BRITISH PRISONS VISITED.

NZ Truth, Issue 177, 7 November 1908, Page 8

BRITISH PRISONS VISITED.

Wormwood Scrubs.

$By LADBRO

FIRST-TASTE OP SERVITUDE. Wormwood Scrubs is, perhaps, the saddest and most sombce prison, m England. It is not only its size and the dreariness of its situation which depresses the imagination, hut the thought; that here the man whom society has condemned to more than two years of silence and isolation receives his first taste of servitude. He- is brought straight from the dock where he has received sentence to the "Scrubs" m the custody of the warder who has. had charge of him at Brixton while he has been under, remand. Already he has ceased' to have any separate identity. He has become so much living human flesh, and the warder who brings him must receive a "receipt m full" for his "foody" from the prison authorities "betoro he may relinquish his' charge. This grim ordeal takes place m what is - called the "reception room" — a long, narrow chamber, with a row of unvarnished forms at one end, and at the other end a desk at which a warder sits. Each prisoner stands up m turn to answer his name; his commitment order is examined, and the receipt for him made out. This Is' 'not a mere, empty formality, but a yery necessary part of ' • THE PRISON ROUTINE. There are at least two cases on record hi which carelessness and inattention on Hie part of the warder m the. "reception room" led to men obtaining their freedom - before it was due, . ■■-..•■ One of these cases is well known. A prisoner, whom we will call Jones, : had been sentenced to several years penal servitude. Travelling up m the BlacK Maria from «the Old Bailey he' got into conversation with Smith, who was going ito prison for a few months only. • l^or a certain 1 siim of money Smith consented to change places with, Jones. In the "reception room" Jones answered to the name of Smith, and Smith to the -name of .Jones. .This interchange of identities passed unnoticed, with the result that Jones, who ought- to have- remained m prison for several years, found 'himself at the end of a few months a free man. ' Once his confederate was ,tree, Smith immediately petitioned the Prison Commissioners for release. His case was examined into, and. it was 'discovered,; ql course, that while he was "down" to undergo several years', penal servitude,- he was only entitled to be imprisoned for a few months. He was at once released. It was fotmd impossible to proceed against Jones, or to haul- him back to prison, as . he had been GRANTED A FULL DISCHARGE. The other case, which, has never before been placed on record) is that of a man who was sent to prison on two separate commitments. By the first commitment he had to undergo a month's imprisonment without the option of a fine. On the second commitment he was sentenced also to a month's imprisonment, but with the option of a fine. After he had been a fortnight m gaol his friends came' to the prison and paid over the necessary moneys to prevent, him from serving the second month. . •■ < ' »-.-.. The warder who had charge of the office, \ m turning over .the papers connected with the case, overlooked the first commitment order, and seeing by the secoritt order that the man. was entitled- to.the option of a fine, immediately released him. A few hours later the mistake was discovered, and consternation reigned within the prison The. problem was how to get the man , back to prison. He could not 'be re-ar-rested, for he had been formally released. Bjat got back lie must be. In this dilemma the police at the man's native village wore communicated with. They sought out tlie ex-prisoner, who was a very.sinv i pie-minded man, arid so frightened him | with impossible threats of what would happen to him that he actually hurried j back to the gaol, and at midnight rang the front gate bell and beggei to be readmitted, tie subsequently