The Sun.
London, England, 1867-12-05 00:00:00

THE SUN, LON Dory. THURSDAY EVENING, DECEMBER 5, 1.30.

ment descriptive of the attitude the Government
assumed towards the Upper House ; but, unfortu-
nately, either from indifference or prejudice, much
attention was not given to the matter. Several of
the proposed amendments were rejected, and the
clause was not carried, which gave the EMPEROR
the power of decision in doubtful cases between the
Reichsrath and the Diet. It, will, however, take
time to inaugurate any decisive changes, and there
is no occasion to despair of success because at first
the way is difficult and the task tiresome. We may
fairly say that by this time the worst has been got
over, and the road pretty clear before the reforming
spirit of Austria. They are the more to be ad-
mired because they started under great disadvan-
tages, and with the prestige of the country destroyed
by the disastrous war which had taken place. The
rapid progress which Austria has made during the
last year or two has has afforded a proof that no one
need ever despair, and that nations as well as indi-
viduals can sometimes retrieve their position if they
sot out determined to do so, and are not dismayed,
by difficulties. The sympathies of this country will
be with the Austrians in their zealous endeavour to
go forward in civilisation and progress, and Prussia
may now find out that she has grasped the shadow
instead of the substance, while her rival has in
reality approached nearer to the mark.

Troia is one important particular in which it
seems that we cannot too soon or too completely
Americanise our institutions. Our prisons, which
are now such a grievous source of complaint
both from ratepayers and philanthropists, might
be turned into a positive source of wealth to the
Government and of effectual reformatory discipline
to the prisoners if we followed the example of the
Massachusetts State Prison. Mr. GIDEON HAYNES,
the governor of this institution; has been enabled to
report that for the year ending September 1867 there
has been earned a clear net profit of 22,000 dollars,
or about £4,500, over and above all the expenses
connected with the undertaking. Surprising as
this result is, it is not beyond the bounds of
probability. It is obvious that, as a general
rule, our prisoners are able-boslied persons,
whose labour dught to be valuable. In
England we avail ourselves of this labour in some
degree, and obtain an average value of £2 per
head per annum from each prisoner. In Massa-
chusetts the average profit from the labour of 539
prisoners is £35 per head, which is actually £8 per
head more than the total cost of the institution.
If in England, where labour is less valuable, it
would be impossible to obtain such a satisfactory
result as has been realised in America, there is no
reason why we should not make an approach to it.
The more we make our prisoners work the better it
will be for them as well as for the ratepayers, and
in this instance, as in so many others, economy and
efficiency go hand-in-hand. Enforced idleness is a
bad training for the future while instructed industry
qualifies a man to obtain his future support in an
honest manner. The truth of this is shewn by the
fad that recommitments in the Massachusetts
prison have been less than ten per cent. during the
last forty years.
An objection has been raised to the employment
of prison labour in this country on the ground that
such employment exposes the honest workman to
unfair competition. But such is not the case. If
a prisoner earns five shillings by his labour the
ratepayers have five shillings less to pay, and this
five shillings is inevitably spent by them in a man-
ner which employs five shillings worth of labour
elsewhere. The labour market, therefore, loses
nothing by the transaction, while society is a gainer
in the additional conveniences or comforts which
the ratepayers have been enabled to obtain by
spending their own money instead of handing it
over to the tax collector. If prisoners were an
organised band who were paid the full value of
their own labour, there would undoubtedly bo
unfair competition with honest industry; but as the
value of the labour produced is retained by the
ratepayers, no injustice is done and every advan-
tage is gained.

To suppose that ablebodied prisoners ought to be
maintained in idleness while honest labourers are
striving for a living, is so manifestly unreasonable
that it is surprising that any weight was ever
attached to the argument against prison labour.
Until we have too much food, too much clothing,
and are too well housed, we need not complain of
any one working too hard. It is not work that
we are short of, but the result of work is what
we want. It is preposterous to suppose
that we should continue to give a double
portion of food and clothing to our prisoners, and
leave the honest labourer to do all the work. No
system of keep Jug prisoners in idleness, or employ-
ing them in unprofitable labour, can be sound ;
both are corrupting and degrading ; whereas the
introduction of well-organmed industrial occupa-
tions may make our prisons at once economical,
deterrent, and reformatory.

Essex has bad its Conservative demonstration,
and the annual dinner of the Maldon Conservative
Club has furnished an opportunity for making
speeches on affairs generally. Mr. SANDFORD
made an interesting speech, in the course of which
he entered upon topics of importance. He was
fortunate in being enabled to address his constitu-
ents without using the language of excuse and
of apology, as some other M.P.'s have been forced
to do of late. The honourable member is
not an enthusiast about the recent Reform
Bill, but appears to think that what has
been done renders it obligatory to do more.
We have no fault to find with this expression, how-
ever, that he was prepared to support " that popular
and progressive policy which he considered to be its
logical and inevitable sequel." Mr. SANDFORD is
in favour of the representation of minorities, con-
cerning which a good deal may be said that finds
favour with those who are not extreme in their views
one way or other. As the hon. member very truly
puts it, one of the great dangers of our democracies
is the swamping or crushing of minorities by majori-
ties, and hence it is well that the principle of repre-
senting minorities should have been recognised as it
has just been. Perhaps, without any disrespect, it
may be suggested that those immediately concerned
in a matter are not always the best judges, and
hence Mr. SANDFORD'S strictures on the hardships
of Maldon being deprived of one of its members are
deprived of some of their weight. We do not mean
on personal grounds so much as that from the habit
of association one naturally gets more interested in
any particular locality, and is tempted to overrate
its advantages and to ignore its deficiencies. It is a
relief to turn from the praise of this speech
to note the obs rvations of the Chairman, Mr.
IBBETSON, who declared that he stood there as a
supporter of the Reform Bill. He believed, he said,
that " Reform would strengthen and invigorate our
body politic, weakened as it had been by the un-
satisfied longings for political power of a large sec-
tion of educated and intelligent men." He
was glad to find an opportunity was given
to the Conservatives to show the country that
they were as anxious as the Liberals to provide
for the necessary changes with due regard to
the safety of the State. It would be wise if the
captious on both sides would take heed to the liberal
remarks here tendered to them, and not pass too
hasty a judgment upon the bill of last session, but
" rely upon
,the common sense and love of order
which characterised their countrymen." We can
recognise in the tone which pervades this discourse
the spirit of enterprise and the adherence to pa-
triotic views which led the bulk of the Conservative