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their Report, I am not in a position to afford your Lordship fuller information on the subject.

Sir,

I have, &c.

(Signed) WM. F. DRUMMOND JERVOIS.

Inclosure 1 in No. 59.

Colonial Secretary's Office, Colombo, May 21, 1874. WITH reference to your letter of the 23rd March last, I am directed to transmit to you, for the information of the Governor of the Straits Settlements, the inclosed copy of a Report by the Inspector-General of Prisons here, on the scale of penal dict adopted in the gaols of the island, together with a copy of the Rules approved by the Government for its application.

I have, &c.

។

(Signed)

The Hon. the Colonial Secretary,

Straits Settlements.

CHARLES P. LAYARD,

Acting Colonial Secretary.

277

Penal diet is reported, with few exceptions, to be working well. The prisoners undoubtedly dislike it; and when the result is carefully tested, it is shown to have no ill effect on the health. One Fiscal regards it as a safeguard against the effect of higher feeding during the rest of the month than the prisoner had been accustomed to as a free man.

Die is purely a medical question, but my non-professional opinion is that our diets are too high, and that the prisoners are too well fed.

The following Rules and Regulations made by the Governor, with the advice of the Executive Council, to be observed in the different prisons in this island, are published for general information.

By his Excellency's command,

(Signed) WILLIAM CHAS. GIBSON,

Colonial Secretary.

Colonial Secretary's Office,

Colombo, June 12, 1867.

вы

Report referred to.

Prison's Office, Colombo, May 8, 1874. I have the honour to annex copy of the prison dietary, and to state that the fiscals generally report that the issuing of penal diet works well, and is in no way injurious to health.

The Prison Discipline Commission have reported to the same effect.

I annex extracts from a Report by Mr. Duval, and from my Annual Report of 1873.

F. R. SAUNDERS, Inspector-General of Prisons.

(Signed)

Prison Dietary.

Europeans and Burghers.

- Full Diet.—14 lb. of bread, 1 oz. of sugar, oz. of coffee (ground), I lb. of meat, 2 plantains, oz. salt and pepper.

Penal Diet,-14 lbs. of bread.

Natives. Two rice cakes or appas, with oz. of ground coffee and 1 oz. of jaggery, of a measure of rice, with 24 oz. of salt fish, and a sufficient quantity of vegetable, with the necessary condiments, to make curry for two meals.

Penal Diet.- measure of rice to make conjee in the morning, I of measure of rice and salt for two meals.

1. The diet of every prisoner sentenced to imprisonment and hard labour, or com- mitted to be detained at hard labour, shall consist of rice and salt only for food (or, in the case of Europeans, of bread), and of water only for drink, for the first ten days in cach month of imprisonment. When the whole term does not exceed ten days the prisoner will be kept on this penal diet for the whole time.

2. The Local Medical Officer of each of the prisons is hereby directed to watch most carefully, and to report promptly and fully to the Principal Civil Medical Officer, what effect this diet produces on each prisoner's health; and the former is authorized to alter the dict of any prisoner if, in his judgment, the prisoner's state of health makes such alteration necessary. Every such alteration, and the reasons for making it, and the effect produced by it, shall be specially reported to the Principal Civil Medical Officer.

Sir,

Inclosure 2 in No. 59.

Colonial Secretary's Office, Hong Kong, April 13, 1874. IN accordance with the request contained in your letter of the 23rd March last, I have the bonour to inclose to you, by desire of his Excellency the Governor, the scale of penal diet in usc in the Hong-kong Gaol.

In reply to your inquiry, how it is found to work, and whether or not-it increases the death-rate amongst the prisoners, I have to inform you that since the introduction of penal diet and labour into the gaol in September, 1872, the general health of the prisoners has been very good. It is necessary, however, in the case of Europeans to watch the effect of the system carefully, as with some men weight is rapidly diminished after penal diet during the second and third periods.

All prisoners too should be weighed when received in gaol, as well as previous to penal diet and on coming off.

The Hon. the Colonial Secretary, Straits Settlements.

I have, &c. (Signed) J. GARDINER AUSTIN,

Colonial Secretary.

Extract from Mr. Duval's Report.

The prisoners in the penal stage are weighed every month before the commencement of the issue of penal diet, and the following extracts from a letter dated March 10, 1869, affords satisfactory proof that the system, though severe, is not injurious to health.

"The test of the system, as affects the health, really rests in the fact that the prisoners generally improve in bodily vigour and aptitude for labour under the treatment."

Extract from Mr.Saunder's Report.

Diet. The diet of prisoners continues to be on the same scale as in previous years,

** It is right to remark that the Secretary of State did not concur in the views here expressed as to the effect of penal diet in promoting the health of prisoners.

SCHEDULE No. 1.

Full Diet.-Daily Ration for cach.

European or White Prisoner.

Chinese or Coloured Prisoner.

Lb.

Libe

Bread

1

Rice

Beef or pork, without bone

01

Oil, with vegetable and fish

Tea

Salt

:::::

Potatoes or vegetalilos of the seaSON Sugar

Firewood Soop

}

Vegetables, two days

Fresh fish, two days in each week

Cayenne Chutney

*Te#

Salt

Firewood

Soap

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