The Sun.
London, England, 1853-10-12 00:00:00

BIRTHS IN THE WEEK.

727
648

1,374

HOP INTELLIGENCE.

AboutMaidstone the hop picking is nearly completed.
Throughout the district there is a general complaint
that the yield is exceedingly small ; those grounds that
were expected to produce from 12 cwt. to 15 or 16 cwt.
per acre, returning about 5 cwt. only. There is no
doubt that the duty is still estimated at much too high
a figure. In Mereworth the wet weather has hindered
the hop picking, but it is expected, with few excep-
tions, it will be brought to a close about the end of
this week. The crop, as has been before stated, falls
short of expectation. Mereworth may this year boast
of good quality, which command very high prices in the
market. One grower realised 271. 17s. per hundred
weight on Friday. At Brenchley some planters are fast
drawing to a close in picking. We never experienced
such a good year in regard to quantity and II
the present. We stand far above the aveear:oefratghee
county in respect to crop ; 121. seems to be thegenerally
of our sales of last week. Picking. is
growers
completed in the Canterbury district, but ant°pwresent very
few have been brought into the market,
reckon as certain a much higher prise than be
,s much as 18/.
mer-
chants at present are disposed to v asthet
and from 14/. to
to 201. is talked of for best samples, an
-t extraordinary growths
171. has been realised. Some
neighbourhood of Boughton,
have been produced in the
Chilham, Petham, andhGe dm ersham, both as regards
°latter to the extent of from
quality and quantity;
1.0 to 12 cwt. per acre, tw. bile the sample produced must
command the best price in the market. The immediate
vicinity of Canterbury has not been thus favoured, and
1 the "settlement day ' between employer and
—. employed
...out,a,
has proved one of much difficulty, k 47 Eastern i
Gazette.
MAIDSTONE, Oct. 11.—There are yet a good many
hops to be pulled, and the untoward state of the weather
every day diminishes, in some degree, their quality.
, The complaints of short weight are found to have been
I fully justified, and our Yaldinw and West Farleigh cor-
respondent, a gentleman of great experience, places the
crop at a trifle over half of last year's crop. Our Oran-
brook correspondent states that some of the growers in
his district have realised 141. 10s. per cwt. Our Mere-
Worth correspondent also boasts of the hops grown in
his parish. The duty now is seldom set at more than
130,0001.
W ,
ORCZ.,TER, Oct. B.—This is the first real hop mar-
ket for the season, and 1,500 pockets were picked, but
the prices asked puzzled the trade, who were afraid to
purchase. New hops, in good condition, were offered
at 121. to 131. per cwt., and the average run was 101, to
11/. for New Worcester. Old hops also sold readily at
advanced rates.

Yesterday Mr. W. Payne held a lengthened inquiry
at the Queen's Prison, Southwark, on the body of Wil-
liam Jones, aged 53, an inmate of that prison, to which
place he had been removed by habeas corpus from Win-
chester Gaol about three months ago, and where he died
of fever on Saturday night last.
The principal witness was William Sills Poulton, a
debtor in the Queen's Prison, who said that a person named William Miller, who had been in Winchester
Gaol for 43 years, wrote to him on the 27th of July to
inform him that Jones, the deceased, was coming, and
mentioned the dreadful treatment that both of them
were then receiving. Witness had been there for 12
months before he was removed on the 17th of April to
that prison. During seven months of that time he never
tasted animal food, and no sustenance whatever but
bread and gruel. Witness was in that prison for debt.
It is a gaol for felons as well as for debtors. When a
man first went there he was put into the sheriff's ward,
which is a place for debtors, where they were kept fur
14 days ; but if they did not settle their debt or make
application to the Insolvent Court they were removed to
what was termed the convict prison. It is called the
D. wing, under the felon's gaol. The diet for Sundays
was, for breakfast, one pint of gruel and four ounces of
bread ; for dinner, three ounces of cheese and four ounces
of bread. In the evening the same as for breakfast.
Every day the same for breakfast and supper. Monday
the dinner consisted of four potatoes weighing, perhaps,
half a pound, and four ounces of bread. Tuesday's din-
ner, three ounces of cheese and four ounces of bread.
Wednesday's dinner, the same as on Monday—four po-
tatoes. For Thursday's dinner they had what was
termed a quart of soup and four ounces of bread. Fri-
day's dinner consisted of three ounces of cheese and
four ounces of bread. Saturday they had the same
as on Thursday; they had no meat whatever.
The soup, he understood, was made from the
water in which the felon's beef was boiled.
Witness was not allowed to purchase anything, so that
money was of no use to him. Everthing they received
must come to them through the post, even to a sheet of
paper. Witness used to complain to the surgeon in
consequence of a rupture he was troubled with. He
wished him to get away from the prison, or the diet
would kill him. He had been confined in bed for two
days without tasting food, beatuse he could not touch
the prison diet. He spokelcrthd-rldebr, and Asked him
for a little tea, but be made no reply, and pointed to the
rejected gruel. All .the debtor prisoners there were
kept on the same allowance. The prisoners did not
associate together, as each had a separate cell to sleep in
and a separate yard (20 ft. by 30 ft.) to walk in, When
witness first came to the Queen's Prison he was under
the care of the doctor for several weeks, in consequence
of the treatment he received in Winchester Gaol. He
had several letters from Miller on the subject of his treat-
ment, directed to witness in a different name, as the
governor would not let any of the prisoners correspond
with
there . any person who had previously been a prisoner

In answer to a juror, the witness said he understood
the dietary was regulated by a bye law made by the
visiting justices. He had complained to the board, but
nothing had been done in the matter, and he was soon
after removed to this prison. As soon as he had settled
his debt he should bring an action against the county for
the infamous treatment he had received whilst he was in
Winchester Gaol. He had written to the Secretary of
State, calling his attention to it.
The jury, after a consultation, returned the following
verdict —"That the deceased died from fever, and the
jury are of opinion that the evidence given before them
as to the dietary of the debtors in Winchester Gaol ought
to be inquired into by the Secretary of State."
The coroner said he should send a copy of the verdict
and of the depositions to the Secretary of State, as he
considered, after what had transpired as to the different
gaols throughout England, that Winchester Gaol ought
to be inquired into. It was entirely out of his jurisdic-
tion to inquire as to the dietary of a prison, and the
general treatment in gaols ; but it was a matter that
came specially under the operation of the royal commis-
sion appointed for that purpose.
The verdict was then signed, and the proceedings
terminated.