The Sun.
London, England, 1863-07-10 00:00:00

INCREASE.

---
Bills discounted not yet due.... 947.-, millions
Bank notes
Current accounts ...... ...... 24 1-5 „
BOURSE, July
9.—The market continues dill, and
prices have slightly receded, Threes, for the Ae-
caunt, being now at 68f. 55c. Little doing in
Railway Shares, bat up to the present time the
prices of yesterday have been pretty well main-
tained. The market closed as follows:—
Italian Loan 7l 90
Do. end month 72 05
New ditto
Do. end month 72 45
Russian
Austrian
Spanish Threes Si 50
Home Debt

11 per Cents .. 97
Do. end month.... --
3 per Cents
Do. end month 6B 60.
Credit Mohilier..., 1191 2a
On. end mont h 1192 50
Bank Shares 3400
Credit k oneier 1326

igA IL'

'AYS.

Cash. Account.
Orleans lOl5
.. 1016 75
6 50
Northern 995
Nev., ditto ..........
Lyons and isiediteerranean 1028 75 .. 1030
Geneva ............... 472 50 472 50
Southern
Western
eastern ...........
410 .. 412 50
Sardinian
Austrian 452 50 .. 453 75
Loward .
Nor h
th of Spain •
545 545
700 700
Saragossa
Ditto to Barcelona •• • • 370 371

A Tribute to the late Sir Joshua Jebb and
his system of Convict Discipline.
•

Referring to the recently completed Report of the Royal
Commission of Inquiry into the System of Convict
that " the Report" sets at rest at once and
Treat-
ment—an abstract of which has alreßdy appeared in the
columns of fhe Suti—the Cork Reporter observes, in its
popular book on Convict Discipline. Our
issue of Monday,
a Bingle point! of some importance cer-
completely the controversy as to the Rev. Charles Gibson's
statistics in his
Irish conterarorary goes on to remark—" It shows that
to con and
his views as to the discipline of
gentleman to have understated not overstated his case.
And, except on
tainly, it goes
our convict prisons, our treatment, generally, of the

hisisligaobole; ienoned3usdecettlie
proves deserving of the remission by
convict class.
whilec .. undergoing
e are vheirsy
d t
One important principle. which the Commissioners agree
should be left untouched, in our_ existing system, is that of
remitting portions of the punishment to which the convict
sentence.nThy
think the length of the sentence should rot be "unalter-
ably fixed," and 010' declare that no other advantages
ally good effect on the convict, as the hope
produce an equally
of diminishing the term of his incarceration by his own
propriety of
Commissioners of this opinion, as we have no doubt of the
benefit of properly reguleted relaxations and remissions of
punishment, both to the convict and to society.
The Commissioners.
.think
.transportation to Western
Australia should be substituted, in cases of heavy sentences,
for penal servitude. They also suggest that greater en-
couragement should be given to the emigration of English
prisoners, on discharge. i
consider has he extent to
been very
So far, as regards the general question, there remain t.o
be considered the much controverted differences between
the English and Irish systems—the former established by
the late Sir Joshua Jebb whose recent lamented death has
deprived the country of a most able and zealous public
the latter a.modification of it, by Sir Walter
functionary--
Crofton, for which his friends and .admirers have claimed
an amount of credit that, if deserved, would show him to be
one of our highest social benefactors. Th
bed as "ie two " improve-
ments" of Sir Walter may be descrinter-
mediate prisons"—to gradually accustom the convict
to self-control—and " police surveillance,'—after his
discharge,
on " ticket-of-leave.' Mr. Gibson—adopt-
ing Sir Jcshua Jebb's views—was opposed to
both. And, in our notice of his work, we stated that, in
quite established the worthlessness of the
our opinion, he
et intermediate" stage of the Irish discipline. Lusk-farm,
as Mr. Gibson described it,
could only be regarded as a
LI delusion, and the Commissioners report abso-
thoroug
lutely against this part of the Crofton system.
And here, the Cork Reporter goes o n to remark, let us do
justice to the reverend author
of " Life Among Convicts,"
showing
bow much within the truth he was, in the
figures which he was charged with exaggerating. Mr.
Gibson alleged that the per tentage of relapses in the inter-
mediate prisons was far greater than in the ordinary work--
ing convict prisons, being in the former 13 per cent., in
the latter only 81 per cent. From the Commissioners' Re-
port it appears that the ordinary prisons from 1857 to 1863
give 7.1 per cent. of relapses, while Smithfield and Lusk,
the "intermediates," give 18 3 per cent. Nor is this all.
In 1862 these establishments showed over 21 per cent.
while the English prisons, on Sir Joshua Jebb's
of relapses,
system, gave only 6.5 per cent. After this, the less said
about the intermediate system the better.
As to the question of police surveillance, the one part
of the Irish plan approved of, only time perhaps can decide
as to its real utility. The fax centage of relapses as above
recorded, is not calculated to :thew its great advantage, And
the general decrease in Irish crime, as the Commissioners
show, has bad no connexion with it or with the Croftonian
arrangements, in any way. That decrease began before
Sir Walter bad at all appeared on the scene. Still we are
not ready absolutely to contend that the surveillance)
should not be tried in England, as well as here,
and its results considered. We cannot conclude
without observin.g that the report seems fully to justify
the high encomiums passed on Sir Joshua Jebb, and
should somewhat confound those who have sought to de-
tract from his merits, in the hope of thereby adding to Sir
Walter Crofton 's fame. The former is now no more, and
praise or blame can affect him nothing. But those who
respect his memory will, in the report of the Commissioners'
and ably administered
find the system which he introduced
vindicated satisfactorily from the reproaches h •
hastily or reck-
lessly cast on it. -