The Sun.
London, England, 1868-09-18 00:00:00

PRISONS AND REFORMAIORIES.

The Inspector of Reformatory and Industrial
Schools, Mr. Sidney Turner, has presented to the
Home Secretary his 11th annual report on the con-
dition of these institutions. It is for the year 1867,

and it is necessary to bear the date in mind, as we
are now approaching the end of 1868, and a little
allowance may have to be made for the lapse of
time. It is to be hoped that any change that may
have occurred in that period has been for the better,

though a certain sameness in the details rather
damps any very sanguine hope of a speedy regenera-
tion of the class it deals with. The impression left
by the report is that everything that can be done
for the improvement of those who are both young

and criminal is at least attempted. That the suc-
cess is not altogether in proportion to the effort
must be admitted ; but that is by no means a

sufficient reason why the attempt should be aban-
doned. Some good is done, and with that result,

probably, we must be content. The material dealt
with is bad—sometimes very bad indeed. It must,
for the safety of those who are young and not
criminal, be rejected from the school. The school
would simply perish if it were not cast out. Yet
mere prisons tenanted by the very young would
be a saddening sight; to an attempt is made to
combine some education with the discipline of the
prison itself. Punishment for evil-doing is blended
with i❑struction that may lessen the criminality for

he future. The inmates of these establishments,

,t will be observed, are always called "juvenile

offenders," not young criminals, which many of
them really are. For instance, " two or three of
the girls" in the Lisson-street Training Refuge
" attempted to set the premises on fire," though,
fortunately, they did not succeed. Help was at

hand, and the calamity was prevented. It was not
known, or supposed, to be the act of any of the
" juveniles" till about two months afterwards, when
a " discharged inmate" told how it occurred. The
Inspector " can see no valid reason for the alarm
which seemed to possess the matron and some of the
committee," nor for their giving up the certificate,
and so " narrowing most materially the usefulness
and lessening the resources of the school." But the
resignation was accepted, the certificate revoked,
and the girls transferred to other places. The in-
stitution, in short, was broken up. The Inspector
did not reside on the premises—a fact that in case
of a fire makes a considerable difference in any esti-
mate of the occurrence. The institution, it may be
remarked, seems to have been as easily extinguished
as the fire. This it must be admitted was au excep-
tional case, even among that very troublesome class
"juvenile offenders." An agreeable contrast to this
state of things is afforded by the Report of the

Hants Reformatory, at Eling, near Southampton.
Here the premises consisted of an old farmhouse.
which formed the older portion of the building ; it
was also destroyed by a fire which originated in a
chimney. But the school-room, dormitory, and
workshops were saved by the courage and exertions
of the superintendent " and the boys." The build-
ings are being restored by a liberal subscription in
the county, and the institution will, it appears, be
more efficient for its objects in consequence of the
misfortune. Though the misdeeds of the female
culprits in other reformatories fall short of the
crime of fire-raising, as recorded in Lisson-street
Training Refuge, it is very evident that they give
far more trouble and are more difficult to deal with
than the boys. Thus at the Red Lodge Reforma-
tory at Bristol, under the head of " discipline," it
is recorded that " things appear to have gone on
pretty well." The chief fault the inspector has
to note is peculiarly feminine ; he says, " the girls
were rather more talkative and noisy than usual
during my examination." It is not a bad result
where this is the worst that can be said. These
same talkative girls " did very well in reading and
dictation, and remarkably well in ciphering." They
also answered the Inspector's questions " with in-
telligence." The test of the discipline they had
undergone is, of course, most severe when they are
released from it. And in this main point the result
is about as favourable as could be expected. Of 55
discharged, 33 are said to be doing well, seven are
doubtful, ten are returned " unknown," and five
have been reconvicted. In the great majority of
these cases, then, it is proved that a certain, and,
it is to be hoped, permanent., amount of good has
been effected. They are very bad cases, indeed, that
give no hope of improvement. 'That such instances,
however, do occur is evident. All the efforts of the
authorities are sometimes completely baffled, the
system meets with its young Calibans occasionally,
and finds itself as powerless in improving them as
Prospero. The strougestbelief in the effect of training
and education has at times a very severe trial,and the
ever-recurring difficulty is, to discover what can be
done with those natures to which " nurture will
never stick." The fact that it is not always extreme
poverty that has been the cause of the evil only
adds to the perplexity of the case. It is, therefore,
quite a pleasant relief to discover a few instances
in which the efforts of the authorities have been
successful to an extent that almost produces a feel-
ing of encouragement. The report from the Akbar
Reformatory School ship at Liverpool is one of
these brighter passages. The-number of its inmates
is 177. The inspector found the ship itself "in
excellent order," which in nautical eyes would be
a great virtue, to begin with. Perhaps the secret
of the better system might be discovered in the
fact that " the discipline is necessarily stricter than
in ordinary Reformatories." The number of boys
on board is 200. But the bright appearance and
cheerful manner of the inmates (or perhaps we
ought to say the crew) spoke very favourably of
their treatment, and of their kindly feeling and
confidence towards Captain Borland, R.N. 'The
boys are divided into two watches, and these into
four classes. The proficiency of the first and
second classes in each watch in reading, spelling,
and writing was very creditable, though they did
not do so well in dictation. The lower classes did
very fairly, especially in ciphering. The training
consists chiefly in nautical exercises, which a large
proportion of the boys went through most cre-
ditably. A portion of the crew is employed in
tailoring, shoemaking, and carpentry, so that they
have a resource should they be driven on shore,
which is nearly a sailor's last extremity. It should
not be omitted that Mrs. Borland resides on board,
"contributing most materially to the cheerful
and domestic spirit that marks the school." Of
164 discharged in the past year 85 are known to be
doing well, four are dead, seven cases are doubtful,
13 have been reconvicted, and 55 are returned as
" unknown," being, at the date of the report,
"at sea and not lately heard from." Much,
therefore, depends on the future of those 55, who
leave a tolerably wide margin for hope. On
the whole, the report from the Akbar is a compa-
ratively bright spot in the surrounding darkness.
Perhaps something of the good result may be attri-
buted to the more complete isolation of a ship,
which, in this respect, has an advantage over any
building on short. If a few of the hulks " laid up
in ordinary," waiting for the dry rot, or the ship-
breaker, could be converted to the same purpose as
the Akbar, it would not be altogether a bad specu-
lation. There is another Reformatory ship, the
Clarence, at Liverpool. It is appropriated to Ro-
man Catholic boys, and contains 207 inmates. From
this ship, too, the report is encouraging. It ap-
peared "to be well maintained, and was in good
order." The boys were generally healthy, and their
conduct, on the whole, good ; their manner and
appearance " were very satisfactory." Some of the
officers " had given trouble," but of what kind is
not stated. The industrial training consists of
" nautical exercises," repair of clothing, and
carpentry. Though the weather was rough, the
crew loosed and furled sails very skilfully. Of
eight boys discharged in the year, three are
doing well, three are returned " unknown," and
two have been re-convicted. The Mount St. Bcr-
nard's Reformatory for Roman Catholic boys, at
Whitwick, Leicester, is an instance cf what may be
done ashore as well as afloat, even with very un-
promising materials. The number of inmates is 248.
Here a farm of 300 acres is kept under cultivation,
and further employment provided in workshops for
tailors, carpenters, and shoemakers, the profits from
which are returned as more than £4OO. At the
Home in the East, at Old Ford, Bow, the school