The New Orleans crescent. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1866-1869, 1868-09-13

1 was lett 10 MS repOse.
The door OF the next cell was unlocked, and on
precisely similar hammock reclined q precisely
similar lad, except that he had carroty stubble on
| his head instead of black.
We'll. lad. what are you here for ?"
Bit Of meat, please, SIR"
"You and another lad did il between youf"
That's IL, sir. de ="
Silence" And the door was closed, and the
key turned in the heavy lock.
is this their first ofense should you imagine" ~
! We inquire OF the govern,r as we traverse pas
sage leading towards another part of the building.
| But the governor shrugs his shoulders.
Not by any means nor their last, I'm afraid.
There is not much chance of us seeing the last OF
| theu-until they are sent away"
| "Sent where ~
"Penal servitude. That's the common end
ing"
so. II lie one thing to make man regret his mis-
deeds. and another 10 place at his disposal means
1 by which he may preserve himself against q
/ repetition Of them. As you say, ohense after
/ offeDse is recorded against him. each one adding
an additional clog to his unlucky feet, that posi-
4 bly,, they had q reasonable chance, would
/ gladly turn TO honest paths"
| But at this the governor made grimace that
| stood as representative for the laugh be would
have uttered had be not felt the restraint Of that
| memorable rule of his own imposing
/ There you are mistaken" he whispered softly;
we are much more humane than you imagine.
| The prisoner who shows an earnest disposition
| towards amendment is never turned penniless and
helpless out of this jail. If he proves to US his
disgust for dishonest courses and bis willingness
to work, we are able, thanks to a certain fund,
TO place the means Of doing so In his
hands. Sometimes a few shillings are
sufficient for the purpose, sometimes we
are induced so TO invest several pounds. A large
number Of the younger prisoners have a fancy
for going to sea. young man came to see me
only last week. He came here just one of these
homeless, outcast boys, who thieve that they may
not staTve, Of whom there are thousands in Lon
don, and be expressed q wish to be sent to sea.
out Of harms way. He proved himself a good
lad, having worked his way up to the condition of
second mate. with fair prospect of becoming
something still better. He dned at my table last
Tuesday"
/" have you many boys here at present"
" Singularly few. We have cell accOmmoda-
ton for sixty, and our average number for some
time past has been only sixteen. Come this way
and you shall see them"
And, wondering all the while, we did as in
vted. How was il that the per centage Of juve-
nile criminals lodged in Holloway Prison was so
small !! When We asked The governor the proper
ton his boy-lodgers bore to the whole, it was Ia
full expectation Of receiving an answer that should
warrant the natural alarm at the rapid increase Of
crime amongst lads of tender years. Where we're
the scores Of humble imitators of Claude Duvsl
and Dick Turpin, who, having perused the vera
cious records of the exploits OF these and similar
heroes of the gibbet, make desperate efforts to
emulate them by murderousy assaulting crippled
old women, or running of with errand-money con-
hded to their care by too trusting masters? We
referred to the governor for an explanation. 1t
is easily accounted for" said he. They find
that they have to IcO1k when they are here" We
were about 70 follow our last question with
another as to the way In which young thief con-
trived 10 choose his prison, but this was rendered
unnecessary by the sudden recurrence to our men,
DRY Of conversation, bearing on the same subject
that recently had taken place between q boy
thief and prison commissioner. :" How is it,"
the latter asked, that, out Of nine convictions
against you, eight are returned from one PRISON."
" Cos, please, sir, i always prigs 10 Holborn,"
was the candid rejoinder. When the salutary law
for which the readers humble servant has for so
long time been asking is passed, and comes into
operation, and the governor of Holloway Jail
counts among his inmates one or two Of those
dirty scOundrels who gain their bread by the
sweat OF juvenile morality-by means of the penny
weekly number system-a proper punishment
would be to make them the drudges of the boy
criminal ward-to compel them TO wash their VIC
tins shirts and socks, and scrub their cell hOors
and be generally responsible for their personal
Cleanliness.
The cells In which the boy prisoners are con.
fined are precisely similar TO those Of the adults
and, il being now after work hours, the greater
part of the sixteen dodgers were at home"
Those we spoke with did net seem very much
hardened in crime, which, by the way, Is q long
way from meaning that they we're not conversant
with crime. Boys are not like men. they are less
reflective, and in nine cases out of ten have no
care or responsibility beyond what is strictly per-
sonal; consequently they are less impressed with
the hardship of their condition, broodng on
which is as likely TO produce hardening
softebing effect. As rule, the condition OF the
boy.thief while at liberty is q most miserable
condition, and, after the first restlessness
has worn of. he finds that it Is more comfortable
to be in prison than out-a frame of mind scarcely
calculated TO bring about penitence and refor-
nation.
There is one point, however, on which the boy
thief IT, OF pretends TO be- especially tender, and
that Is concerning his mother. To be sure there
is no getting over the stern, sad fact that nobody
is so Perfect master In the art Of assembling as
the intelligent, low-cunning little London thief.
Let bis jaier assume never so severe a manner in
his dealings with him, before he has talked with
him three times he will have discovered his
weakest feature land even prison governors are
not tree from them, and shape his manner aud
conversation accordingly. Thus, with all due
respect for Governor Weatherhead, and his ADM.
rable system Of management, he undoubtedly has
a natural tenderness for boys, and his prisoners
know il. Like sensible man, he knows that,
until boy has grown utterly abandoned, he viii not
forget mother ~ and il is certain that, in very
mary cases. il is sacred chord that may be
played on with charming and even miraculous
eject; al the same time II Is not impossible that
his smiable weapon may be turned against him,
and he may be imposed on.
Every boy we examined cried at once when bis
mothers name was mentioned and the creditable
Oh euOuOu WAS hlIuObb re-
warded by an encouraging pat on the head with
the governors benevolent hand. There was one
case that came under our notice in the boy way
that was somewhat peculiar. he was an incorri-
CHILE young rufian, We were informed, aud had
been n prison very msny times. He had only
arrived at Holloway that morning. and, being set
TO work in the brick field before be was an hour
there was guilty Of foul language towards the
officer in commsnd. and was condemned to the
" dark cell" There We found him. A more
hideous place as habitaton for q
human being with a guilty conscience cannot
easily be imagined. Dark is much too feeble
word to describe the black density that shrouded
its interior. IL is cell within CELL and even
the outer one Is so dark that only by the click Of
the key in the lock were we aware that the in
terror door had been opened. Come out here
lad ~ And, emerging from the irnPeuerabic
density, there gradually doomed to view the des-
perate fucorrigbe. he was not very formidable
rufiian TO contemplate, being slim built boy,
with narrow white face, which was tearfnl, and
had on IL an expression suggestive of a horror Of
"bCgies-" he had evidently arrived at the dis
NAL conclusion that he was doomed to pass the
long. long night in that awful place, and had made
certain eccentric and unaccountable arrange
msDts 10 that end. The collars OF his serge jacket
were pulled up high above his ears. making a fan
tsstic setting for his grimy, tear beslreamed
countenaDce, while, possibly with view to econo.