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PROPOSEL revised Scale of Establishment of Prison Officers for Singapore Gaol.

Officer.

Commencing Rate of Pay.

Total.

Dols.

1 Chief Warder. at 1.200 dols., rising to 1,500 dols. per annum

1,200

Dols. 1,200

7 Warders, at 300 dols to 600 dols. per annum

450

3,150

1 Matron, at 240 dols, to 360 dols. per annum..

240

240

3 Hend-Warders, natives, at 120 dols, to 240 dols. per annum

160

480

36 Warders, natives, ut 84 dols, to 108 dols. per annum

96

3.156

20 Guards, at 8-4 duls, to 96 dols. per annum

84

1.680

1 Clerk and lnterpreter, at 360 dols, to 180 dols, per annum

360

360

2.10

240

GUO

600

11,406

1 Assistant ditto, at 210 dols. to 360 dols. per annum

1 Foreman of Artificers, at 600 dols, per annum

Total

..

SAVING EFFECTED ON THE PRESENT ESTABLISHMENT.

I Chief Warder

Dok,

938

2 Warders, at 480 dols.

960

4 Ditto, at 380 dols,

1,1-40

1 Ditto, at 272 dols.

1 Interpreter, at 163 dols.

272

103

600

1.320

1 Foreman of Works, at 800 dols.

11 Police, say at 120 dols...

Total

5,693

It is difficult to state with accuracy what is the actual cost to the Colony of the 118 convict warders now employed in the prison, but the amount saved to Government by their discontinuance, in addition to the 5,693 dollars given above, will be something considerable.

H. ST. GEORGE ORD.

Government House, June 13, 1872.

(Signed)

Legislative Council.—Singapore, June 13, 1872.

Present:

His Excellency the Governor.

Flis Honour the Chief Justice.

The Honourable the Officer commanding Her Majesty's Troops.

The Honourable the Colonial Secretary.

The Honourable the Attorney-General.

The Honourable the Treasurer.

The Honourable the Acting Colonial Engineer.

The Honourable J. J. Greenshields.

The Honourable R. Little, M.D.

The Honourable T. Shelford.

The Colonial Secretary.—I am directed by the Governor to lay upon the table of Council the following papers :-

A copy of a despatch from the Secretary of State for the Colonies, on the subject of Prison Discipline."

"A Memorandum of his Excellency the Governor on the proposed changes in the management and discipline of the Prisons of the Colony."

The Governor-Gentlemen, I stated to you, in the speech which made at the opening of the Session, that the Secretary of State had long been expressing a very strong and decided opinion with regard to the condition of our prisons, and that, for certain reasons, it had not been found convenient hitherto to bring the subject before you, but that I pro- posed now to do so. I laid before you certain papers, including the Report of a Commission which held a very minute investigation into the state of our prisons here, with recommen- dations for their management. Among the papers were very valuable suggestions by some of the gentlemen of the Settlement, officials and others, on the subject; and lastly, I laid before you a Report by the Colonial Engineer, in which he suggested in what way a change

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could be made by introducing that severer form of discipline and mode of management which it appears necessary to adopt in some shape or form if we are to bring our prisons into the state or condition which it is desirable they should be. I have laid upon the table ́to-day a despatch which happened to be omitted from that correspondence, and which bears upon the question of discipline, upon which everything hinges; and I have also laid upon the table a Memorandum as to these proposed changes. The Memorandum embodies my

views as to what we should now do. I consider that there should be at Singapore one prison in which we should carry out such discipline as the circumstances of the Settlement will allow. I mean the systern which is recognized by all authorities on the subject of prison discipline as absolutely necessary for the suppression of crime. each of the other Settlements there should be prisons in which the system should be carried

propose out as thoroughly as possible, but that in the case of long-sentence prisoners they should be brought down here. Probably we should have better facility for managing it here, and the removal would be attended with very little difficulty or expense.

I

that at

you

wil

prisons should be taken from the Public Works Department, and that they should be I propose that the under the charge of one superior officer, who should be resident here, and that the uther gaols should have gaolers of a different social position-mien somewhat of the stamp we have got now. The approaching withdrawal of the transmarine convicts, of course, offers a very good opportunity for carrying out this system, as it gives us space, and gather from the Report of the Colonial Engineer that it will be quite possible to commence the system at once by effecting certain alterations in the prison at Singapore, in which he could put the lowest-stage men under separation, and also introduce and maintain the improved system of discipline. He has given an estimate of the cost of this conversion, which you will see is about 8,000 dollars. He has also given a list of the establishment which he thinks necessary for carrying out the supervision of the prison here, and also the cost of it. I believe myself that, with the slight modifications I have suggested in the Memorandum 1 have laid before you, that scale is a reasonable and proper one, and that if we are to carry out such a prison system as I have spoken of, and as is insisted upon by the Secretary of State, and by all authorities throughout the world, that we cannot com- mence it with a less establishment. I trust that the papers Jaid before you will have convinced you of the immediate necessity of carrying it out, and that at our next meeting you will be ready to consider it, and I need hardly say, to assist me in giving effect to it.

Legislative Council.—Singapore, June 27, 1872.

Present:

His Excellency the Governor.

His Honour the Chief Justice.

The Honourable the Colonial Secretary. The Honourable the Attorney-General.

The Honourable the Treasurer.

The Honourable H. A. K. Whampoa The Honourable J. J. Greenshields The Flonourable R. Little, M.D. The Honourable T. Shelford,

The Governor-Gentlemen, the next order of the day is the consideration of the Report of the Commission on Prison Discipline; and assuming, as I do, that every member has carefully read this Report, I do not think it necessary to trouble

you with

any observations at length upon the matter. I would just summarize very shortly the facts of the case. Our prisons I am speaking now, of course, of the prisons in which

our local prisoners are confined-have for some time past avowedly been in an unsatis- factory condition. It is perhaps hardly necessary or worth while to enter into the con- sideration of the causes which may have led to that—to consider how far the influence of that system of prison discipline, which the maintenance of the Indian transmarine convict establishment amongst us necessitated, has prevailed to produce the state of affairs which exists amongst our own local prisoners. influenced by the transmarine system; and for that, as you know, no one here is There is no doubt that it has been largely responsible: it was an act of the Indian Government; and whether under the old Indian Government or that of the Colonies, we have been compelled to continue the arrangement which we found in force. That our own system of discipline is not what it ought to be

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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

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Reference :-

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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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