The Sun.
London, England, 1853-11-28 00:00:00

CITY OF LONDON COMMISSION.

The Royal Commissioners re-assembled at twelve o'clock
on Friday, in the Privy Council Chamber, and continued
their investigations into the state of the City corporation.
Commissioners present—the Right Hon. Mr. Labouchere,
Sir J. Patteson, and Mr. Cornewall Lewis.
The first witness examined was
Captain Williams, one of the Government prison inspec-
tors, who stated that he had filled that situation for about
18 years. He had had the charge of the home district now
for more than the last six years. The City prisons came
under his jurisdiction, and he had, therefore, been enabled
to form an opinion of the manner in which they were con-
ducted. He had inspected them very regularly.
The Chairman—What is your impression of the manner
in which the City prisons are conducted ?
Captain Williams—l will first state that the prisons
under the jurisdiction of the city of London are as fol-
lows :—Newgate, which is the county gaol for Middlesex,
and the gaol for the city of London ; the New City
Prison at Holloway, which is the House of Correction
for the city of London ; the City Bridewell, which belongs
to the Bridewell Hospital, but to which the aldermen
have the right of committing in conjunction with the
chamberlain, and (as I have latterly understood) with the,
comptroller of the City lands ; and there is also a debtors'
, which is now prison in Whitecross-street, for London and Middlesex,
and also the Borough Compter,
dis-
used, but which was lately occupied solely by female pri-
soners who had been removed there from the Giltspur-
s thet rt)etm
nedo Compter, ttehre tar
, oseirengy of State as
to some doubts having arisen in
to the power of the
commit to the latter prison. The whole
ocifttyhmesafstrasorss, towih the exception of the House of Cor-
rection at Holloway, are within the limits of the City. A
very extraordinary power is given to the city of London
under statute ; because, under the 4th of Geo. IV., cap.
64, the Court of Aldermen are constituted a court of slier-
ter sessions at all times for prison purposes. This act
gives a power which ought never to have been given to the
city of London, viz., the power of excluding strangers
from the court of quarter sessions, which is not possessed
at any other court of quarter sessions. This power the
Court of Aldermen exercise at times, and when the sub-
ject of the New City Prison was before them, I attended
there myself, but, the standing order having been sus-
pended, I was excluded with all other strangers, and the
same practice may be resorted to when superannuations to
officers are discussed ; whereas, but for the clause in the
act to which I have referred, the business would neces-
sarily take place in a public court of quarter sessions.
Mr. C. Lewis—Do the aldermen vote pensions and
allowances ?
Captain Williams—They have the power to do so under
statute, but I am not aware of a case in which it has been
exercised. I know, however, that they have not adhered
to the provisions of the act in one instance. In the case of
a late superannuation, or rather pension, to the governor
of the late Giltspur-street Compter, the act of Parliament
was not adhered to. Why it was not, I am unable to
explain.
Mr. C. Lewis—Was the decision upon which that grant
was made come to in one of the courts you have described
—that is, with closed doors, the public being excluded ?
Captain Williams—l understand that it was, but I can-
not positively state. It was done upon a recommendation
from the gaol committee, which is composed of the Lord
Mayor and the aldermen, and that committee reports to
the Court of Aldermen.
The Chairman—Are there no members of the Court of
Common Council on the gaol committee ?
Captain Williams -No • it-is composed exclusively from
the Court of Aldermen. The pensions granted in the case
in question, I believe. amounted to 5001. a-year.
The Chairman—What do you think can be the object of
excluding the public on the occasions to which you have
referred ?
Captain Williams—l have not the least idea. I only
know that I attended as a mere spectator, and was ex-
cluded. I know that any alderman can move the suspen-
sion of the standing orders and shut out the public.
The Chairman—But must not any resolutions to which
the aldermen come for the spending of •money be after-
wards made public ?
