Birmingham age-herald., 1895-03-24
ON A CONVICT SHIP.
FROM ENGLAND TO GIBRALTAR IN
 COMPANY WITH 25o CRIMINALS.

"I know something of life on convict ship" said retired officer of an East h. dian morchantman. T was on tho War wick, mcrchantman just back from 0 voyage to Calcutta, when the government chartered her to carry conviots and troops from England to Gibraltar. It was most interesting experience. We were to take convicts from three different prisons. About midnight on Dec. 22, 1869, we left the East Indian docks and dropped down the river to Gravescnd where the next aft ernoon we took on 100 men of tho Seventy first highlanders-by tho way, they were all Irishmen-who wore to act as guard for the convicts Next tile we lowed to Sheerness, near tho North Forcland, where we came to an anchor and waited for tho first iDstallment of convicts sent from Chatham. They wcro brought alongside on a small steamer. I-shall never forget how they looked to mel was a young ster thcn-in their yellow and black stripes and with the short, flat, brown ur- row, which is the English government mark, stamped on their clothing Having got them aboard, we made sail for Ports mouth, our next receiving station, where we got about hundred moro. From there we sailed to Portsmouth and took the bal
 
 'Wo lay in Portland Roads three or four days on account of storm and then started for Gibraltar. While lying there an incl dent occurred which can never forget = But first let me tell you something about tho arrangement and discipline of the ship on this voyage. A staff surgeon of tho royal navy was in charge of tho ship, and every one was subordinate to him. Ho was absolutely an autocrat Wo were q full riggod iron sailing vessel of ,005 tons register, and we had now on board, with convicts, wardcns, soldiors crew and fam lilies of some of the soldiers, about 425 souls. So you can seo we were pretty thick.
 Tho sailors, who usually had quarters in the forecastlo, had to give them mp and live in part of tho after between decks A barricado was built across tho ship at tho mainmast, both between docks and on tho main deck. Tho convicts lived between decks forward and were turned up for ex- ercise every day before this barricado on tho main deck.
 But whilo wo lay in Portland Roads Il convict named Sturgess, who was serving a 20 years term, became intraotable, and on being reproved by ono of the wardens threatened the latter's lifo when his sen tence should bo served. fancy if what followed should happen in ono of your penitentiarics a howl of dcnunciation would go up all over tho country, but British prison discipline Is very rigorous, you know. Sturgoss was immediately put in irons and thrust into tho solitary con- fnement box for 24 hours and sentenced to receive four dozen at tho expiration of his confinement. Ho was stolid brute and did not seem to mind, rcmarking he had 1,1f1 Ia go hard with him if he couldn't take an- other dose.
 Tt is generally the duty of tho boat swain to do the flogging aboard ship, but tho night watchman from Portland prison was sent of to punish this fellow With the exception of the women, every ono aboard was compelled to turn up to wit ness the flogging. All the convicts were ordered up before the barricade, and each one craned his neck to see the show and anxiously watched Sturgess to see If he were game. Tho thief's cat, with knot in each string, was the weapon of punish ment. The convict was brought up, strip | ped to the waist his feet and knees lashed | to two spars which were stood upright on the deck, his hands were chained, and a rope passing under the chain trioed them up high above his head, and his breast was pushed against an iron grating lashed between the spars. The staff surgeon then read the accusation and sentence, and tho night watchman was ordered to do his duty. can see him now us he ran his hand among the strings of the cat and then with quick, sharp stroke brought it down between the convict's shoulder blades. The chief warden, Donald Bain, counted tho strokes, One, two, three,' and aftcr each stroko tho convict counted too, and when he got to 24 he said ooolly:
 Well, there's half of them
 "When ho received the forty eighth without having once finchod or mur- mured, the other 249 conviots set up a cheer. But tho staff surgeon turned on them and thundcrcd:
 If you do not keep silonco I'll fog every man of you
 About thcir food2 It was of better quality than that furnished either the sol dicrs or crew. They always got corned beef where the sailors got salt horso. Com pressed vegetables and preserved potatoes wcre supplied them; also suet for their duff whero that of tho sailors was mixed with slush from tho coppcrs. Then they had plums for thoir duff of Sunday, while tho sailors got none in their lump of lead Tho convicts got gill of sherry every day at II where the soldiers got a pint of porter and the crew nothing. Many a convict told me he wished tho voyage could last for years
 They had their amusements too. They were not allowed to read newspapers but once in awhile one would steal one from a warden's pocket. Tho warden would discover tho loss and hunting up the thief take his paper away and stick it back in his pocket. But before he had gone very far another would pick his pocket. have seen n warden kept trotting a whole fore noon hunting up precious old journal he had brought aboard with him. Thon they often amused themselves by holding mock trials. They had judge, jury and counsel