The Sun.
London, England, 1864-09-01 00:00:00

Prisons and Prisoners.

The average number of prisoners in the county and
borough prisons of England and Wales in the year ending
last Michaelmas was 18,806 (nearly 1,000 of them however
only in custody for debt or for military offences), and the
average number of convicts in convict prisons was 8,055.
These persons came from a criminal and suspected class
estimated at above 150,000, and every one of them while in.
prison costs the country between £2O and £3O a year. They
require a prison staff of no less than 3,654 officers in the
convict prisons—one to every:six prisoners on an average—
and one to every eight in the county and borough gaols.
Excluding from the reckoning the debtors and military
prisoners, 129,527 persons were in the county and borough.
prisons of England and Wales in some part of the year,
those who were in gaol more than once in the year being
counted each time. The prison records give but a meagre
description of this army of bad subjects. Oi the 95,000
men, above 60,000 are vaguely styled labourers, and 6,000
more of no occupation ; but others are more distinctly
designated-23,249 are classed as mechanics or skilled work-
men-4,322 factory workers-4,598 soldiers and sailors-
-2,538 shopkeepers and dealers-1,532 shopmen and clerks-
-251 in professional employments-1,164 domestic servants.
Of the 34,487 females, 16,800 are described as of no occu-
pation-9,176 charwomen, noodle women, and labourers--
3,468 domestic) servants-2,596 factory workers-1,162
shopkeepers and dealers-68 shopwo men-872 skilled work-
ers. Fifteen in every 100 of these were natives of Ireland,
and yet in the population generally only three in 100 are
natives of Ireland. Women, it will be observed, are not
very much more than a third of the men in number—but
that women, when criminal, are worse than men seems to be
indicated by the fact that 42 in every 100 of the women in
gaol in the year had been in prison before, but only 32 in 100
of the men. 1,173 of the men, but no less than 2,773 of the
women, had been in prison above ten times before. 8,459
of the prisoners of the year—more than six in every
100—were under 16 years of age ; and doubtless many
of the older criminals commenced their career of crime in
childhood. But the proportion of prisoners under 16 con-
tinues to decrease, yielding to the efforts made to reform
the younger offenders, in 1856 there were 12 per cent of the
whole number, in 1860 8 per cent, in 1863 6' 5 per cent.
The ignorance of the class of the population from which
the mass of these prisoners came is shown by the return
relating to instruction ; 35 in every 104—more than one in
three—could not read or write, and 60 more only imper-
fectly, leaving only five in 100 able to read or write well. But
in convict prisons, where the more skilled criminals are to
be found, the proportion who come in entirely ignorant of
reading and writing is much smaller, and very few leave a
convict prison without having been instructed. A curious
return has been compiled with care relating to the 512 con-
victs in custody in Pentonvillo Prison at the end of 1863;
370 of them, nearly three-fourths, were single men, but 65
of the number living in concubinage. Of their previous
moral and religious status we learn that 302, three in five,
were sober men, and 42 of the rest only occasionally
drunken. More than hall were attendants at public wor-
ship ; 109, ono in five, regulars attendants.

MELANCHOLY DEATH OF A LAD
which°i Tt
1 dl
lady
was .
forenoon a melancholy accident occurred to Mrs.
Elizabeth Winlaw, wife of the Rev. William %Vinlaw, of St
Mary's Church, Preston, Lancashire, by
was instantaneously deprived of life. Mr and Mrs Winlaw
came to Berwick on a visit a im tnight ago, and were resid-
ing with Mr Wiulaw's father, a boottuttke iu high-street.
isihe
do shore, andher
sai
atsehro.irn yiiamwe, ai‘fitiesrswjearndes
On Tuesday the Rev. Mr Winlaw left the house to go to
b
to the Magdalen Fields to meet him.
%tit,
sbn
Navawit t hpa
proceeded
~ :Glereedceeonar
ulLs e
They piorreded to a headland near the Greenses harbour,
from which a footpath leads to the shore, and they were
proceeding down the bank, when Mrs Winlaw lost her
footing and fell over the cliff, falling heavily upon the
rocks beneath. Her companion raised an alarm, and Mr
P.. P. Todd, dancing-master, and Mr John Brown; his son-
in-law, being close at hand, proceeded to the spot, bat found
that the unfortunate lady was dead, Dr. Cahill was also
speedily on the spot, but of course his services were of
avail. Mrs Winlaw had fallen upon her back, her head
striking the rocks, and death was instantaneous. Informa-
tion was at once conveyed to her husband, who was bath-
ing within a few hundred yards of the scene of the unfortu-
nate occurrence. A cab was procured, and the body was
conveyed to the house of her father-in-law, where it awaits
an inquest, which will be held upon it. The melancholy
occurrence caused great gloom in the town, Mr Winlaw's
family being well known and highly respected in the town
and district,—Scotsmen.