TWO

THiE IMICHIGAN DAILY

DEVIS ISLAND TO CLOSEI
Infamous French Penal Inslitution Slated
For Liquidation After 94 Years of Death

ATTENTION, AUTHORS:
Prof. Haines Offers Advice
To Ambitious Young Writers

By GAY LARSEN
Devil's Island, off the coast of
French Guiana, synonym for penolog-
ical hell since 1851, is destined for
slow liquidation.
Charles A. Pean, a major in the
Salvation Army, in carrying out his
mission in the prison colony will
be putting into effect a law that
enitered the French statutes in 1938
but went unenforced because of the
war.
The colony, made up of Ile Royale,
St. Joseph and Devil's Island is lo-
cated about thirty miles northwest
of Cayenne.
Ile Royale is the largest with the
big prison on the plateau, the hospi-
tal and the commandant's house. St.
Joseph's is the worst of the islands
with its three long windowless build-
ings, where men are caged like ani-
mals in special punishment cells. I
Devil's Island is the smallest. Al-
fred Dreyfus spent his martyr's
exile there in the 1880's and since
then it has been largely used for
political exiles. Uninhabited at the
present, its name has passed to the
settlement forty miles inland in
Guiana, at St. Laurant du Maroni.,#
First to benefit from Major Pean 's
three year program to abolish settle-
ment which has been called the "dry
guillotine" willsbe2,800 convicts who
have served their terms.
When the exigencies of war isolated
Guiana from shipping, these men of
all nationalities who had been sen-
tenced in French courts were left to
go along as best they could in the
equatorial heat with shrinking rations
and inadequate medical supplies. Be-
cause of France's current shipping
shortage only about 1,000 will be
repatriated, some to North Africa and
Inldo-China, before the end of 1946.
Of those still serving sentences,
some wil be pardoned, some shifted

to prisons in France and those too
old or too ill to leave will be hospital-
ized in Guiana for the rest of their
lives. These convicts number 2,000
felons, 300 habitual petty criminals
and 27 political prisoners sentenced
for treason.
Major Pan began his reform of
toe Dvil's island Colony in 1928,
when he began work there on a Sal-
vation Army program to rehabili-
tate the "liberes"-prisoners who
had served their sentences but who,
und'er a French law called "doub-
lage" had to spend an equivalent
period of time if their sentence was
seve y anr °sor under and who were

helped in this way up till the out-
break of the yar.
By 1939 conditions within the pri-
son were reported to have risen to a
level with other institutions in France,.
but inmates were successful in es-
caping with the connivance of the
guards tcld stoies which rivalled in
horror the earlier accounts of Devil's'
Island as a by-word for living death.
Th:e penal colony was founded in
1852 when the first convoy of pri-
loners arrived, though it was not un-
til 1854 that Napoleon III struck off
an edict legalizing their shipment'
there.
Times were hard in France then,

d
A
a
e1
i
Ii
z

By ALICE CARLSON1
So you want to be a writer? j
You know what you have to do.
Lon't you? You have to write and
xrite and write. You need practice-
nd talent. You need originality and
i lively, constructive imagination.
This is the advice to "young writ-
ers" which Prof. D. H1. Haines, of the
ournalism department, brought out
n an interview yesterday,
Prof. Haines is the author of 17
books and numerous short stories.
"Don't plan to earn a lot of mon-
ey," Prof. Haines warned. "Editors
pay as little as one-fourth of a cent
per word for copy, a level at which
many writers remain permanently.
It is seldom that writers meet with
the success that brings $1,000 per
story or 120,000 to $30,000 in the
slick' magazines."
Two Other Divisions
"There are two other divisions in
which the novice can earn a living,"
he said. 'There is the art of writing
rubbish in quantity,' which means
working an eight-hour day, six days
a week, year in and year out, or there
is the opportunity to submit to liter-
ary magazines. The latter have a
small reading public and probably a
cultured one. Editors of these maga-

