Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1913-01-02
ISLAND OF MURDERERS.
Con,ict- In Penal settlement Mn!
Marry and become Farmers.

The convict population of the An
daman islands considerably exceeds
( %. 900. and yet it IL to all intents and
purposes one enormous Jail, guarded
on every side by leagues of shark in :
tested waters
The Andaman islands lie in the Gulf
of Bengal about 500 miles from Cal
cutta and 400 from Rangoon. They
were originally inhabited by tribe
of small black people, savage and
treacherous to degree, and given to
numbering and eating the crow OF any
unlucky ship that happened to be cast
away upon the thicklY- wooded shores.
This was one of the reasons why
the Islands werc picked out so long
ago as 1889 for n penal settlement.
But after few years the unhealthy
climate and constant trouble with the
natives caused the settlement to he
abandoned.
In 1857 the government of India
having subducd the great mutiny.
found that II had on its hands thou.
sands of dangerous characters for
/ whom there was not even room in
local prisons. 1t was determined to
ship them 80 the Andamans, ana in
the following year tho Port Blair
penal settlement was once more es-
tablishcd.
To-day the Andaman Islands are al
most entirely settled by the convicts.
who are brought together from every
part of the Indian Empire. You find
these Cingalese nurderers. Burmese
Dacoits, Bcngalee sedition-moneers
tho mighty Himalayas.
The object In view 10 to reform tho
criminal and turn him into a skilled
laborer or artisan. For the frst six
months Of his sentence prisoner
does Separates" Just as he does ia
England. He works alone in his cell
under a rigid regime
Then, II he has behaved himself he is
sent 70 station, where he works with a
sans under the direction OF expert Off
, Gals, and for year and half does
hard ana Inraid labor, but Is well fed,
! housed and cared for
II his conduct IS satisfactor ne now
enters on rather lighter labor. FOR which
he receives a small amount of pay. He
can use this to buy uxuIies. or to put in
the savings bank
At last. after 'r'v,'g 10 Years, comes
big change in n' 4. 'udition. He gets a
ticket-of-leave Il r1- a wife he can
now send for her. e. uc is bachelor he
can get permission 70 marry.
The women conviCts are kept on an
, other island. The Would-bc benedict
havina made his proper application to
the authorities, Is ferried over there on Il
Saturday afternoon, and finds the ladies'
who desire to procure husbands drawn up
in long line. He walks past ana seeing
ono who takes his fancy. points her out
and saws: Il like her looks I'll have
her, please, sahih."
Ten to one she jumps ut the chance
But if she objects and says: NO. hes
. an ugly fellow, and ] don't like the looks
of him." the ticket-of-leavc man has to
try again and make Il second choice
The counting Is rather a public proceed
ing, and takes only an hour or so. Next
week they are married and settle down
on piece of land given by the authori-
ties
They keep COWS and poultry. and grow
crops of millct or rice. and often do very
well Their children are educated by the
State, taught two languages and a trade,
and eventually sent back to the main
land, useful members of society.
The bad characters among the men
convicts. about go in all, are kept on
separate island.-Stray Stories.