Captain Williams—l do not know. I have seen no notice
of any such resolution in the newspapers, and I generally
pay attention to such things. I now come to the subject
of the management of the City prisons by the Court of
Aldermen, anu my belief is that there are no prisons in
existence where the visitations are so well kept up as in
those of the City. The general man gement of the prisons
reflects very great credit on them, and has done so espe-
cially of late years, since I have been connected with the
district. The new prison at Holloway is managed in such
a way as will make it always the pattern prison of the
country.
The Chairman—By whom is the visitation made?
Captain Williams—By the aldermen who are the visiting
justices on the rota. The duty is exceedingly w ell perfor med,
and, perhaps, the visitations are more frequent in the City
than they are anywhere else. But with regard to the gaol
of Newgate itself, the construction of the building is such
as renders it totally impossible, even as a well-regulated
prison, to do anything satisfactory with it. It is without
exception a complete mass of quarried stone, without any
order or arrangement, and nothing can ever make it a good
prison. It was built in 1780, shortly after the riots, and,
perhaps, it has the most imposing exterior to be found,
and that, indeed, may have been of some use in deterring
from crime ; but it has the very worst interior. It is,
however, exceedingly clean.
Mr. C. Lewis—You mean that the only remedy is the
entire abandonment of Newgate, and construction of a
new prison ?
Captain Williams—My opinion is that the House of
Correction at Holloway is most admirably situated. It
has many unoccupied cells, and is infinitely too large for
the City. The prisoners in Newgate could be advantage-
ously transferred there, and then the City would be able
to build ample courts on the present site of Newgate.
During the intervals between the sittings of the Central
Criminal Court there are scarcely any prisoners in New-
gate, and especially since the business of the Middlesex
Sessions has increased, before Mr. Sergeant Adams, the
labours of the Central Criminal Court have been much
diminished, which circumstance would render the removal
from Newgate to Holloway much more easy than it other-
wise would be. At present none but convicted prisoners
are in Holloway New Prison. This prison has been open
about a year and a half. It was built at the exclusive
expense of the City, and it is one of the most convenient
prisons I know of, and reflects great credit on the archi-
tect. One reason for there being so many unoccupied cells
in Holloway Prison is partly because of the decrease of
crime. The salaries of the officers of Newgate Prison are
very enormous, amounting to 3,9531. annually, besides fees
and emoluments. They are fixed by the Court of Alder-
men. lam well acquainted with the general scale of pri-
son salaries throughout the country, and the salaries at
Newgate are far too large, especially for the small number
of prisoners. The keeper has a salary of 7001., and 351. of
other emoluments. The chaplain receives 5001. a year, be-
sides various other curious allowances. The cost per annum
of the maintenance of each prisoner in Newgate is 391. 3s.
2d., but in other prisons 201. or even as low as 181. is the
average. The excessive cost at Newgate is owing to the
large salaries paid, and the small number of prisoners con-
fined there. The condition of the prisoners in Newgate is
not better than that of the inmates of other prisons. There
are large bequests and charitable funds connected with
Newgate Prison, which are increased by voluntary dona-
tions from various parties, in addition to which the sheriff
makes an annual contribution. These funds include
8,1001. of Three per Cent. Stock, 2,0001. of Three-and-a-
Quarter per Cents., and 1,0001. of Reduced Annuities.
