The Sun.
London, England, 1861-10-18 00:00:00

Mr. Sergeant PAYNE said that might be. An
inquiry was required, and if the Governor was found
unfit for the situation he ought to be displaced ; it
was the duty of the Court to order an inquiry, and
put an efficient officer in his place.
Mr. WYATT strongly defended the Governor and
the committee in the course they had taken. The
committee passed a resolution, for good reasons,
that no officer should see a prisoner unless he had
a certificate from the superintendent of his division;
that it was his business to atteq, as there had been
cases of extortion which this regulation was to pre-
vent. With respect to the late Mr. Morley, a warder,
who it was supposed, and there was no doubt of the
fact, unfortunately lost his life by his own hands in
Hornsey fields, as appeared by published accounts
in the papers, he was a man getting into years and
was certified by the doctor as incapacitated for duty
from physical causes. The committee recommended
him for a pension or superannuation allowance of
something over £2O per year, and before he knew
it he left home and destroyed himself. Mr. Morley
was a very good officer, but, unfortunately he be-
came incapacitated, though complaint was made in
newspaper reports of the harshness and severity the
new Governor exercised towards him. The com-
mittee proposed to the Court to grant his widow a
gratuity of £2O. With respect to the case of Ryan,
he hoped the Court would for the present abstain
from requiring a report, as the Governor was under
a threat of law proceedings at the instance of Ryan.
Mr. KEMSHEAD said three warders had been
treated in the same way—one after 16 years' service,
because he could not read or write, though he had
done his duty.
Mr. ARMSTRONG said he had seen the published
accounts in the papers, and it appeared therefrom
that the magistrates of the county were at the bar of
public opinion in respect of these matters. It ap-
peared from the evidence of MI. Scott, a medical
gentleman who attended Morley—evidence given
on oath—that Morley complained to him of the
cruel and severe conduct of the Governor to him.
There was also a further case for inquiry, that of a
man named Townshend, who was committed for
want of bail, having threatened to destroy his cloth-
ing, the Governor kept him in solitary confinement
72 hours, 48 of which were in irons. He thought
there should be an inquiry into the state and
management of the prison since the new Governor
bad been appointed.

Mr. WYATT spoke in high terms of the Gover-
nor's conduct in his capacity of Governor, and said
that the committee were determined to uphold him
in the discharge of his duty, which they considered
he had properly performed. When the Governor
entered upon his duties the prison was in a very
disordered state in point of discipline, but if the
present Governor were supported the House of
Detention would speedily become the model prison
of the county of Middlesex.
Mr. HARWOOD thought it very irregular for
newspaper reports to be cited in court which con-
tained imputations, and that magistrates ought not
to make statements upon representations made to
them privately by individual officers in the service
of the county.
N.Leiu nicertnn said he hoped the day was far
distantA lr
libnof the county was not to be
allowed to see a inegist
tatte and complain to him of
what he might considerrievance ? Was there
to bey no
no appeal if an felt himself wronged ?
As to newspaper reports,
he begged to say they
The day
were of the greatest public importance.Nveraandasregarded ;
was long gone by when they
in all they were acted upon in Parliament
pub-
lie affairs ; they were the source of all information
to the public.
Mr. Turner, Mr. Kepp, and Mr. Prance having
made some few observations,
Mr. WooDwARD said he could not allow one
remark to be passed over without an observation.
It had been stated that the House of Detention
was in a disorganised state of discipline when the
change of governorship took place. As a visiting
magistrate of that prison for many years, he had
to say that it had been well conducted for these
many years by the late governor, Capt. Hill, under
the supervision of the visiting committee.
The CHAIRMAN said he had no objection to an
officer seeing a magistrate if he had anything to
complain off; and as to the newspaper reports, he
could bear his own personal testimony to the fact
that a great deal of good had arisen from news-
paper paragraphs emanating from this court.
The report was received.
The grant of £2O to Mrs. Morley was agreed to.
There
were
no parishes or places in the county iu
arreem to the rate.
M0n11944
,fiend from Mr, Imo Le Bru-