The Sun.
London, England, 1846-08-11 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

HOUSE OF COMMONS, August 10.
(Continued from our Afternoon Ejition of yesterday.)
Mr. MUNTZ presented a petition from Birmingham, in
favour of the Small Debts Bill, with the exception of clause 85.
Mr. WILLIAMS presented a petition against carrying out
the punishment of death against the marine recently con-
demned to death for striking his superior officer.
FLOGGING IN THE ARMY.
Mr. T. S. DUNCOMBE moved for a return of persons
flogged in the army in Great Britain and Ireland, in the years
1845 and 1846' to the end of July, specifying-1. The offence.
2. The regiment, the place of station, the time. 3. The sen-
tence. 4. The order for its execution. 5. Whether the trials
were open to the public, or only open to the regiment, or with
closed doors. tri. The number of lashes inflicted, and the
day. 7. How soon after punishment the man was able to re-
turn to his duty, and at what place he was then quartered. 8.
Whether death has followed within twelve months of the
flogging, and the date of such death. 9. Whether the punish-
ment was inflicted, if in cavalry regiments, by the trumpeter or
farrier ; if in infantry regiments, by the privates or drummers,
and with what instrument. 10. Copies of the surgeon's mi-
nutes of all such punishments, and any subsequent observations
on their consequences.—Agreed to.
POOR-LAW COMMISSIONERS.
Mr. HUME gave notice that he would move a series of re-
solutions on Thursday next in reference to the conduct of the
Poor-law Commissioners.

The 110 N. MEMBER also moved for a copy of the existing
tariff in the island of Ceylon, stating the name of every article
imported and exported, the rate of duty charged, and the
amount of duty received on each article ; also, the aggregate
amount of revenue, distinguishing that on imparts and ex-
ports in each cf the three years 1642, 1843, and 1844.
Agreed to.
IMPROVEMENT OF TIIE SHANNON.
Mr. F. FRENCH wished to ask a question of the Hon.
Member for Sheffield (Mr. Ward) in reference to the im-
provement of the river Shannon. It was whether he would
have any objection to the production of the instructions given
to the Commissioners of Publia Works, as to whether it was or
was not expedient for them to proceed with the improvement
of the river till such time as the Government had decided
whether they were willing or not to allow the improvements
suggested to take place?
Mr. WARD said, as the matter on which information was
sought did not strictly come within his jurisdiction he would
consult with the proper parties, and give an answer to-morrow
or the next day.
Mr. HUME moved for a table of the number of articles im-
ported, in classes, in the year 1844, showing the number of
articles imported free ; the number producing from 100'. to
4991. ; the number producing from 500/. to 999/. ; the num-
ber producing from 1,000/. to 4,9991. ; the number producing
from 5,0001. to 50,000/. ; the number producing above
50,0001. ; and the total amount of duty received from each
class, and the aggregate amount of all the classes. A similar
return of exports, in classes.—Agreed to.
AIILLBANK PRISON.