They are applied for the benefit of prisoners who have been
tried and acquitted ; and also for the advantage of con-
victed prisoners who have undergone sentences of impri-
sonment, whose wants are supplied, and they are often as-
sisted to emigrate. In short, these charity funds are well
and liberally administered. I come next to the City Bride-
well, situated in Bridge-street, Blackfriars, and which is
an appurtenance of Bridewell Hospital. It is one of the
most inconvenient and ill-arranged prisons that I ever saw,
and I may add that it is a most useless one. The prisoners
sent to that prison are generally of the class of vagrants,
who are committed by the chamberlain, and, as I now un-
derstand, also by the comptroller of the City lands. Both
of these officers have also the power of committing City ap-
prentices to the Bridewell Prison in criminal cases. These
cases of apprentices- -who are both boys and girls—
generally number about ten per annum. and the prac-
tice of sending them to such a prison as the Bridewell,
whore the vagrants are confined, is very prejudicial to their
reformation. I believe, however, that there is now a dis-
position on the part of the governors of the city of Bride-
well to place this jurisdiction in abeyance, because it is
most injurious to the boys. I have recommended them to
send the boys and girls to the House of Occupation, which
chart
is most excellent institution, attached to Bethlehem
Hospital. The Bridewell Prison cannot be made a useful
leased'i t°
establishment ; and if the governors are obliged by their
maintain it as a prison, the sooner they are ro-
of
r. from that obligation the better. The present cost
confined there yisear
aveTagt Zs. in the Bridewell Hospital Prison actually
have already stated and the average number of prisoners
only 30. The Giltspur-street Prison, I
also, is
not has been abandoned, and the Borough
to the House of CorrencotY°
Compter,
used, all the prisoners being sent
the debtors' prison for ion at Holloway. I come next to
and ondon and Middlesex, which was
ate.therew is scarcely atepriitsos
erected in 1812 ;
aalraanstgement ; but I believe it is exceed-
ingly construction
nieti Englandon
tnmernsaonaablged as to discipline and visitation, and the
distinct
Bypri sea:
awctithofinoietoserlgfe
prison has a series of
•es of four di •
lifw:nroghe'siliyecinht`stvie„,isenlolivernor is a very humane
an discreet man. This
There were formerly three old debtors' prisons in London,
viz., Ludgate, Poultry, and the Giltspur-street Compter,
into which debtors were received.
111. the prison
in Whitecross-street was ordered to be
divided into four compartments • Now the whole four
are amalgamated, with the exception of the prison for
the women, who are all placed together. There are
amount, and realise from 1 600/ +-
charities connected with these prisons which are ex-
ceedingly large in .
re distrib ted greatly
creased. These charitable funds a u for the
belonging to the Ludgate and
1,7001. a year—a sum which is likely soon to be v• ise
advantage of the prisoners
the Giltspur-street divisions ; but the Middlesex prisoners,
who are by far the most numerous proportion of the f
these funds. Besides
in-
mates, are excluded from the benefit o
the other bequests, there are likewise
' many gifts in kind
made in behalf of the prisoners ; and e
in-
stance is a gift of thirty twopenny loaves, remarkable
s,
which is still
made every month, for the prisoners of Ludgate-ward, as
kind are often very inconvenient, and if an act were p _
a bequest from the famous Nell Gwynne. These giftssein
d
as
allowing them to be commuted for a sum
would be much more advantageous.
The Chairman—Do you think the existence of these
prison charities is beneficial? of money, they
Captain Williams—That is very doubtful. In my own
experience I have known that where there are large chari-
ties of this nature, low practitioners will procure the im-
prisonment of persons for the mere sake of getting their
costs. That the benefit, however, which arises from these
charities far exceeds the abuses to which they give rise, I
have not the least doubt. Ido not, therefore, go so far as
to say that the charities ought not to exist, but I think
that where such large sums as 1,600/. or 1,7001. a year are
distributed over so small a surface, they are liable to ex-
treme abuse ; and I do not think that the administration
of such a fund ought to be entrusted, as it is now, to any
prison-keeper, however trustworthy or conscientious he
may be. These gifts are very frequent among the pH-
' sons of. the country. They were often given during
Catholic times,
when
lietvhee
they
vs le
niooltisehseeexnissteo dn;umbieit.
since that period
rous. If these bequests to prisoners were properly
regnlated.,es do
n t wing not think there could be abetter
mode of
charity, but I believe they were most
commonly made in times when the state of the prisons was
infinitely worse than it is in
Ile present day. With re-
gard to the magisterial services
duties would be
satisfied that one stipendiary magistrateofthe city, I am quite
capable
of transacting the whole of the l
the appointment
present connected
n would
with both of the city police-courts ; a
of a stipendiary magistrate for the city v
opinion, he one of the greatest boons that ceuapdo'sstbnlymbye
conferred on the inhabitants.
Mr. Martin Pratt examined—l am Secretary to the