served the're--maining fortnight of his senttsnee— all but the tost day". This day the Governor remitted by way of rewarding, the man who quite unconsciously did him a signal favor by voluntarily returning to durance vile. ■PRISONERS' vPROPKRITV. " After leaving the "reception ;room" the prisoner is conducted to another apartBaont. Here, behind a serene, m the presence "of an officer, he takes off, his clothes. As each garment is shed, its.' description ia called out from behind Vhe screen by the officer, and all the valuables and'papers the man may have atftut him are tepated m the same way. ''A warder, seated m another, part of Tihe : room, takes ihese details down m a book, which : the prisoner signs as soon ,3s he has- dressed himself again. On his 'release he again signs this book, before recovering back Ma property. . ■•-'-, Be is then conducted to a set of clean and very comfortable bathrooms near at hand, where he is compelled to take a btith. This over, he dons his prison clothes. . He is then measured, and a note taken of any peculiarities m his appearance. The 'next business is to ; obtain an impression of his finger-prints. This is not always an easy -affair. Many prisoners strongly object to assisting Scotland Yard m this manner, and m such cases the i IMPRESSIONS OF THEIR FINGtiKS are. taken by force. . These finger-prints ■ are taken on a specially printed form; on the back of which the man signs his name, and leaves the impress of his thumb. I was told that Scotland Yard possess nearly a quarter of a million of these documents, and have brought the science to such a pitch of perfection that on receipt of a prison* er's finger-prints, they are able at once to give him his name and -recount the Whole record of his life. / When the ordeal is safely over the new prisoner goes before the . doctor, who pronounces \on his fitness for certain diet and work. After this he has to wait m a sort of small, closed-ir stall until he can be conducted to the cell which he is to occupy m one of the four "halls." 1 should mention that he is also photographed m his ordinary clothes, always with' his hat on, for it has been, found that a hat makes ?a great deal of dirterenqe to a man's appearance. At Worm- ' wood Scrubs there is a large photographic "studio" set apart for this purpose. The prisoners at Wormwood Scrubs are "prisoners," not "convicts." Tliis subtle distinction m name is merely made to distinguish the man who has. been sentenoed to not moire that two years from his fellow unfortunate who has to ■ SERVE A LONGER PERIOD-. A prisoner is dressed differently from the convict. The former wears trousjers, the latter breeches. The prisoner, moreover, is not shaved or clipped, but ia allowed to- wear his hair exactly as he/ does m a state of freedom. In consetjurynce of this ; the men confined at the Scn'ibs present a yery different appearance from those at Dartmoor and Portland. Jirdeed, some ol the men, with their long hair and flowing moustaches, might r&ss for quite ordinary members of the .public. All that could be said of them would be that their taste m dress was somewhat eccentric. There are convicts at the prison, but they are merely placed there, for a few weeks after conviction, before being removed to the collecting pri sons, sucl' as Chelmsford, Lewes, Exeter, Dorchester, or GHoucester. AM these tAmes they undergo what are 'called thin: "separates" or "solitaries^— a form of punishment I cannot helps thinking is /somewhat of a barbarous survival. The "star" man has three months' separate confinement ; THE "INTERMEDIATE" ancTtbe "recidivist" six and nine months respectively. Their, "separates" at an end, these men are transferred to one of< the Public Works prisons such as Dartmoor or Portland. Although no .man is alMowed to remain at the <r Scruby" who has received a longer sentence than, two years^ it sometimes

