New-York tribune., 1903-02-16
A PATRICIAN CONVICT
Hoe Lord William NemU ProfteR
by Rigorous Sentence.
London Eabr,,ar.. 4


| Nevilrs observations and reflections willis h.
was serving his sentence at wornwood Scruh.
/ and Parkhurst and it justfes the conclusion,
! that a convict who coulI trace his descent n,
the Norman Conquest and boast OF the achieve.
| rnents of the Nevis and the Beaucbarnns ~.
the Wars of the Roses could take his nunisb
| ment well and make an honest effort TO prt i
| to practical use. When he was sentenced n,
| five years of penal servitude. after pleadin,,
guilty in the criminal dock OF the Old BAILEY II,
a breach of conhdencs in obtaining friends
signature 30 documents to be used as valuabI.
| securities the social moralists took a serions
view of a mean and contemptible crime and
commended Mr. Justice Lawrence for haviuo,
dealt with a peers son az though he we're an
ordinary mortal The peers son, not being abl,
to make any reparation 10 rank and society for.
bringing an honored name into disrepute. 5as
thought that something would be gained IL ha
were 10 relate what happened % him while ha
was convict, how his punishment affected him
and what he considered worthy OF noting i'm
the prison system The book is tenperately
written. apart from the passages referring To
his own trial. and contains animated re-
cital of what goes within prison walls r.
is a well informed, impartial account Of prison
life and administration, and contrasts strongly
and favorably with official reports and re-
formers treatises. which lack the authority os
personal experience The publication of so sound
and suggestive volume penal servitude is
one of the compensations for what was known
among the smart sets a few years ago as .
crime against society"-an Outrage upon
quality"
When the legal entities have been fully paid,
with only such abatement of sentence as was
justified by the prisoners good conduct it IS
only necessary to revert briefly To the offences
for which he punished Lord William
NevilI. as a younger son o. the Marquis ef
Abergavenny, had a small income for a ma1
of fashion and when he married the daughrr
of eminent lady. well known at court. hs
| lived beyond his means and fell into the hanis
of money lenders When he had squanderd
his own and his wife's fortunes and exhausted
his credit he was reduced to the extremity 1c
obtaining a friends signature to promissoy
notes by a discredtabIe trick. In his own
count of the transactions, Lord William NevI
complains that he was not called as a witness
in the preliminary action by the money lendeT
against the indOrser, and that he suffered il
reputation through his friends extraOrdinar.
confusion of memory. As the indorser won th4
suit. II ere was no loss the promissory notes
which had been signed by him, and the
money lender had made a handsome profit OK
six years account and the balances due on
the notes were paid by relatives. nobody had
Justices Judgment in the preliminary case. with
the comments upon it in the press. exposed Lord
William NeviII to the unjust charge Of having
forged his friends signature and absCOnded.
He voluntarily returned from Paris and surren-
dered to the prosecuting authorities. but Sir
John Bridge refused to accept bail for him, and
he was cut of from access to friends. witnesses.
lawyers and private papers. and placed at a
serious disadvantage in preparing his defence.
He contends that the action OF the magistrats
in refusing bail was nonstrous act of injustice.
and asserts that he was the victim OF "a popu-
lar judge" who sentenced him to maximum
penalty Of five years after he had pleaded guilty
TO two indictments for fraudulently obtaining
his friends signature to documents. He ar
raigns Mr.. Justice Lawrance's impartiaIity
apparently no better evidence than a fellow
prisoners forecast. IF you were plain Bill
Sykes he would make IL much lighter for you.
He will punish you much more for what you ars
than for what you have done"
When Lord William NevilI has declared with
vehemence that he was not dealt with as
ordinary mortal, but received double or trebla
the punishment account of his aristocratio
descent. his bitterness and passionate resent
ment subside. He becomes a painstaking stu
dent of the effects and morale OF prison dis
cipline, and, disgraced and branded black sheep
he is among the titled classes and the smart
sets, he is philosopher when he discusses in
the light of his personal experience the prob
lem of penal servitude. He recites his experiences
with stark naked candor, keeps nothing back,
and proves that the law In England is no re-
specter Of persons. and that he was punished
for his admitted crime without consideration for
his high birth and fashionabl BILE acquaintance
On the day of his sentence he handcufed
and taken to wormwood Scrubs. where his hair
was clipped off and he was dressed as con-
vict. After being detained there for seven
weeks. he removed to Parkhurst Prison. IN
the Isle of Wight. After remaining in the NJ
Urinary for three months, by reason Of serious
illness. he was kept for nine months in separats
confinement in a cell, being allowed one hour
exercise each day. and working for eight hours
in knitting stockings. He was next suffered 10
go out with hospital working parties and 10
mend paths and do odd jobs within the prsou
walls. He became one Of the assistant orderhes,
cleaning staircases. waiting upon prisoners anu
doing much dirty work; and as time went on hs
joined full labor farm party. digging poVa'0e'
carting manure and making hay. The worH
which he enjoyed most keenly was the occuPa-
ton OF drawing a cart in harness with another
prisoner. When his health failed he went nacN
to his knitting work. and after rejoining tAo
farm parties was transferred to company 3r
printers and bookbinders. with which ne re-
mained until his sentence expired with the re-
mission of a quarter of the time in consequence
of his good conduct. During the entire perioa
of his irprisonrnent he treated precisely as
other criminals wera. and at the close OF MS
tern, a photograph was made of him and sens
to Scotland Yard
Having resolved 10 take his punishment with
o,,t cor,nlaint and not 10 expect favor on ac-