The Sun.
London, England, 1869-01-13 00:00:00

A "CASUAL" PRISONER.

A reporter of the Toronto Daily Globe newspaper, in'
fluenced, no doubt, by Mr. Greenwood's doings as an
" amateur casual," managed to get into Toronto gaol dig'
guised as a criminal, and to spend twenty-four hours there
in the character, for the purpose of knowing something of
gaol life from the prisoner's point of view. Holt
he managed to get in is thus aludecl to in
an article in a recent number of the Globe, entitled
" Twenty-four Hours within the Walls of Toronto Gaol.'
" By the aid of a little dust-throwing, and of a warrant of
8 mmitment obtained from an obliging alderman, who we°
quite innocent of the scheme, I on Saturday afternoon
found myself pretty well disguised, and as villanous *
looking customer as need be, at the entrance of the
gaol, in charge of an official, in the character of
`remand." After describing his first sensations on entering,
his first rencontre, and the horrible stench in the corridor,
he followed the crowd of prisoners to a large bare room, in
which there were some forms, with basins and spoong
about two feet apart on the forms. " The prisoners lifted
the basins and spoons, and sat down to eat supper
on oatmeal porridge, without milk, sugar, or molasses.'
`Can't you eat it? whispered my companion. No,' said L
whereon he changed basins, and soon emptied the second.
Supper's over,' shouted a turnkey before rn anyhad finished,
and instantly all had to leave." The experience of that
night explained the stench of the corridor where our
casual and two others passed the night in cold and 'nisei'
The breakfast was a lump of badly-cooked bread, a little
salt, and a pint of water. Sunday school is next described,
and the hypocrisy of some of the vilest prisoner°
in the presence of the teachers, who were of both sexes.
The women teachers appeared more anxious to induce the
prisoners to promise to plead guilty when tried than for
anything else. The dinner of barley soup and bread Iv°
unpalatable to the writer, and long before nanny
had finished the order was given, " Down dishes.''
Most of the prisoners who spoke about themselves blamed
drink for their sufferings, and nearly all of them said they
could not help it, that they wanted moral power. One
said, " Look at me, the husband of a decent wife, the
father of seven children, the son of as well-living a mall el
ever lived, whose heart would break were he to see tee
here; and yet lam heie, and all through drink. l‘fl
God ! My God ! My wife !" And lie went away
wringing his hands. Sunday night came without the
arrival of the reporter's bail bonds, and he had tried to
confess to the governor his real character, so thorough'y.
tired was he of gaol life. The governor said he would
hear what he had to say to-morrow morning, and, write:
this amateur prisoner, " I was herded down stake. h
once more got hold of a pail, entered the corridor,
and passed into a cell, which was kindly vouch"
safed to me without my taking a bath. I asked fel
a little water, but even this small luxury was refused in ge
surly manner, and I shook up my straw as best I could ill
the dark. I lay down with rather a feeling of irritation
at the delay of my bail bonds, but in a few minutes I
heard my 220772 de guerre shouted in the corridor ; my cell
was unlocked, and in a few minutes more I stood in the
pure, fresh air of.heaven, a free man. And if ever I enter'
the precincts of a gaol again, either as a casual or iri
any other capacity, depend upon it it shall be because
can't help it."