The Sun.
London, England, 1856-12-09 00:00:00

NORTHERN CIRCUIT.- LIVERPOOL, DEC. 8.

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This morning the business of the Assizes commenced
before Mr. Baron Alderson and Mr. Serjeant Cbannell,
the former of whom presided in the Crown Court, and
the latter in a second criminal court. Out of a calendar
of 105 prisoners there are no less than eleven ticket-ol•
leave men for trial. On the present ticket-of-leave
system hie-lordship made the following observations
Gentlemen, there is in the calendar a class of cases
which I am sorry to see are common throughout Eng-
land—cases of what they call garotte robberies—where
people are subjected to considerable violence, and rob-
bed, generally speaking, by two or three together, like
the Thugs of India. These are cases in which, if brought
before you, you will find bills ; and I will, to the ,extent
of my power, punish the prisoners with the greatest
severity, for the protection of society. Gentlemen,
those cases having been disposed of, you will find a good
many—l don't know how many cases—in which peoples
have been pardoned, so to speak, and come back into
the country with what is called at present a ticket-of-
leave, which certainly seems to me —in its effects I
mean—an unwise arrangement. They are let loose, you
see, upon society ; and the reason, the cause of it is,
that it is impos,ible to keep persons for so long a time
48 they were usually transported for before in this
country. People get tired ; and then the chaplains of
the gaols become extremely attentive ; the offender
turns up the white of his eyes, and pretends to
be a converted sinner. The chaplain considers him-
self complimented in the effect of his administration,
and recommends him to be set free. A pardon is
given, which is nothing but an incentive, and then
you have the result in a greater number of crimes com-
mitted by these people who are not really reformed, but
pretend to be so for the purpose of escaping punishment.
Gentlemen, this arises from the medium of our having
active but I cannot help think not very judicious phi-
lanthropists, who have been attempting to abolish the
punishment of transportation altogether. Now, tha;;
transportation was subject to ceeriderable evil, and re-
quired considerable reformation, was perfectly true ;
but it is, after ali, the best punishment, for the country
which inflicts it, and the criminal who receives it—for
I believe it was perfectly well known that the persons
who recovered a good name, and lived a decent and
respectable life, formed a large per tentage of the total
sent out ; while of those who remain in this country,
and who, after a time, are turned adrift, there is a very
small, if not an infinitesimal per tentage only. I recol-
lect a few years ago visiting the Millbank Penitentiary,
in London, where they receive, and only receive, I be-
lieve, persons destined to transportation. I went over
it with the late Rev. Mr. Whitmore Russell, a gentleman
of considerable eminence, and who had paid great atten-
tion to criminal statistics. He showed me over the
gaol, and I went ever it, there being at -the time 500,
600, or 700 prisoners therein ; and he had been there
doing his duty actively and energetically for 15 or 16
years. After I had seen the 'whole gaol, and observed'

