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27. COMPLAINT AGAINST A WARDER.—My cell is over that of a Chinaman, whose name I do not know. On one occasion the Chinaman knocked at the door of his cell. He wanted his chamber emptied and a light supplied. Warder Pond opened the door and said to the Chinaman, "You — — — — you ought to be hung " Those were the exact words used. I heard the Chinaman the shriek out and moan and cry. I reported the matter to the Officer-in-Charge of the division who came to me. The Chinaman was removed to the hospital next day. I do not know if anything further was done in the matter. The same Warder Pond assaulted the lunatic Isaacs who went to the asylum. A complaint was made on that occasion, but no notice was taken of it. 28. SHAVING.— The hair should be allowed to grow for at least three months before leaving prison. 29 REMISSIONS.—Forty-nine days' remission is now allowed for 12 months, with special remissions for special work. the remissions are on an ascending scale, increasing with the time the prisoner is in gaol ; but, if a prisoner commits an offence in the first month the authorities knock off, not the two or three days remission due in respect of the first month, but the larger period earned during the last month of the twelve; besides, remissions are knocked off even if the magistrate before whom the prisoner is charged does not punish him. 30. ROMAN CATHOLIC LIBRARY.—£10 was voted by the Government for the library, but no books have yet been supplied out of that vote. The Catholic library consists of some 300 books, all in a bad state of repair. Only two religions are recognised in the gaol—blackfellows and Chinese being put down as Roman Catholics. There is practically very little for the Roman Catholics to read, and to get hold of anything they must traffic with the readers of Church of England books, which is against the rules. The Church of England library consists of 2,000 to 2,500 books, and affords a far bigger choice of works. Practically, the only educational work in the Catholic library is the "Popular Educator," which you can scarcely ever get because there is such a demand for it. I think the libraries should be amalgamated, because the books in either case are not especially associated with any particular religious from of belief. 31. RESOURCES OF PRISONERS WHEN DISCHARGED.—Under the Westralian system a prisoner who has no means of his own is discharged penniless; but in New South Wales a prisoner is allowed a minimum of 3d. a week, but he may earn a good deal more; in fact, at the end of three years he goes to Trail Bay, where he may earn 2s. 6d. a day by working at his trade. In that way he accumulates a fund, and does not drift back to gaol again. For 350 out of every 400 men here there no hope; they are without resources, and must get back to gaol sooner or later. 32. COMPLAINT AGAINST MY LAWYER FOR NON-PROSECUTION OF APPEAL.—Mr. Kelly was retained by myself and another prisoner to appeal in the legal point that Barrack Street was not a "place" within the meaning of Act. He told me distinctly that the appeal was set down for hearing at the July sittings, but nothing has been done in the matter, although I paid Mr. Kelly his charges got taking up the appeal. I have been unable to obtain any redress. Mr. Faribairn, the magistrate, advises me that I can only get redress as against Mr. Kelly after I leave the gaol. There has been some correspondence with Mr .Kelly in the matter. [Correspondence produced and read.] I have petitioned to have the matter re-opened, but the Attorney General has advised that nothing should be done. [Petition produced and read.] No. 2920, recalled and further examined. 33. EVIDENCE AGAINST PRISONERS.—I complain that prisoners are punished on evidence take before the Sheriff which is not given on oath. 34. EXERCISE,—Prisoners sent to the cells get, practically, no exercise, except, perhaps three quarters of an hour or an hour on Sundays. On Monday, Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday we are lucky we get half an hour. 35. SENTENCE.—I have been about 15 months in gaol and have about 12 months left to do, unless some of it remitted. Nine months or so out of the lot is for offence committed in gaol. I have been about two years in the colony. I came here from England. 36. RATIONS.—I make no complaint of the quantity of the food; I am never hungry; I get enough; I am in the hospital. As to the diet of prisoners in the cells awaiting trail for offences committed inside the gaol I have seen no rules posted. I have heard that there are rules, but I have never seen any. No. 10486, examined. 37. EMPLOYMENT OF PRISONERS.—I am a tailor, but for some years I have been turning a crank until I am nearly cranky myself. I would prefer to be working at my trade. 38. PETITION.