The Sun.
London, England, 1819-01-26 00:00:00

CRIMINAL LAWS.

The Sheriffs (,f Loudon presented a Petition
from the Lod Mayor, Aldermen, and Common
Council of the City of London, praying for the
revision ~m 1 amelioration ot the Penal Code.
Mr.Altierman Wools said, the House must be
aware, that the most learned and- distinguished
men this country had seen, had frequently occupied
themselves during the last fifty years in writing
areaiost the excessive severity of our Criminal
Liws,,which were ,so sanguinary as to defeat the
very object for which they were framed. Those
Nvho had must considered the subject, and le-
commended that labour and solitary confinement
should take place of the punishments at present
inflicted, and, lie was sure, all who heard dhint, •
must have observed, that though so many offerers
were punished capitally- by the law as it now
exists, 'yet for many years it had been found, that
in every part of the country there was a constant
increase of crime. On visiting Newgate, it would
be found that few, if any, of those on whom sen-
tence of death had been passed calculated on the
sentence being executed. In SQ111C• instances
there were mock Isiah among them, and from the
superior magnitude of the crimes charged ageinst
some of them, they were pronounced by their
fellows as likely to (lie. These ttials, however,
were not so frequent among them, he bad some
satisfaction in saying, as had been supposed ; •but
toe situation of those in the condemned cells it
was shocking to contemplate. lie visited Ne(v-.
gate yesterday, as he frequently 'did on a Sunday
when he found himself at leisure, and in the con-
demned cells he had seen above forty persons un-
der seutence of, death, and of these he firmly be-
lieved one one expected to suffer. From the pa-
pers on time table it would be seen that of those
capit Ay convicted, not above one in thirteen bad
hero executed. Much might be said in praise of
mercy, hilt in his opinion this uncertainty of pu-
iiishmeut was a great evil. In other countries,
whet, sentence of death was pronounced against
a culprit, it was almost always promptly car-
ried into effect. Here, from being in doubt, the
prisoners in confinement were not at all im-
pressed with a sense of the awfull situation in
which they stood. They absolutely made no
preparation fur death till the warrant for their
execution came down. He ad talked to some of
them yesterday very seriously on the su!a!ject, but.
mote of them seemed at all to expect to die. lie
understood that a very Learned Gentleman in that
House intended on a future occasion to'move for
a Committee on the subject of the Penal Laws.
Oa this account he should too do what otherwise
lie had meant to do—move that the present Pe-
tition should he referred to a Committee. They
all sevvrelvanissed that great, distinguished, and
good character who had so often raised his voice
in the cause of suffering humanity, and laboured
through So many years to ameliorate the laws of
Eugland, but lie hoped the Gentleman who pro-
posed taking up this question would give it the
full benefit of his great talents, and dojwstice to
its importance. lie had lately visited many pri-
sons on the Contifient. The result of his in-pi-
ties led him to think favourably of the punisb-
ments of confinement and labour. Those who had
suffered a confinement of ten or fifteen years, be
was informed,-ytid rarely been known to loom to
their old praetices. In every country but this,
punishment was almost certain to follow condetw
nation. in some the chances of escape were very
few indeed There was in Switzerland a prison,
to which if a man were once sent, it was thought

dirt( tly that he ►s•as,sure to (lie. He meant not
to bhtv that this was tight—~r that such an idea
ought to Ue entertained when wen were.cotinnit-

tea to prison, and especially before trial, bitt he
mentioned it to show how vast. the difference was
between the feelings excited in other countries by
punishments inflicted, and those which were
common in this,,from the impunity with which
criminals frequently. escaped. In this country we
had opportunities of trying the milder' po-
nishmsests of confinement and labour, which
were successfully adopted in some countries on
the Continent, and he thought the interesting ex-
nerimetst ought to be made. He concluded by
moving that the Petition should lie on the table.
Mr. WAITHMAN (in a 11111(itH speech) said,
after what had fallen from the worthy Alderman,
he would not enter into a discussion of the merits
of the question, but he would draw the attention
of the House to some leading ts. It appeared
that there had been .a gr increase of 'crime
within the last ten years'. se increase of pri-
soners in the City had been nearly as tour to one.
From 4000 they bad increased to almost 14.000.
He believed that many of thme taken before the
Magistrates of the City of L•oulon escaped, from
the difficulty the 'Magistrates frequently had about
committing them, knowing the ples%ons to he
crowded, and considering the chance of acquittal
from the excessive severity of the law to be so
great, that to commit them was almost worse than
useless. From the papers before the House, it
would appear that in the year for which the ac-
counts were last made out, upwards of 600 per-
, sons had been convicted who were under 21 years
of age. If to these were added those committed
to Ness-gate, anti afterwards acquitted, it woold be
found that the number brought to trial, whose ages
wete under 21 years, exceeded 1000. He should
at present say no more, but that he hoped the im-
portance of the subject would force it on the con-
. sideration of the House and the Government, and
that the present Session would not pass away
without something being done to check or remedy
this most alarming evil.
Mr. BATHURST thought this was not a conveni-
ent time to enter on a question of so much import-
ance. He wished the subject to be taken op its
•the place where it could be gone into fully—in
the only place where it could be taken in detail,—
in a Committee. -When his Noble Friend came
to move for his Committee on the police and dis-
cipline of prisons, he might probably some that
this subject should be referred to the same Com-
mittee. Perhaps this would Ire the best wiy of
treating it. It was undoubtedly true that of late
years there had been a great increase of crime ;
but this increase of crime, perhaps it might be
satisfactOry to those who had already spnken to
hear, had not been so great in the metropolis as
in the country. Latterly, designing persons had
in too malty instances succeeded in withdrawing
themselves from danger, and effected their frau-
dulent designs by means of boys and inexperienced
persons, whom they had contrived to expose to
all the peril of being taken while executing their
ptedatory schemes. This had in part caused the
great increase of Voting persons, which, as the
worthy Alderman had remarked, appeared in the
Calendar. IVhether the law could be so altered
as to punish the head that planned, as well as the
hand that executed a robbery, was a question very
fit for the consideration of a Committee.

Mr. TIERNEY) from the first part of the Right
.Hon Gentlenroi's speech, had been led to hope
that it was intencicd by Government to institute a
special inquiry into the important question now
before the House. *He should be glad if this
course were to be taken, but it seemed trout what
afterwards fell front him that he intended to at-
tach the revis,il of the whole Penal Code as a sort
of rider to the Committee to.he appointed to in-
quire into the state of the police and discipline
of Prisons. All he could understand t' as, that
on the subject now before the House, the Go-
vernment had .nothing to propose of themselves,
but when the Noble Lord brought the other ques-
tion forward, it was thought this might be added
to it by way of rider. If the Noble Lord touched
it-at all, be hoped he would give, it all the im-
portance that belonged to it. If he would nut do
this, then he should wish him to let it alone al-
together, and leave it ervirely•to the worthy and
Learned Friend of his, by whom he miderstOod
from the worthy Alderman near him, it was
likely to be brought forward.