The Sun.
London, England, 1865-02-24 00:00:00

Capital Punishment within Gaols.

Mr. Hibbert, Mr. Bonham Carter, and Viscount
Enfield have brought in a bill to provide for the
carrying out of capital punishment within gaols.
This bill proposes to enact

" 1. The sentence of. death to be executed on a prisoner
condemned to death, after the passing of this act, shall be
carried into effect within the walls of the gaol in which
the prisoner shall be confined immediately previous to his
execution.

" 2. The sheriff, the gaoler, chaplain for other officiating
minister), and surgeon of the gaol, and such other officers
of the gaol as the sheriff may require, shall be present at
every such execution ; and any justices of the peace who
may desire to attend and such other persons as the sheriff
may think fit may be present at every such execution.
"3. So soon as the sentence of death shall have been
duly carried into effect the surgeon shall sign a certificate in
the form set forth in schedule Ato this act annexed, and
the sheriff, gaoler, and chaplain (or other officiating minis-
ter) shall sign, and such of the other persons present as
think fit may sign, a declaration according to the form set,
forth in schedule B to this Act annexed.

"4. The coroner of the district wherein any such sen-
tence of death shall have been carried into effect shall,
within 12 hours next alter such execution, hold an inquest
on the body of the prisoner so executed, and the jury at
such inquest shall inquire and find whether the sentence of
death was duly carried into effect on the prisoner condemned
to death, but in no case shall any officer of the gaol or any
prisoner confined in the gaol be a juror on such inquest.
" 5. Any person who shall sign any such certificate or
declaration, knowing the same to be false, shall be guilty of
a misdemeanour.

" 6. Printed copies of such certificate and declaration, and
of the inquisition of the jury, shall be forthwith exhibited
on or near to the principal entrance to the gaol ; and every
such certificate, declaration, and inquisition shall, as soon
as convenient, be transmitted by the sheriffs to the Secre-
tary of State for the Home Department
"7. The following words shall in this act have the fol-
lowing meanings Sheriff' shall mean and include the
sheriff, undersherjff, or other legal competent deputy, for
the county, city, or place in which the gaol is situate
Gaoler' shall mean the governor, keeper, or other chief
officer of the gaol. ' Justices of the peace' shall mean jus-
tices of the peace acting for the county, city, or borough or
place in which the gaol is situate.
" SCHEDULE A.

"I, A. 8., being the surgeon in attendance at the execu-
tion of C.D., at the gaol of do hereby certify

that I this day witnessed the execution of the said C. D. at
the said gaol, and that the said C. D. was hanged by the
neck until dead.

" Given under my hand, this day of , A.D.,
at the gaol of ,in the county of •
" SCHEDULE B.
"We do hereby declare that we were this day present at
the gaol of , when the sentence of death was duly carried
into effect on C. D., a prisoner in the said gaol condemned
to death.

, at the gaol of

"Dated this day of , A.D.
,in the county of .
" , Sheriff; , Chaplain (or other officiating mini-
ster); , Gaoler; Justices, and others."