The Sun.
London, England, 1858-09-23 00:00:00

prevent any chances of firing unless he gave dis-
tint orders, and it was quite possible that an
excited Irish youth, with his fighting blood up,
might have pulled a stray trigger, and then who
could foresee the consequences ? The sergeant par-
ticularly struck me. He was an old Ghuznee
stermer, grim as death, and hard as bog-oak. I
sounded him, with a view of ascertaining if he was
quite satisfied with the service, when he confided
to me that he did not think it right that the pri-
soners should have " p'huddn" (pudding) three
times a-week and the soldiers none. It was very
amusing to see his strong sense of discipline strug
gling with the desire to give vent to his intense
delight at the prospect of a scrimmage.
" Now as to the cause of this dangerous enzeute.
I heard the prisoners questioned by the warders as
to the cause of their refusing to work, and. not one
complainant did I hear against the prison discip-
line or treatment, but the universal reply was,
We won't be put upon by the Government,' or,
We won't be humbugged. by Government ;' and
this I found to mean precisely what is described in
your impression of Saturday—namely, that those
sentenced previous to 1853, and under the Act
of 1857, may
.by good conduct obtain the remis-
sion of a certain portion of their punishment, while
those sentenced under the Act of 1853 must work
out the whole of their term, no matter what their
conduct might be. Captain Gambier explained to
the whole body, in the kindest manner, that con-
victions for the same crimes under the Act of 1857
were for longer periods than under the Act of 1853,
and that there was no real difference between the
term of imprisonment actually inflicted under the
two Acts ; only that under the Act of 1857, if a
prisoner misconducted himself, the authorities had
power to keep him a certain moderate additional
period in confinement.
Now, just to hit the blot, if there be one, I would
ask this question :—Have the judges, in passing
sentences under the Act of 1857, kept in mmd the
intentions of the Government in framing it, and its
provisions as regards remission; or, in other words,
have they sentenced prisoners to five years' penal
servitude, under this Act, for the same crime as they
awarded four years under the Act of 1853, when
there was no remission ? If not, they are respon-
sible for a grave oversight.
" Before leaving Portland I was allowed by. the
coirtesy of Captain Clay to inspect the prison,
and I came to the conclusion that Ike rules
and regulations were such as would gratify the
heart of the sickliest sentimentalist, the most
maudlin sympathizer with crime, or the most over-
strained philanthropist. Everything was as clean
and orderly as a gentleman's house,—the food
unexceptionable, the bread I should prefer to
that of a London baker for my own table ;
the hours of work those of an ordinary la-
bourer ; chapel twice each day, a school established
in the prison, and daily instruction given to the
ignorant ; two chaplains in constant attendance,
who endeavour to lead Their minds towards religion
and a better course of life; and a well-ventilated
hospital for the sick or injured, with two surgeons
in attendance. Here I saw the ringleaders of the
conspiracy, who had received the mild punishment
of two or three dozen lashes. They were dressed
as usual, were unfettered in anyway, and presented
no indication of suffering from their well-merited
chastisement. The prison discipline appeared to
me to be carried out with vigorous firmness, vigi-
lance, and kindness, from the highest to the lowest
in authority, and every indulgence consistent m7ith
the rules granted to well-disposed convicts.
" I must confess I went to Portland touched with
a certain amount of sympathy for the prisoners,
but returned disenchanted and more than ever con-
vinced of the irredeemable condition of the human
heart when long steeped in the boiling sea of crime,
and how religious impressions, kindness, and all
humanising efforts rebound from it as if made of
iron. But there is one channel into which I would
direct the benevolent and charitable in every cor-
ner of our land ; let th€m seek out the lair of every
imprisoned convict and exercise their work on his
callous brood, and the famishing, sickly, despairing
mother. Here charity would be blessed, impres-
sionable objects found to work upon, many a young
soul would be saved, and their hands turned to
honest industry, and our prisons would lack their
future prey.. The tenderness and devotion of women
towards their imprisoned likisbands, as evidenced by
their correspondence 4 am informed are affecting in
the extreme. I understand they rarely. reproach them
with the crime which has brought misery and star-
vation on their families, but earnestly pray for
their welfare and re§toration, and urge obedience to
the, authorities, anti that they should seek by
prayer and repentance the `pardon of their offended
God. An instance was related to me of a poor
woman last yeari,-whoSe husband was about to be
transported, walking from the further part of
Wales to Portland, which, in consequence of her
being far advanced in pregnancy, occupied three
weeks, and who arrivedl there about an hour after
he had sailed, and too late for the parting inter-
, view for which her painful toil had been under-
taken. Such appear to me to be the proper objects
of sympathy and charity, and not the hardened
husband.
" In conclusion, I trust the Government will take
into consideration the great exertions, extra labour,
and vigilance of the officers of the prison, and suit-
ably reward them. This may be done without in-
curring any additional expense, as I understand the
300 refractory prisoners forfeit by the rules of the
prison all the gratuities to which they would have
been entitled on their discharge, and which, in the
aggregate, must amount to a large sum.
" I inclose my card, from which you will see that
I have no connexion with the prison, and
,do not
live within 500 Miles of it."