Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 5.djvu/688

 672 THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY

less grave, they are more degenerate, and present the most hope- less aspect of the criminal problem. As in the psychological results, so in the sociological, the workhouse inmates show the greatest variation from normal or successful functioning and have a less advantageous environment.

The results obtainable from these sources and by these meth- ods may be grouped under the following topics : nature of crime, age, nationality, religion, conjugal condition, number of children, occupation, education, habits, recidivism, degradation, moral sense, economic influence, parents and their occupation, industriousness, associates, disease, biological influences.

The question often arises : What crimes do women most frequently commit ? During the summer months of 1899 there were incarcerated at Blackwell's Island (a typical workhouse) 1,451 prisoners, for the following offenses : disorderly conduct, 948; intoxication, 369; vagrancy, 122; petit larceny, 12; disor- derly house, 3. The crimes of the workhouse inmates are thus against public morals, public peace, and public policy. Out of 88 prisoners confined in the penitentiaries, 19 were for robbery, 28 for larceny, 17 for murder, 6 for manslaughter, 11 for burg- lary, I for receiving stolen goods, 2 for forgery, 2 for assault, 2 for keeping girls, and i for conspiracy. Here the crimes are largely against property and public safety. The reasons for this are obvious : Women's crimes are more closely associated with immorality, because biologically she inclines to this rather than to crimes of force. In the penitentiaries, where robberies and larcenies are more numerous, the woman is often the accom- plice in some disorderly house, or is a shoplifter or swindler in a gang with men. Where public safety is threatened, as in homi- cides, emotional conditions in woman, as contrasted with motives of gain in man, are often at work.

With reference to the age of women criminals almost nothing can be said. This depends entirely upon their statements, which are untrustworthy. While the workhouse contains young women, it is usually those whose habits of inebriety have rendered them incapable of securing a livelihood, even through an immoral call- ing. As a rule the women are older, and this does not include