KE BLACK.);

happens that a prisoner is sentenced to a total of three years on different indictments, the order of the judge being that the terms should run concurrently. m such cases a special report has to be made to the Commissioners at the expiration of two, years, and an inquiry is held. lam satisfied ,that, as at Dartmoor and Portland, the prisoners are treated . ' WELL AND HUMANELY. ■ Almost, it would seem, they are treated so well that confinement- m Wormwood Scrubs does not act as a deterrent to , the wrongdoer. A solicitor, who- had been sentenced to 18 months' imprisonment there, frankly declared a \few days before ths conclusion of his term that he thought the life m gaol far too easy. The diet' is not, of course, as good as it 'is at Ihe Public Works prison, .where the men have to labor m the open air, but it is " none the less sufficient. The M O" diet, which is the most liberal scale of feeding here, is as follows : Breakfast: One pint of porridge. and eight ounces of bread. Dinner: Six ounces of bread, twelve ounces of potatoes, and one 'pint of pea soup, made up ol meat, split peas, fresh 'vegetables, and onions. Supper : One pint of cocoa and eight ounces of bread. This menu, of course, varies from; day to day, but this 1 may be taken as a fair sample of the dietary. Prison cooks have now to pass an examination at South Kensington, and during my visit to the Wormwood / Scrubs kitchen I had pointed out to me two officers from the , provinces, who were undergoing a course of instruction. The kitchen "statistics" are not without interest. Every day seven 'and a-haK sacks of flour are converted into two thousand six hundred pounds of/ Excellent brown bread. To make the suet puddings which are served twice a week one hundred and thirteen pounds of suet and four hundred and fifty-two pounds of flour are used, and when all the ingredients are mixed toother m the trough the concoction half a ton. KITCHEN STATISTICS. lathe larder I saw an' excellent shoulder of mutton, some fish, and a chicken. These dainties were for the use" of some of the men m hospital. Cooks were also busy concocting jellies for them, and some delicious beef-tea was m process of being made. The invalid prisoner is, m fact, as well looked after as any member of the wealthy classes, ■ and if the doctors order him champagne and ,oysters; champagne and oysters lie gets. As a result of all this care the death-rate Is remarkably low. Last year, when the daily; average of prisoners was 1371, the number of deaths was only seven, and of these seven men who died five ■ were over seventy. '^ The prison has accommodation for between I^oo arid 1500 prisoners, but the daily average for the year is less than the first of these numbers. About 300 "J.A.'s" arje kept at Wormwood Scrubs under the Borstal System. They have a speacial "chief warder" to themselves— a man of whose humanity ) and kindnessi it is impossible to speak too highly. He accompanied me round the prison, and again and again spoke with the warmest enthusiasm of THE BQR&TAL- SYSTEM. With good-lrdiirtfed pride he showed me the 'hoysvxas' drill" m the gymnasium, m their workshops, and m the garden. He conducted me into their class-rooms, told me of. the magic-lantern lectures they attend, and 6f the instruction they receive m navigation from an ex-petty officer ; pointed cut to me boys who had specially distinguished themselves m thair workV or had shown remarkable aptitude m learning a trade— and m every instance it was easy to.s ee that he was engrossed, heart and soul, m the spkndid. work of trying to refbrm the youthful criminal. The prisoners who are not "J.A.'s'' are engaged m a large variety of industries. They occupy themselves with tailoring, building, tinning, and the manufacture of baskets, maiPaaHS, lv.ats, carpets, ship's fenders, cases m winch to carry naval shells, and boots. Those undergoing bard labor have to make coal bags for the Ijavy— great, heavy, coarse sacks stitched with rope and cord. The maximum task is eight a week, but the average a man has to complete m his working hours is five— a task which it must be' very difficult to -fulfil. . There are three places of worship m the prisonj-31 Church of England chapel, a Roman Catholic chapel, which has just been rebuilt after being destroyed by fire, and a Synagogue. . The first of these' is a remarkably fine building, built entirely by- the convicts with stone QUARRIED AT PORTLAND. The chancel is decorated with mural paintings, also the work of me prisoners. One of these pictures, which is placed immediately above the altar, it of a, very high order of artistic merit. There' are many pictures bung each year m the Academy no better than- this unknown unfortunate's work. Nine years ago female prisoners were received at Wormwood Scrubs, and the chapel still remains ■ . the sort of well m | which they sat, completely shut off ■from the view of the male prisoners. This well is bow occupied by the "J.A.'s" While on the subject of relig-. ious worship, I 'cannot refrain from mentioning that to 'be a Jew is to be a very favored prisoner. Not only do they keep their own Sabbath on Saturday", but they, of course, retrain from working on the Christian Sabbath. In addition to these two days a week of cessation from toil, they are allowed to celebrate, twelve of their festivals during the year. The prison is. staffed with 130 officers, and some idea 'of . the amount of super- • vising work they have to do may be gathered from* the fact thsit there are TWO HUNDRED AND NINETY-FIVE KEYS .;,, employed m the prison. 'At every mealtime all these keys are' counted and checked, and every nignt^at 10" .'the De-puty-Governor, or Chiefi} Warder, goes over them again. " : iMr-" C-, ' Two of the chief difficulties with which the officers Have to contend are the vanity of the prisoners and their love of tobacco. Every ' criminal is intensely vain and m Wormwood Scrubs it takes the form ol desiring always to appear well shaved. I was shown- razors; constructed with amazing skill out of thimbles, nails, and, most remarkable cf all, out of a J pen. How the men get tobacco is a mystery which no one has been able to solve. Constantly prisoners are being found with some of it m their possession. I was. shown two pieces of wood nailed together, and burnt /'and painted to look like some chanced dropped faggot. Some warders saw this LYING ABOUT- THE COURT, but never dreamt of picking it up. At last one of them did so, and to his amazement found inside between the two pieces of wood a whole twist of tobacco. Some friend had thrown it over^ the wall m the wild hope that his "pal" Within might pick it up. Of one great- anxiety the officers have now been, relieved. Until eighteen months ago debtors were imprisoned here, and the work of supervising them was difficult m the extreme. Nqw, however, they have been removed .elsewhere, and Wormwood scrubs is given over entirely to men wearing the gloomy uniform of the Black Arrow.