On the motion for the order of the day for a Committee of
Supply being read,
11r. T. S. DUNCOMBE rose to move for a Select Com-
mittee to inquire into the treatment of prisoners confined since
1843 in the Alillbank prison, as well as into the conduct of the
Governor and officers thereof, and to report their opinion,
with the evidence to the House. The Honourable Gen-
tleman commenced by a review of his previous proceedings
in relation to this prison, and complaining of the way in which
the Government had met his proposition for inquiry. His
report on that occasion, which in the main was correct, though
not in all its details, had b- en cut out of the Times newspaper,
and hawked about the Milbank prison, with the object of
getting up a counter-statement, in order to meet the allegations
he had made. Instead of going in this underhand way to work,
they ought to have at once instituted a full and satisfactory
inquiry into the whole mode in which that establishment was
conducted. Cases of cruelty and flogging of the severest
character had been alleged against the officers of the prison,
and as yet no step had been made to meet the charges. Any
attempt on the part of the officers to inflict corporal punish-
ment for the offence far which the two men to whom he re-
ferred cn the previous occasion had been flogged was illegal.
By referring to the Act of Parliament on which the institution
was founded, they would find that if a man attempted to as-
sault the governor, he was to be prosecuted in the usual way
for the offence, and might be punished with two years' impri-
sonment, or with flogging, as the Court might direct. It was
not, then-fore, in the bands of the officers of the prison
that the punishment was placed, but in the Court before
whom the prisoner was tried. Besides, the cat w ith which
Bunyon and the other man were flogged was illegal. Why
noggin.' in the army was mercy itself compared to being
flogged' with such a cat. He had a pattern of the cat, which
contained enormous knots, and he was informed that there
never was a more disgusting scene than when Bunyon was
flogged with it. The other man, Cotterel, received sixty
lashes from the same cat, and he, having been formerly a
soldier, declared that he had received 150 lashes when in the
army, but that the flogging was a joke to that which he re-
ceived at Alillbank. Instead of being then taken to the
infirmary, he was taken to his prison. He (Mr. Duncombe)
considered such conduct was cruel in the extreme. Mr.
Baker, in his second petition, referred to these com-
plaints. The chaplain himself said that the sentence was a very
severe one. The governor admitted that he put these boys
in question upon bread and water for seven days. Then, as to
suicides; there had been sixteen attempts at suicide in the
prison during the last three years, and four had succeeded in
putting an end to their existence—making twenty altogether.
All this, no doubt, resulted from the cruel treatment of
the governor. The prisoners at Millbank amounted to
1,000, and it was said that four suicides out of such
a number was not extraordinary ; but he
contended that, considering the inmates of the prison had no
facilties for self-murder afforded to them, the number was most
extraordinary. The system of treatment of criminals then
was most vicious and cruel, when it compelled them to seek for
death as a refuge. Then, again, in consequence of the un-
healthiness of the prison, and the bad food on which the in-
mates were fed, the cases of death were innumer-
able. The medical gentlemen admitted that fact.
Within the last three years 300 of the inmates
of Millbank had to be removed to a more healthy
situation and fort}-eight of them had died. The inquests
that were held on these persons he asserted were not full and
fair inquiries into the causes of these deaths. Both coroners
and jurors foiled to do their duty ; they had not recorded it as
their opinton that the parties on whose bodies they sat had
been actually murdered by the inhuman treatment of the
governor at the prison in question. In conclusion,
he would merely remark that if he had not on
a former occasion, when he brought this subject
under the attention of the House, made out a
good case, he had at least done so now. What the Govern-
ment intended to do in reference to this question he knew not,
but he could say, in answer to the objection that the Right
Honourable Baronet the Secretary of State for the
Horne Department had made on a previous occasion,
that that gentleman had a complete power of controlling the
conduct of the governors of prisons. The House of Commons,
he felt confident, would demand a reform of the present
abuses in our prisons.—(Hear, hear.) They had
at length penetrated the walls of Somerset House,
and found out the black doings perpetrated there by the Poor-
law Commissioners, and so it would be with regard to the
governors of our prisons. He hoped that the Right Hon.
Baronet the Secretary of State for the Home
Department would not object to the appointment
of the Committee, which should not hold its sittings, as had
been previously done, withinthe precincts of the prison, because
the inmates would, whilst in the presence of the governor, be
too much influenced from fear to state the whole truth. The
Hon. Member concluded by moving the appointment of a Select
Committee of the House to inquire- into the abuses he had
stated.

Mr. WILLIAMS gladly seconded the resolution of the
Honourable Member for Finsbury. He felt confident that
a Committee of the House would be a much better tribunal
than any commission which they could appoint. As the House
was aware, scarcely any of their commissions had failed
to give satisfaction. With regard to the abuses, he
contended that it was the duty of her Majesty's Go-
♦ernment to show a most anxious wish on their part to remedy
them by agreeing to a Committee of the House, with
a view of making a full inquiry into, and ulti-
mately removing them. Notwithstanding the unhealthiness
of the prison at Millbank, and the coarse and
meagre fare allowed to the inmates. That prison cost this
country no less a sum than a million pounds sterling per
annum. He hoped, in conclusion, that the Government and
the House would agree to the motion.

The SPEAKER having put the question,
Sir GEORGE GREY said that the inquiries which had
been made into the conduct of the governor of the prison in
question since the matter was last mooted in the House had
not been completed, and that was the reason why a com-
plete report had not been presented by him to the House.
He admitted, with the Hen. Member for Finsbury, that it
was most painful to see the unseemly disputes that were at
present taking place between the Governor of Milbank and
the gentlemen who had been appointed to investigate into the
alleged abuses. He requested the House on the last occasion
when this question was before the House to suspend their
judgment until a full report of the whole case was before them,
and he had now to make the same request. He must certainly
admit that after the rassertion of the Hon. Member,
to the effect that he could prove his charges, a
further inquiry had become indispensable.—(Hear, hear.)
Under the general powers vested in the Crown with regard to
the inspection of prisons, he must advise the Crown to issue a
Commission for the purpose of making inquiry into the charges.
This would be a better course than appointing a Committee of
that House. This being the case, he would abstain from re-
ferring to the charges made in the petition. He did not, how-
ever, think that the charges against the governor were borne
out, and he thought that the investigation, if the Commission
was granted, would fully prove the falsehood of the imputations.
He hoped that the result of the Commission would be equally
satisfactory to all parties.
Mr. T. DUNCOMBE would now withdraw his motion, and
in doing so he hoped that the Commission would be conducted
in such a manner as to give fair play to all parties. If not,
he would feel it to be his duty to bring the matter again be-
fore the House.