The National Register.
London, England, 1821-06-03 00:00:00

ILC'IIESTEII GAOL.

SATURDAY, MAY 26.

The charges hay.tig been read,:roil a few preliminaries
agreal on, Nlr. J tit Moritacute,
Ksq one of the magistrates of the county, as his first
wuness, ttho stated that he had always considered the
jaact's occurrence book to diary of what takes
place in the jail ; the !Moores therein of occurrences to
be regularly entered, for The purpose of enabling the
visiting and other magistrates to know what had passed
from time to time in the jail. Witness then proceeded,
" I have examined this book lately naore than usual, my
attention having been called to it frequently during a
late investigation lxifore the tita3istrates, and I certainly
have discovered very IPsily interiineations, or rather in-
terpolations, which, in my opinion, on an examination,
weak for themselves. There is an obvious interlineation,
rioting the discharge of Anti Denman on the 24th Oct.
the day on which her sentence expired : my attention
leas called to this in consequence of the woman herself
bating sworn that she was not discharged until three
nays at tei wards." (Here the witness pointed out a great
mail interline:Moils to the eoltrilliss:otiers.) Witneas
proceeded, that sometimes he h rd been a visiting magis-
trate, and if the jailer's occurrence book were hand. d to
bun, he should certainly expect to find the entries regu-
larly entered as the circumstances occurred. He had
been a % isiting magistrate about eight years, during
abich time, notil within six weeks, he had no idea that
there were any stocks in the jail ; that it had never cattle
to his k imwledge that any prisoners who had misbehaved
themselves were put in trolls, handcuffed, or chained, or
hail blisters applied as punishments; but that the extent
of the punishment amounted only to solitary colifitie-
tarot. He disclaimed even having given such orders
himself, and was not aware that any had ever been made
by his brother magistrates. He bad lately, in the former
investigation, seen the stocks for the women, and also
those for boys, for the first time. (Here the attention of
lire witness was called by the governor's solicitor to the
magistrates' journals, which contained an order signed
by himself.) Witness proceeded—" Here is an order
signed by myself, which 1 will very readily read. I 'find
I made an order, May 18, 1820, to have an unruly boy
confined by the leg, but 1 had tin knowledge whatever at
the time of them being any stocks in the jail. Those
which 1 have lately seen, called the boys' stocks, I con-
sider to be very dangerous, and 1 certainly should not
have ordered boys to be placed therein; and I should
consider a buy put to bond at his work from eight till
note o'clock, and tram two till six, would be a very se-
vere corporeal punishment "
\lrs. 1:-.1)av us was t:,e next witness, who deposed, that
via: she matron—that she had a woman under her care,
trained Sarah Hewitt, who is the mother of a child born
in the jail ; that she was present when Hewitt signed a
petition to the King, for a pardon, in Mr. Hunt's ward,
and woo read over the ssitie to her, and explained the
same previously to her affixing her mark, and in which
petition she had expressly stated that Mr. Bridle, the
governor of the jail, was the father.
he Court here interposed and wished to have the
fact from Sarah herself, as she was still in the
jail ; and she was immediately sent for. Mr. White, a
solicitor of eminence, submitted, on the part of Mr.
Bridle, the jailer, that sire was not competent to be
'worn, inasmuch as she was then a convict under sen-
tence of transportation ; but the commissioners stated
they were sitting for purposes of inquiry, and that they
had power to examine prisoners on oath. Sarah Hewitt
was called in arid examined. She deposed that she had
been in the jail about 4 years ; that The became preg-
nant in the jail, and that about two years after she had
been there she was delivered of a female child ; that in
a late investigation before the magistrates she was not on
her oath, and she had stated the father of the child•waa
the governor, Mr. Bridle, but that such statement was
untrue ; that she was much agitated at the time site did
st ; she was sorry for her having made such a mistake;
and sire now declared Mr. George Illidle, the brother tit
the j.iler, who was at that time a turnkey, to be the fa-
int.+ of the child. Ott being queatioried whether she hail
Lone private cool. fences w lb !Ur. Bridle, the jailer, in
11rs. Davis's, the matron's kitchen, during the late in-
vestigation, and after she had stated her master, Mr.
Bridle, to he the fattier, she replied in the negative.—
Mrs. Davis the maims', was Man called in again, and
stated that Bridle the jailer, and Sagan Hewitt, had
hada private interview in her kitchen, where they re-
tuai.ted together about a quarter nn ail hour ; that billet
the last, mid before the present inquiry, she observed a
ft male prisnoer (A. Court) of the same ward as Hewitt,
deafer a parcel into the hands of NI rs. Cox, the sister of
the jailer, as the woman came through the passage of
ilie jailer's hotise ; that she, as Illdironi, always had the
examination of all letters which might be written by
the female !trimmers, which made her observe this
traietac.l.lll nowt; altrilllvely titan sac otnenvtse would.
Charlotte Scutt, a teitiale iirasoiter, 14
years' traitaportation, ..vs. their ex iiit tied, wino stated
that she, as sire passed lieroliOr ill, jailer's passage rir
was WdlL t.ing a unit to nersell ; that at luck.
till time tier J oler wade a ,iriptiry %%lio it was did sir;
and our I a urg informed it was tile Called her to-
wells Kung he atuuliug Ili the passage ouch slue 111 the
court, it being hard rata at ire 1111 i. the jailer
ordered her to be locked up in solitary continesoent,
when she asked Ills tiorgiveire,s arid promised iievi.r to
attend aµaim ; nett the jailer replied—•' A girl who is
muter such a sentence ought to hate ktrowei
better ;" that a oirtikcy then took her ti gh the ram
to a ,otitAry rtfraciory cell , she was %cry wet at the time,
and shortly afterwards the turnkey brought her mitre
beucluthve, which were damp by being carried through
The rain, aird basil Ilere is tome cloth,' tor
you quite smoking Init." was no fire in the cell;
slit• remaitted there from Saturday till Nloorbiv, wl.eii
Mr. Prittlips, the magiuit.i.., carry• and ordered tier tun
ofciailnieriti t. ;bill spa .c Si tart releastii until Trieboa‘,.
Mr. !hulk told the niagostrate that withal' was pbt