Sessional_Paper_1891 — Page 125

121

HONGKONG.

No. 274.

No. 129-28th April, 1882.

No. 236-9th October, 1879.

SIR,

DOWNING STREET,

21st November, 1890.

With reference to my despatch No. 273 of this day's date, I have the honour to enclose, for the guidance of the Surveyor General, a copy of a despatch which was addressed to the Mauritius Government in 1882 on the subject of the amount of space to be allowed to sleeping cells for single prisoners in the tropics.

I also enclose a copy of a despatch addressed in 1879 to the Straits Settle- ments Government, which shows the dimensions to be given to cells intended for use by day as well as by night, and I would add that if possible a certain number

of such cells should be provided in Hongkong so as to give facilities for complete separation during the early part of a sentence of imprisonment. Valuable experience on this head could no doubt be obtained from Singapore.

The Officer Administering the Government of

HONGKONG.

I have the honour to be,

Sir,

Your most obedient, humble Servant,

ROBERT G. W. HERBERT, for the Secretary of State.

(Copy.)

(Lord Kimberley to the Officer Administering the Government of Mauritius.)

MAURITIUS.

No. 129.

SIR,

DOWNING STREET,

28th April, 1882.

I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your despatch No. 97 of the 13th ultimo, respecting certain queries raised on the reports of the Port Louis. prison for the years 1879 and 1880.

2. In the 2nd paragraph of your despatch you state " I should be glad to be instructed what is considered by competent authorities to be the smallest proper quantum of sleeping space in a well ventilated cell with large apertures, giving on to airy corridors and to the open air itself" and in paragraph 4 of your despatch No. 132 of the 21st ultimo, adverting to the same point you state "in a prison ventilated say with large gratings in the roof or walls of the cell the sleeping space is practically extended beyond the cell walls" and you submit that in a prison of this description "648 cubic feet per cell would be a fully sufficient cell space."

3. If the cells of a prison are in the main constructed of open lattice work, as would be the case according to Captain OMMANNEY's plans, or if to use your own words they are "ventilated with large gratings in the roof or walls of the cell" and have large apertures giving on to the airy corridors and to the open air itself' which could be left open during the night time without injury to the health of the prisoners; then 648 cubic feet would probably be found to be sufficient space for cells intended for sleeping purposes only: in fact in prisons of this construction,