the whole means by which penitence and reform iee'rgtfel
be induced, I said to Mr. Whitmore Russell, "Pray,
here 3 yen have been here for 15 or 16 years, and how
many people do yeti think you have reformed in those 15
or 16 years out of the 700 eenSrally here r Now what do
you think was his answer ? "Possibly two ; t am sure of
one." Now that was the experience of a gentleman ite
the greatest penitentiary in London, of a class of persons
subject to transportation, but almost impassible here of
reformation ; but if those persons were sent abroad, sent
to the colonies, and turned out in the colonies after
their period of transportation had elapsed, perhaps
subjecting them to the Beretta of ticket-of-leave,
which, though very objectionable here, is not so there, I
think that 40 or 50 per cent, would be reformed, for such
has been the case. I say, therefore, it is really a hu-
mane proceeding to transport persons with these means
of redemption before them, rather than, by keeping them
in this country, to cut of all chances of redemption.
Surely that is more humane and wise. Ido not doubt
what answer you would give me. What is a man to do
after you have subjected him to a long series of impri-
sonment in this country ? What is he to do ? You
turn him out with a ticket-of-leave ? I will presume he
has behaved well in gaol, lecaause persons who cannot
behave ill are very apt to behave well. Then what are
they to do ? Would you take them into your employ-
ment ? It would be an act of the greatest philanthropy,
and at the hazard of your own comfort in your homes,
and of your servants, who would not associate with that
description of persons. They cannot obtain employ-
ment ; what are they to do ? You turn them among
their old associates. They have the cleverness which
belongs to that description of persons, and they place
themselves at the head of some new gang. Then evil
arises. The men are punished perhaps for a second
time, and it ends probably in death. Now that is the
fact. But turn him out in a colony where the capital
of the country requires an additional quantity of labour ;
the residents would take those persons more readily and
could avoid them with greater ease; they would be rid
of their old associates in England, and would go into a
new place, where they might distinguish themselves, as
they are really capable of doing, by their talents and
conduct ; and they have often recovered themselves alto-
gether, and become good men. Then why should we
abolish instead of reforming transportation ? This sys-
tem is a better one than the other. It is given in
exchange for a great good, though that great
good is accompanied by some evil, no doubt ; and
the difficulty is to obtain a place where settlements
may be made. A good deal of that has arisen from
the real want of a good understanding and sense
on the part of this country in former times. I
believe no reason has been given which shows
that we ought to transport the incorrigible criminals,
and try and separate them from one another previously in
reformatory prisons where they could obtain instruction.
You cannot enter into the minds of primers ; you can-
not say this is a hypocritical man ; but you can teach a
man to read and write accounts. His hypocrisy cannot
extend to that. You may teach him an tw trade, or two
trades. I have seen at Pentonville pet/31e taught two
trades. Well, then, if you send a man out capable of
reading and writing accounts, and of ollowing some
trade in the colony to which you send hin, you send him
out a useful colonist, if you do not send iim out a good
colonist altogether—not that I would negect the whole-
some necessity of affording him religion! teaching. I
know that you may be deceived as to them ; it is true
you cannot be deceived as to the others because you
have the test open to you, and you have the advantage
of the others ; the undoubted advantaie of having
learned a trade. All that can be done. Ul those may
be taught at least outward decency of conluct, and may
deserve to be classed among the corrigible iriminals, and
those criminals, if you send them abroad— with the
ticket of leave if you will, when you send teem out—are
good colonists, being well trained, and ablieo distinguish
themselves by trade when they get out. you send them
out as useful colonists, and with the cbanceef being good
men, and with God's blessing they may be slivered from
the temptation to do evil. That is the bet chance you
.can give them for the purpose of removing
teem from the
state in which they originally stood. No cenbt that is
a great chance. With respect to your incorigibles, you
ought to keep them at home. We have re right to ire
flirt on the colonies people who are incep:ble of being
reformed in any country at all. Your corrigele criminals
being taught to be useful colonists, you bare a right to
send abroad, and you will have no difficuly in getting
colonies to receive them. The objection beere was that
we accumulated them in such numbers in me unfortu-
nate colony that the colonists could not bee. with them
any longer ; for they became part of to colonists
themselves, and instead of being such merles the colo-
nists could depend on as servants, they wee the worst
of characters. That was the reason why to colonists
rebelled, se to speak. Well then, I think here ought
to be this distinction. I cannot help thinking when you
have reformed the criminal as much as poeible in the
gaol, and when you transport him, you shoud take care
as much as possible to send his wife and
.lanily with
.
him. It ought to be a burden upon n a certain
fixed amount, for carrying out with him hi wife and
children ; and within a limited period after ariyal in the
colony the expense of conveying them should be repaid
by the criminal. If he is willing to pledgeeimself to
that, you ought to assist him, for it is one 0 the best
ways of reclaiming a man, when you bring hia back to
what may be called his domestic duties and him domestic
obligations. Gentlemen, I did not intend le occupy
your time so long, but I wish your minds to bemeployed
upon the consideration of these subjects. 'hey are
much at heart with me ; I hope they will beat heart
with you ; and I am sure if I have the conouelmce and
the confidence in this matter of the kind and intelligentpeople of the country—amongst whom you fgere so
conspicuously—we shall have some chance of coning to
a rigat conclusion upon this matter. We wish o have
a report on the subject, as far as it extends t, adult
criminals. The young criminals are to be refolned by
reformatory schools, which are really doing great ervice,
and I don't wish to make any alteration in that espect.
I speak of the adults, for whom the establishmat of a
right system of transportation would be the geatest
blessing that could be conferred upon them.
The grand jury then retired to the coneideraton of
the various bills of indictment.