The Sun.
London, England, 1864-02-24 00:00:00

constructed with a depth of 12 feet for the use of
the commercial shipping. But it will be necessary
in order to get access to the dock to shipping. Sub•
sequently the Admiralty adopted the present
extravagant scheme—that a first-class dock, capable
of accommodating the Warrior, should be con-
structed on the inner side of the north-west basin.
But to get access to this dock, it becomes neces-
sary to deepen the basin from 12 to 30 feet, which,
of course, will entail heavy expense. It is, too, to
be at right angles with the basin, so that a ship in
entering it will have to turn nearly round, thus
producing a confusion that may be better imagined
than described, when a heavy ship some hundreds
of feet in length is sent amongst the crowded mer-
chant shipping. The reek is full of fissures and flaws,
thereby entailing the expense of facing the dock
with masonry, and rendering the Admiralty esti-
mate of £50,000 for deepening the basin and con-
structing the dock simply ridiculous. There is no
detailed plan or estimate for the scheme produ-
cible, and unless it is looked to we shall probably
have a second edition of the affair at ,Alderney,
where the original estimates have been already
exceeded by a very large amount. The additional
vote was absolutely necessary if we did not wish
the whole of the previous outlay to be thrown away.
And after all that has been done there it is more
than questionable it any good has been effected at
all. Holyhead, which might have been made a
splendid harbour, has had its utility greatly im-
paired by its limited extent. We recently had an
instance of this when the Prince Consort was com-
pelled to run over to the Irish coast, being afraid
to risk entering Holyhead. Portland, which is the
best we have yet constructed, would have been far
more efficacious had the southern arm of the
breakwater been carried out from a point further
down the island, and a larger space enclosed; ena-
bling ships to lie under the shelter of the island
itself, and not as at present be exposed to the force
of the south westerly wind blowing across the
Chesil Bank. The French greatly eclipse us in
these matters, not from superior engineering capa-
city, but from the more liberal and enlightened
views of their governing authorities. The public
had better be warned by past experience of
Admiralty bungling, and inquire into this Malta
project a little more closely, If the Government
have committed themselves to the Maltese autho-
rities they had better pay for their mistake and let
the matter end there. It would be far cheaper and
better than undertaking a work of such cost and
importance, under such serious drawbacks, when
the French Creek offering so many superior advan-
tages is lying at their disposal.

Lord SALISBURY last night very properly called al

tention to the convict system. He moved fur a return
of the " number of convicts under penal servitude

confined in gaols other than Government prisons in

1862 and 1863;" also what steps had been taken to
carry out the reconmendations of the C3mmissioE

on Penal Servitude. This last was a very necessary
item in the demand, since nothing is more common
than for a Government to put off inquiry a-ad com-

plaint by instituting a commission, and then not to
attend to the recommendations that. are given.
Lord CARNAIVVON made some observations on the
subject, and truly characterised it as a "monstrous
anomaly" in English justice that heavier offences
often meet higher punishments, and vice versa. It
is well known that a short period at a county gaol

is more stringent than some years of penal servitude

The prisoners invariably prefer the Government
part of the affair to the ordinary gaols. Lord CAR-
/4 ARTON'S remarks on this subject are always well

worthy of attention, both from his lordship having
studied the case in all its bearings, and also for the
enlightened views which he entertains regarding
the question. He quoted a report which proved
that on one occasion the convicts in one prison were
attacked by some disease, and it was the opinion of
medical men that it arose chiefly from the rich-
ness of their food. "In consequence of this the
os-head cheeks were withheld from the soup,
and the men's health improved." This is perfectly
ridiculous, and it is quite out of character that such
luxuries should be provided for men under sentence
of punishment for the commission of heinous offences.
It is actually holding out an encouragement to lazy
and selfish men to get into a place of this sort, where
their appetites may be pampered and their idleness
indulged. The more publicity that is given to these
facts, the better it will be for the public service,
and then, perhaps, the authorities will be shamed
out of their persistence in improper indulgences to
the convicts. This false system of palliation re-
sults in the worse effects, both for the men them-
selves and the society amongst which they are
placed long before their original term is expired.
It is not a fair test of conduet either to judge of
them by their behaviour during their confinement,
when they are thus pampered and coddled. It is
not likely that they will be tempted to rebel against
such mild treatment, or become restless and unman-
ageable when humoured to the last degree, and
every possible device is resorted to, to keep them
quiet and satisfied. If sterner plans were adopted
and more vigorous discipline enforced, then
a better notion might be formed of the (Met
which the penal servitude was bearing on their
characters. As it is, we have the best grounds
for asserting that the men axe made worse during
their period of detention, and come out with re-
newed vigour to prosecute their nefarious under-
takings, Of course there are notable exceptions,
but as a rule it will be found that very little

progress, if any, is made in the reformation of
our criminal population. Lord CARNARVON put
the case very forcibly, when he said that to be
successful, either one plan or another ought to
be adopted, and that the Howe Secretary was
trying too much to take " a scrap of one system
and a scrap of another, until the whole system
adopted became incomprehensible and remarkable."
There is great truth in this, and it would be
well if more heed was paid to this suggestion.
Either to adopt the practice of tickets•of-leave,
coupled with police supervision, or else to throw
the system overboard, and attempt another, is
the advice tendered by Lord CARNARVON, and it
1 certainly seems to be sound. It is evident that
1 what is wanted imperatively at present is a
radical change in our system of penal servitude,
and the question is whether the temporising efforts
and feeble legislation which is now in vogue will
be capable of effecting the desirable and most
necessary alteration. There is too much patching
up of difficulties, and two much dawdling and
hesitation in all the legislation that is brought
forware on the subject, and it is most urgent that
now the case is again one of the chief social dis-
cussions of the day, some lasting and excel-
lent arrangements be made, or eloa all this bicker-
ing and debate Bill result in grievous harm, and
be worse in the end than if matters had rested in
statu quo. The criminals will exult at the ineffi-
cacy of our efforts to control them, and thus an ad-
ditional evil will have been effected. This is the
proper time for those who have objections to state
them, and for those who have suggestions to make
,o bring them forward, or else the oppoitunity will
be lost. The Government are, doubtless, animated
with the best intentions, but they are too timid in
k the measures they adopt. They NO better come