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Latrobe's final remarks upon convicts as Adminis- trator of the Government in Van Diemen's Land, and Sir W. Denison's first remarks upon the same subject after his arrival in the colony.

22. Mr. Latrobe's despatch, dated the 31st May, stated that he had found no corruption nor any gross irregularity among the departments connected with convicts; but that in such distant countries, and for such unpalatable duties, it was hardly to be expected that very good or efficient officers could The be obtained at a moderate remuneration. remainder of his report chiefly turned upon a gene- ral comparison between the systems of Assignment and Probation, and of the two he gave a decided preference to the former. He did not recommend either, but pointed out in strong terms, that if large numbers of convicts must be transported, it was far worse that they should be banded together, as they were in the probation gangs, than dispersed among people of better character.

Mr. Latrobe, May 31, 1847.

Parliamentary Paper of May 1848, page 33.

Sir W. Denison, July 10, 1847.

Parliamentary Paper of May 1848, page 79,

23. Sir W. Denison and Mr. Hampton, the new Comptroller of Convicts, dwelt on the want of pro- per buildings and the absence of competent officers. The latter was in the course of correction by the reduction of establishments and retention of the best public servants; the former would naturally require more time for its amendment. The Lieu- tenant-Governor reported that the convicts both on the hands of Government and in private employ had fallen into listless habits, and that although good might be effected by the system of Task-work suggested by Lord Grey, it must demand time to eradicate inveterate faults. He dwelt on the evils of charging the Colonial Government for convict labour.* Finally, he enlarged upon the loss which it would be to the colony, to be deprived altogether of the supply of labour which through Transporta- tion it had enjoyed. His practical view was, that convict should go through a Separate confine- every ment of twelve or eighteen months in England, and then be sent to the Australian colonies, free to enter into service as a passholder, with the prospect of obtaining, by good conduct, a ticket of leave.

24. Simultaneously with these despatches from Van Diemen's Land, accounts had arrived from Bermuda and Gibraltar, which gave reason to con. sider that the discipline there was beneficial, and

This point had in the meantime been conceded to the colony. See paragraph 20.

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Vide 2nd paragraph of Lord Grey's the Government considered that another year's despatch of April 27, 1848, in experience of the effects of Separate confinement at Parliamentary Paper of May 5, 1848, page 132.

home was very satisfactory.

1848.

25. Such were the principal facts and the prin cipal reports which had been received from the colonies, when in the early part of 1848 the Go- vernment again took into consideration, as it had done in the commencement of 1847, the measures which it would be right to adopt upon Transporta- tion. Their views were embodied in Lord Grey's Parliamentary Paper, May 5, 1848, despatch of the 27th of April, 1848.

page 132.

26. In that despatch his Lordship began by referring to the above-mentioned satisfactory indi- cations of the working of the new course of disci- pline. He also alluded to the favourable accounts of the exiles sent to Port Philip. On these grounds he said that the Government had come to the conclusion that no convicts should be at large in the United Kingdom during the period of their sentences, but that after one term of separate con- finement, and another of employment on public works, they should be forwarded to Van Diemen's Land with tickets of leave, of which the despatch then pointed out the advantage in maintaining a strong control over the convict, while it did not interfere with his free action, so long as his conduct

was good. Lord Grey added that each convict was

Vide despatch to Sir Charles Fitz- to repay the cost of his conveyance (which has

ruy, December 12, 1846, page 57 since been fixed at 151.), and that the proceeds

of Paper on Convict Discipline. By command, February 1849.

No con-

should be applied, not to diminishing the cost of transportation, but to supplying the colony with free labourers as a counterpoise to any evil appre- hended from the introduction of men who had been found guilty of offences against the law. ditional pardon was to be granted to a ticket-of- leave man until he had repaid the cost of his intro- duction; but it was proposed that such a pardon should be granted immediately afterwards to seven- years men if their behaviour had been otherwise satisfactory, and that in all cases those repayments should be accepted as strong evidence of industry and good conduct.

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

TPILLC.O.

885

2 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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