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The duty of supplying the granite has hitherto fallen upon the Surveyor General's Department and the cost is charged to it.
The Surveyor General complains very strongly of the great expense caused thereby in road repairs, except perhaps for roads or streets in the immediate neighbourhood of the Gaol,
Carrying stone to and from the Gaol to any part of the Colony, except the streets immediately adjoining, causes a large outlay. Mr. PRICE says that since the system has been altered, roads can be mended 25 per cent more cheaply. Contractors object to take stone broken in the Gaol, as they can get stone broken in site or very nearly so at 75 cents the cubic yard. Women and children are largely employed in this way in the roads and streets.
Recommendation.-The Committee think that if "Stone-breaking" is to be considered a form of punishment so useful that it deserves to be retained, any loss should fall on the Gaol Department. If, however, owing to the soft nature of the material, it does not form a punishment of the "intermediate" class, "Stone-carrying" seems to be equally or more useful, with the advantage that the prisoners are not armed with such deadly weapons as hammers would be in case of an outbreak.
STONE-DRESSING.-This is an employment which requires a certain amount of teaching, and is given to a few long sentenced prisoners.
The Surveyor General complains that it is costly to his Department for the same reason as stone-breaking, but this may be remedied in the way before suggested.
It has the advantage of teaching the prisoners employed a sort of skilled labour by which they may earn a livelihood on the expiration of their sentences.
STONE-POLISHING.-This has been tried to a very small extent. It is doubtful whether it could be made hard labour.
The granite of the island is capable of taking a very high degree of polish, and a demand for polished granite, or marble, might be created, which would render the labour self-paying, if not remunerative.
N.B. Mr. TONNOCHY objects that this work, requiring the constant application of water, keeps the prisoners sitting or standing in wet clothes, and thus is likely to affect their health. The Committee think that this objection might be easily overcome and would recommend this as a useful form of work, provided there are no other reasons to the contrary.
The 5 forms of labour considered so far alone constitute work to which the epithet "hard" can in any sense be applied, 3 being intermediate. The rest are employments to which prisoners under long sentences are put, and may be considered together.
They come under the head of "industrial" forms, and are valuable as teaching a trade, or kind of work, which will enable a man to maintain himself on leaving Gaol.
It is unnecessary to describe them.
The Committee, however, desire to call the attention of His Excellency, especially to No. 11 ("Service"). Under this heading, the employment of long sentenced prisoners in the service of the Officers of the Gaol comes. About 15 in all are so employed. Some of the prisoners are employed in cooking for the Turnkeys. The kitchens are situated outside the immediate precincts of the Gaol near the entrance gate, through which coolies and other persons bringing necessaries, or having business in the Gaol pass constantly, so that communication with the outside may be, and no doubt is easily carried on, and articles forbidden by the rules introduced.
Recommendation.-The Committee strongly recommend that all this should cease. That the prisoners should never be allowed to pass the prison gates by the Office yard, and that a sufficient number of servants should be employed to attend on the Officers.
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CLERICAL LABOUR.-One prisoner is employed in the Office and keeps all the books under the direction of the Superintendent and Warden. The sentence of the prisoner now so employed, it is understood, will shortly expire.
Recommendation.-The Committee are of opinion that it would be much better to secure the services of a regular clerk, rather than to rely upon the trustworthiness of an inmate of the Gaol for the accuracy of important records.
2ND CLASS PUNISHMENTS.
PUNISHMENTS FOR BREACHES OF GAOL RULES.-These punishments are inflicted under the authority of the Gaol Ordinance, No. 4 of 1863, either by the Superintendent acting alone (Section II) for the offences enumerated there, or a breach of the Gaol Rules or discipline-or by the Superintendent in conjunction with the Visiting Justices if the offence is beyond the power of the Superintendent to visit with adequate punishment.
They are: Imprisonment in a "solitary cell" for 3 days on a diet of bread or rice and water; or Flogging with 12 strokes of the rattan in case of felons.
In conjunction with Visiting Justices, the Superintendent may punish by close or solitary confinement on bread or rice and water for 14 days in the case of felons or prisoners twice convicted within 3 months by 36 strokes.
FLOGGING.
In the Regulations of June, 1857, the limit fixed by Rule 78 was not more than 6 strokes after a previous inspection by the Colonial Surgeon, the highest number of strokes being 15 (by Rule 83).
The Ordinance having over-ridden the Gaol Regulations, it will be seen that the Superintendent has no power to inflict corporal punishment on any prisoners but those convicted of felony when acting alone. With the concurrence of the Visiting Justices he has the power to punish not only felons, but prisoners twice in 3 months guilty of a similar breach of Gaol Rules or of the offences enumerated in the 10th Section of the Ordinance whether felons or misdemeanants.
Recommendation as to flogging.-The majority of the Committee (3 to 2) recommend that the power of flogging a prisoner, except in the case of boys under 16 years, be taken altogether out of the hands of the Superintendent acting alone.
(Vide Lords' Reports, Part 2, Chap. 2, Note H).
That in cases of breach of Gaol Rules or of offences enumerated in the Special Rule proposed for the sanction of His Excellency, should the Superintendent consider that his powers of punishment are not adequate to the gravity of the offence, the Visiting Justices for the week should have notice given to them and he requested to attend at the earliest hour convenient to them.
That should neither two of the Visiting Justices of the week be able to attend, the Police Magistrate for the day shall go to the Gaol. That the offender be brought before them or him, and that the complaint be investigated on the oath of the witnesses, and that a note of the complaint and the evidence, as well as the sentence, be taken down in a book.
That such Visiting Justices, or Police Magistrate, should have authority to order all prisoners, except debtors and 1st class misdemeanants, to undergo a flogging of not more than 24 strokes if above 16 years of age, and not more than 12 strokes if under.
IRONS, CHAINS AND HANDCUFFS.-By regulation 9, the Superintendent has at present power to put a prisoner in irons for an unlimited time, recording the facts in his book, meaning, it is presumed, the book answering to the "Daily Occurrence Book.”
In a letter dated 8th February, 1876, the attention of the Committee was directed to this subject by the Colonial Secretary, who forwarded an extract from the Visiting Justices' book by which it was pointed out that a prisoner, MOK-A-KAP had been kept in double irons for a period (it is presumed but not stated) of 6 days consecutively, and suggesting that an Order be made placing a limit to the punishment.