The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1881-09-15
InoN pR,-oN DISCIPLINE.
The Life OF Fifteen Hundred Mea nj
the British Convict station an the
MRuritfus.
Missouri Republican.


MRuritius.
Missouri Republican.
Al the British convict station on the island
ofMauritius, said gentleman, much Of
whose life had been passed in examining and
comparing the various prison systems Of the
world, ''the most relentless discipline have
seen anywhere is maintained. This, to q
great extent is necessary, for it would be dis
hcult TO find more vicious and depIaysd set
Of prisoners. Hanging seems to be almost
abandoned there, and il 10 not uncommon for
amsn to be sentenced 10 forty years impris-
onment OF courie they rarely live out
these sentences, for The climate Of the Msu.
ritius unhealthy in tue most favorable circum-
stances, becomes Nnendursbe under the
merciess rigor ofprison life. The island So
you know belongs TO Great Britain, and is
situated on the eastern eosst OF Africa little
below the equstor It's intensely hot aud
thOre are nos great many EQropesps there,
butevery night about 1900 coorcd prisoners
are lodged up in the jail. Daring the day
most OF them work 10 chain gangs sWeeliog
the town of MAuriiius. They do it well, but
q pitiful and degrading spectacle is afforded
by lines Of strong, sble bodied men loaded
down with iron chains on the legs snd
round the waists, or dragging ponderouI
iron balls after them, toiling through the
streets.
"Ths ratiors are inferior 10 the prison
diet of this country, ard, as far as know. to
that OF any other part of tho world. For
reskastthey get quarter Of pound of black
bread and as much water as they want; for
dinner about pint of boiled rice, with 8
spoonful Of curry and abundance of water;
for supper, the black bread once more and a
liberal supply of water. This is the change
less bill of fare, with no difference on Sun
days and no meat at all. AT night, before
going into his cell, every man has to strip
himself, and the keeper examines his clothes
for concealed weapons or contrabsnd articles
of R2y kind The prisoners have also to
open their mouths to show that they have
nothing Objectionable there. Each cell ia
locked separately, and then a long iron bar
fsstens all together. On Sundays the prisoners
are shaved, weighed and have their hair
cropped % close as the scissors will reach
OF course, against this relentless diIcipline
there are occasional uprisings. To take
care of the 800 convicts about l60 guards
are employed. Ofthehe some are white and
some are colored, but the head keepers are
all white and, for tbs most part, soldiers who
have served tho terms for which they ems
listed. They are armed with carbines and
short bayonete. Once whom the convctl
mRnsged to organize and broke into open
revolt in the prison ysra, II was short.lived
rebellion. The guards, trained to act rapidly
and in concert, shot them down like mad
dogs and then charged them with the bay
onets. The rebels were quickly subdued
and after that they were ruled, il
possible, more vigorously than before
"a prisoner, if he sees fit, may make 9
complaint, and il it isa just one it will be
attended to; but heaven help the man who
complains friyolously. Once when WAS in
the jail convict AT dinner time protested
that his allowance of rice was not as large OF
the regulations required. 1t was measured
ct once, and found to be little over the
proper qusntity. His dinner was taken
away from him, one of the most powerful
OF the keepers seized Kim, and he was kicked
and beaten until bruised, bleeding and al
most insensible he was pitched head FIRST
into his cell. The guards had general in
structions not to wait for orders, but at The
first sign of revolt TO fire.
One of the convicts | remember was Q
cripple. His lower limbs were psralyze
and he moved along in sitting posture with
the aid of his hands He was serving forty
years. sentence for q peculiarly atrocious
wife murder. This apparently helpless brute
absolutely managed TO effect his escape in
open daylight, after he had been Imprisoned
about twenty years.. Owing TO his crippled
condition he did not work with the chain
gangs, but inside ths brick walls, and one
night when locking up hour arrived his cell
was found to BIO empty. A fruitless search
was kept up for week or more, bu
nothing was ever heard Of him
Whether he escaped to sea in an ope1
boat, and made for the flr-sway coast o.
Africa, or for the island OF Madagascar, dis
tant four days journey by steamer, or found
a refuge among the sugar plantations of tht
Mauritius, 10 unknown. never heard o.
another escape being effected.
81 said that hanging was very uncommon
in the Mauritius. But it is sometimes re-
sorted to, as in the case Of the murder of Q
white man, and hangman Is maintained Oh
the leland. This official ought TO have beer
hanged years ago, having been convicted OF
locking his wife, his mother.in'law, two
sisters-in.law and two children in room and
sufocsting them all with tho fumes o.
charcoal. He was sentenced to fifty year
imprisonment, but was liberated on condition
of his becoming town hangman."