zines can afford to be choosy, for they
are seeking quality, not quantity, at
a low price."
Prof. Haines estimated that the
first novel brings $300 to $500 in roy-
alties, or as much as $1.000 if it is
unusual. The second brings less than
the first, while the third may earn
as much as $1,500. After $2,500 for the
fourth, future novels. unless the pow-
ers of the writer fail, will probably
net $5,000 apiece.
Abilities Need Training
But before one can put stories
on the market, certain abilities must
be coaxed and trained to give to the
novel or short story that certain
quality which the public wants, he
declared. "First of all a writer has
to have talent. Nobody can give him
that, but it can be trained," he said.
Prof. Haines concluded with the
comment:
"All in all, you may be sure that
the people in the world of fiction are
working darn hard."
Russ ian Play
A Russian play rehearsal will be
held at 9 p.m. tomorrow in Rm. 2219,
Angell Hall. All members of the cast
are urged to attend.

tvc yuaa n uxu~i Xka ,.. t~.<. toand the first prisoners, who were
exiled for life if the sentence was merely exiles and not locked up, wrote
longer than seven years. that they had found a "tropical para-
How ever, those who had been sen- disc." In 1903 a voluntary batch of
fenced for less than seven years had women life prisoners went to Guiana,
to pay their own way back to France married other exiles and settled down
and since they had no way to earn
money, it amounted virtually to a But a few years later, the settle-
life sentence in the pesthole. ment grew crowded with addition-
lif seence insthenisbj r al arrivals, there was no market for
A French conscientious objector. ieir crops and the men turned
who had been sentenced with a group hack to their old criminal pursuits.
to the island during the first World The authorities then installed com-
War, wrote in 1928: pounds, dungeons and an infamous
"About a score of us are still liv- regime of cruelty.
ing, we have served our sentences, Major Pan will fly to Guiana in
we are nominally free to return to the next few days to bring salvation
France, to our country, to relatives to the last few survivors of that re-
and friends, to our homes. But if we gime, He started his work in the in-
can hardly keep body and soul to- famous prison colony in 1928, "where
gether, how can we find the means of France sends her most dangerous
crosing the ocean? Are we destined, criminals to die of tropical heat and
after paying the penalty exacted by fever, and wretchednessband despair"
military justice, to a slow agony, and has made five trips to Guiana
under a burning sky, without hope of since then for survey and reform
ever quitting this hell on earth?" work.

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HEDY AND MATE SEEK GUN PERMIT-Actress Hedy Lamarr holds N
a revolver as her husband, John Loder, signs an application for a gun1
permit at police headquarters in Los Angeles. A few nights before their
home had been burglarized of $18,400 in furs and jewelry.
- -
Michigan Vets Rushing To Join
Wide Variety of Organizations
LANSING. April 20- / -Michi- There are 16 groups listed as vet-
gan veterans of World War II are erans social clubs in various cities
joining all kinds of organizations of the state-some called merely vet-
from "The Ruptured Duck Club" to erans' clubs while others go under
"At Ease, Inc." titles like "Sans Culottes Veterans
In the last six months ex-service- Club," "Snafu Veterans Club," "At
men have done a booming organizing Ease, Inc.," and "The Ruptured Duck
business, records of the State Cor- Club." Two were designated as
poration and Securities Commission bridge clubs.
indicate. Articles of incorporation Some are organized for a special
have been filed during the period for. purpose such as the Veterans Flying
42 different veterans' organizations Club of Detroit, the Veterans Jeep
as non-profit corporations. Club, Sanilac County Veterans Ath-
In addition, at least a half dozen letic Association, and Winged Spar-
new posts each have been formed by tans (a club of former Air Corps
the American Legion and the Veter- members attending Michigan State
ans of Foreign Wars along with sev- College). Nationality influence -is
eral new AMVETS (American Vet- shown in the American Polish Veter-
erans of World War II) chapters. ans of World War II, Grand Rapids,
There were also numerous World and the Polish Veterans Club of
War II Veterans-Memorial Home as- Hamtramck.
sociations formed in various com- ---

Continuous Daily

IWHITNEY

Continuous Daily
1:30 to 11:30 P.M.
TODAY., MON., TUES.

