to duty. Twenty-one others who, on account of expiration of enlistment, could not be restored to duty, were recommended for re-enlistment.
This form of punishment permits the enlisted man to retain his self respect, there is no stigma of prison garb or life attached, and he goes into the service a better man 'morally and physically, and the service gains in receiving a lot of well-drilled men who in the past were lost by discharge.
As much responsibility as may be compatible with discipline is given detentioners. Every effort is made to encourage them to assume that amount of responsibility which is held by any well-trained and disciplined body of men. The detentioners at Port Royal are divided into companies, each company having its acting petty officers detailed from its own strength, and officers and noncommissioned officers are detailed to drill them.
Six mornings of the week are devoted to four drill periods each, during which the detentioners are exercised in all the service drills, including infantry and field artillery. The afternoons are devoted to general work around the post, and to athletic exercises. Everything possible is done to keep the men busy and interested in their work. Those detentioners who have trades such as carpenters, painters, plumbers, blacksmiths, machinists, etc., are in addition to their drills worked at their trades making repairs to the buildings, boats, and machinery in order that they may be as efficient as possible on returning to the service. Helpers are detailed with these men for the purpose of giving the assistants an opportunity to learn a trade for themselves.
Port Royal had been abandoned as a naval station for a number of years and the buildings there were, when the disciplinary barracks was established, in poor repair. A few days before the post was established the place was visited by a severe storm which uprooted all the large trees, some ninety in number, broke nearly one thousand window glasses, unroofed five of the large buildings and left the place generally in. a deplorable condition. All these repairs have been made by the labor supplied by the detention and probation barracks, making it unnecessary to employ outside labor and thus saving a considerable sum to the Department. In fact, the entire post, including the water pumping station, heating and lighting systems, is run by enlisted men.
During the fiscal year 1913 it is the intention of the officers at Port Royal to start classes in special work, where detentioners, in addition to their regular service drills, will be taught useful trades which will be of benefit to themselves as well as to the service on their return to duty. These classes will be in seamanship, with boat drills under oars and sails; signals, both day and night; sailmakers, learning to perform the work of a sailmaker's mate on board ship, and a class of radio operators. For the last named a small radio station will have to be established at Port Royal, and an experienced operator will be sent there as an instructor.
In addition to these special classes the character of the drills are to be extended. Practice marches will be frequently taken, the men will be instructed in field fortification, landing operations, advance and rear guard formations and outpost duty, target practice with the service rifle, and in fact every service drill which will make them more efficient.
By a rearrangement of the duties of the officers at Port Royal, and on the reporting of an additional officer, it will be possible to detail three officers to duty in the detention barracks, where from one hundred seventy-five to two hundred fifty men have been quartered.
With officers interested in this kind of work, men who will devote their entire time to working with the detentioners, helping them individually, and keeping them interested in their advancement, it is considered that the detention idea is a success, and that the service as well as the detentioner is to derive great benefit from it.
The men received at the Port Royal Disciplinary Barracks for confinement are not criminals, but men who have committed some offense against naval discipline. Generally speaking they are men of good character who, through lack of forethought, or during a moment of uncontrolled passion, have allowed themselves to commit offenses of which in saner moods they are repentant. Human nature is frail but is generally amenable to correction and discipline if properly administered, and while all men at some time make mistakes, it does not necessarily follow that all men are bad.
It has been found that some good may be found in nearly every detentioner, and that it only requires the well directed energy of an officer to bring this good to the front. Individual treatment and help on the part of the officer often saves a man from being lost to the service, and it is believed that in this individual work lies the success of the detention idea. Certainly there is no better work in the service; none which will show better results, and the more work and effort on the part of the officers, the more men saved from themselves for the service.
At a time when the whole country is interested in prison reform work, the detention idea in the service brings the navy prominently to the front in its efforts to assist offenders against its discipline.