[iv]
Officer that either a gluteal abscess would form or that, upon its formation, blood poisoning would supervene. In our opinion the flogging was not the causa proxima, but merely the causa remota of the death of the prisoner.
(vii) Whilst upon these two cases the Committee beg to direct attention to (a) the small percentage of gluteal abscesses resulting from a flogging (see Table in Appendix VI.); (b) the case of prisoner No. 704 being the only known instance of death supervening within a month of a flogging which seems to point to another cause than that of the flogging as the cause of death; (c) the overcrowded state of the Gaol hospital which increases the chances of contagion and infection and predisposes especially to septic infection; (d) the fact that the Chinese prisoners lie on the floor of the hospital thus exposing themselves to greater chances of infection; and the want of expert attendants which deprives the patients of skilled nursing.
THE GENERAL QUESTION OF FLOGGING.
7. (i) Floggings may be ordered by Courts of Justice or by the Superintendent of the Gaol, or by him in conjunction with a Visiting Justice.
(ii) In Appendix VII. will be found a collation of the law which confers on the Judges and Magistrates powers of ordering flogging, By Rule 274 of the Prison Rules and Regulations published in Government Gazette of 31st October, 1891, the power of the Superintendent alone to order flogging for certain offences is limited to twelve strokes, and by Rule 275 the conjoint power of the Superintendent and of a Visiting Justice to order flogging for the same offences, if occurring in a graver form, is limited to thirty-six strokes in the case of an adult and twelve strokes in the case of a juvenile.
(iii) All floggings must be administered on the breech with a rattan of an
approved pattern.
(iv) Two rattans are in vogue particulars of which are as follows
weight.
Rattan for adults,......... 4 oz. Rattan for juveniles,...... 2
length.
46 ins.
circumference. 13 ins.
35
2
(v) Floggings are administered by two European officers of the Gaol staff selected for the purpose, and we have no reason to take exception to the manner in which these men perform their disagreeable duty.
(vi) We are deeply impressed with the necessity for vesting the Superintendent with independent powers of flogging for the reasons subjoined :---
(a) Because prompt punishment is, in our experience, the most
efficacious way of dealing with Chinese.
(b) Because there are but few, if any, persous of leisure in the Colony to whom resort could be hal on every occasion on which it might be necessary to inflict a flogging.
(c) Because it would be an undue hardship upon busy commercial men to require their attendance at a fixed hour every day- as might be the case-to inquire into the conduct of, and to inflict punishment upon, prisoners.