Under the major's direction the
Salvation Army set up plantations
on which the liberes could relearn
work habits and earn enough in
twenty months to pay their passage
to France. Some 800 men were

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING

(Continued from Page 1)
be forced to serve open-top sand-
wiches."
Chairman of the Washtenaw Coun-
ty Food Campaign, Ashley Clague, as-
serted that if every person in the
United States would voluntarily eat
two slices less bread each day, there
would be a sufficient supply for daily
bread rations available to 20,000,000
people abroad. The 1946 average
daily bread consumption, Clague said,
was six slices per person. He added
that "there is enough bread being
wasted here each day to feed Eu-
rope."

GREAT EASTER SHOW
[OTIONA EDDIE DEAN
in
"SONG OF OLD
WYOMING
Photographed in
t , vGORGEOUS COLOR!

LATEST NEWS and "FOREST RANGERS" No. 5
STARTS -WEDNESDAY
STEPHANIE BACHELOR CHARLES STARRETT
"CRIME OF THE CENTURY" "LAWLESS EMPIRE"

CLASSIFIED
RATES
$ .40 per 15-word insertion for
one or two days. (In-
crease of 10c for each
additional five words.)
Non-Contract
$1.00 per 15-word insertion for
three or more days. (In-
crease of 25c for each
additional five words.)
Contract Rates on Request
FOR SALE
SAVE 25% ON TENNIS RACQUETS,
Strings, repairs. Just arrived, H. C.
Lee frames. McClusky and Dare,
417 8th street. Ph. 2-7360.
FOR SALE: Suit, 2 pc., summer wt.,
38 long, dark gray ;chalk stripe,
single breasted, pre-war, $14.95,
Elgin, Room 110, Dorm 2, Willow
Run.
PORTABLE, electric phonograph.
In leatheratte luggage case. Tone
and volume control. Call Clark
Marlor 6741.
HELP WANTED
HELP WANTED: Fountain help, top
ray, hours to your convenience,
Apply in person to Mr. Lombard or
Mr. Benden. Witham's Drug Store,
corner of S. University and Forest.
WANTED-Experienced waitress for
part time work. Apply Mr. L. W.
Anderson, Willow Run Bowling Al-
leys. 1065 Midway, Willow Run
Village. Phone Ypsi. 1852.
WANTED: Part time stenographer
for work mornings Monday through
Friday inclusive; if necessary re-
adjustment of hours can be ar-
ranged. Apply B'nai B'rith Hillel
Foundation. Hill and Haven or
phone Miss Goldberg 26585.
"PART TIME SALESMAN for
"Alumaroll," the modern Alumin-
um Awning. Wonderful opportun-
ity for a neat appearing, ambitious
young man. Overnight travel un-
necessary. Straight commission,
large profits. Call at or write to
Michigan Aluminum Awning Com-
pany. 201 North Jackson St., Jack-
son, Michigan."
WANTED: 2 dishwashers for board
at fraternity house near Rackham.
Call noon or evening 4379.
WANTED
WMANTED: Sewing at my home; alter-
ing and repairing women's and
children's clothing. Also sheets and
household linens. Nothing in black,
Miss Livingston, 315 S. Division,
:end flooi' front.
WILL PAY cash for your high school
diary. Delete names and submit
for youth study. Phone University

LOST: Plastic rim glasses in Brown
case. Mary Jo Lett printed inside.
Finder please call 2-1317. Reward.
LOST: One K & E log log slide rule.
Thursday, 9 a.m., Room 2201 East
Engineering. Reward. Please call
Newt Zucker, 2-6313.
-4~-

munities of the state.
Applications for incorporation
show that the ex-servicemen are
banding together not only in organi-
zations intended to give veterans "a
voice" in community or state affairs
but for social and business reasons.


*mmmn

Continuous from 1 P.M.

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of which the screen
and all who. live byi
may well be proud.
Motion Picture critics don't pull their punches. They see
a picture-judge it--and say just what they think about
it. We're proud to reprint above what an outstanding
Hollywood critic wrote after seeing

A Story for Lovers . . . Past, Present and Perfect!
VERONICA LAKE - SONNY TUFTS

Also
Rice
Sporti ight
"TESTING
THE
EXPERTS"

:,


JON CAULFIELD
with
ThHu7 fl WAlfo.Pm1 Collin&RiU Edwards

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