—I have several times of my trail to allowed to bring forward fresh and material evidence which was not available at the time of my trial on a charge of burglary, for which I am now undergoing 10 years. I have asked for a petition to be sent through Mr. Vosper to the Governor, but that has been refused twice—once by the sheriff and once by the Visiting Justice, Mr Fairbairn. I understand that since the Commission has been appointed it has been decided that I might petition, but I thought I would prefer to bring the matter first before the Commission. [Prisoner was informed that any petition must follow the course prescribed by the regulations of the gaol.] 39. OFFENCE IN THE GAOL.—I complain of the loss of the constable's stripes for one offence, and, generally, of the heavy punishments awarded for trivial and sometimes imaginary offences in gaol. 40. RULES.—The rules are never read to prisoners. This is always done when I have been in Pentridge and Darlinghurst. 41. DIET.—After a man has been in gaol some time he cannot eat much and suffers from the want of variety of food. No vegetables, expect potatoes, are provided. No. 2326, examined. 42. DIET.—The food is better, but not much better now than it was three or four months ago, when it was very bad; in fact, not fit to eat. 43. PERSONAL.—I got my first three months in Perth for larceny. I escaped on the way to gaol and got 18 months for that ; I slipped the handcuffs and got away. I am only 20 years of age. I come Victoria, where I had no occupation. I was a foot-racing man; that was my only means of living. I had been only two weeks in this Colony when I got my first sentence. I got three dozen lashes and a month in irons for escaping. I felt the pain of the flogging for some days, but the principal pain went off after the first day. 44. MEDICAL TREATMENT.—The Doctor does not see or examine a prisoner on any occasion expect the prisoner's name down for the Doctor to see him. 45. REMISSIONS.—I do not know what remission I am entitled to. I asked the Superintendent, and he said it was like my impudence, after being flogged. He said, "All that is waiting for you is the gallows; the same fate is awaiting you and you brazen face mate' (the man who was flogged when I was). I am told that my sentences are cumulative. The Judge did not say so. I should like inquiry to be made into that, as I fancy they are really concurrent sentences. (The commission adjourned) MONDAY, OCTOBER 17TH, 1898. Present : Dr. ADAM JAMESON, Chairman. Mr. M. L. Moss. <r. E. W. Mayhew. Mr. F. Craig. No. 10502, examined. 46. SENTENCE .— I am undergoing a sentence of 15 years, of which I have done two. I am 64 years of age. In conjunction with two very young men, I was charged with assault ad robbery. It is not reasonable to suppose that those young men would associate in crime with an old man like myself, or I with them. [Witness detailed circumstances connected with the alleged assault and robbery.] The two men charged with me were sentenced differently. One got 15 years, like myself, and the other got ten. The Judge only gave that man 10 years, because he said he had ascertained that he was a young married man. His wife had been to see the Judge about the sentence. I was a married man, too, with a family, but I omitted to bring that fact before the Judge. 47. PERSONAL.—I would like to say that, if the same evidence had been given by the prosecutor at the trial as before the Police Court, I could not have been convicted. He has been known to say this himself. Subsequently the prosecutor himself got six months and came down here. I went to him then and said, "I will kill you within a week if you do not make up your mind to make the same statement as you did in the Police Court." I was told that I was liable to be flogged for that; I did not mind; I would take my chance of anything to get the matter re-opened. The Superintendent said he would put the man where I could not get at him, and two days afterwards he was taken out of the prison. 48. TREATMENT OF PRISONERS ON DISCHARGE. —Prisoners are sent away penniless at 12 o'clock in the day, when it is too late to get a job for the day, particularly on Saturday. On the other side, I left Trail Bay with £17 in my pocket, having earned 2s. 6d. a day part of the time. We were allowed to spend 1s. 3d. out of the 2s. 6d. in tobacco and little luxuries. There is a man in gaol now who was discharged from the other side with £63 in his pocket. He had done about ten years altogether, and during part of the time earned 2s. 6d. a day. 49. DIET. —For the young man the food is insufficient. It is enough for an old man like myself. Personally, I have no complaints to make against the system or the officials. I have always been treated with all the consideration that a prisoner deserves , and I have tried to treat the officials in like manner. I am the barber. I have no hard work to do. I get nothing but the regulation food. I believe that greater variety in the matter if vegetables would save the medicine chest a good deal.
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