Prison Administration in Ireland.^*

he Report of the Royal Commission on Prisons in Ireland has disclosed some very unsatisfactory information concerning those establishments and the administration of them. The matter was discussed at the Social Science Congress held in Birmingham in September last, which resulted in a deputation waiting upon Earl Spencer on the 21st of November. The deputation consisted of Mr. H. G. Allen, M. P.; Mr. W. E. Briggs, M. P.; Colonel Colthurst, M.P.; Dr. Farquharson, M.P.; Mr. Hastings, M.P.; Mr. C. H. Hopwood, M.P.; Mr. R. B. Mackie, M.P.; Mr. Peter McLagan, M.P.; Mr. Arthur Moore, M.P.; Mr. George Palmer, M.P.; Sir J. Eardly Wilmot, M.P.; Mr. W. Woodall, M.P.; Sir Walter Crofton, C.B.; Mr. Frederic Hill; Mr. Arthur J. S. Maddison (Secretary, Reformatory and Refuge Union); Mr. James Marshall; Mr. A. Herbert Safford; Mr. William Tallack (Secretary, Howard Association); Mr. R. Denny Wilin; Mr. Westlake, Q.C.; Mr. J. L. Clifford-Smith.

Mr. Hastings introduced the deputation, and in the course of his remarks he pointed out that in 1861 he was convinced that of all the convict systems in the world, the Irish was then the most efficient. Referring to the Report of the Royal Commission, he directed attention to the twelfth paragraph, which says, "cases have undoubtedly come under our notice in which an excessive number of punishments appear to have been inflicted, but these were cases of refractory prisoners, whose mental condition may be described as the border land between sanity and insanity." Also to the 127th paragraph, which speaks of "the large number of long records of punishments inflicted on convicts who have, eventually, become insane." Also to the extraordinary number of prison officials who quit the service. He further shewed that the report teemed with complaints as to the treatment of untried prisoners, and urged that encouragement should be given for the formation of Discharged Prisoners Aid Societies, of which there were only two in the whole of Ireland. In reference to Lusk Intermediate Prison, which the Commissioners seem to recommend should bo disestablished, it was the one prison in Europe in which the prisoners wore under strict moral influence apart from personal coercion, Mr. Hastings thought no greater calamity could happen to Ireland or to England at large, than that such a course should be adopted.

Sir Walter Crofton, as an old member of the Social Science Association, and of the Reformatory and Refuge Union, and as the principal founder of Lusk, strongly supported this opinion, shewing that his original intentions as regards the system at Lusk were not being carried out, and that consequently the numbers in that prison were not as largo as they should be while the expenditure was needlessly excessive.

Earl Spencer in replying, admitted that there were points which were extremely serious in the remarks made by the Prisons Commission. He pointed out that until very recently there had not been the facilities for separating prisoners who were on the border line of insanity, which the establishment at Mary borough now afforded, and he hoped that the very serious blot, in reference to that class of prisoners, would be of the past and not of the future. As regards Discharged Prisoners Aid Societies, Lord Spencer frankly confessed he was not aware, until told by the deputation, that grants were made by Government to these societies in England, but he attached the highest value to their work and should be happy to see them promoted in Ireland. Referring to Lusk, his lordship claimed to be a pupil of Sir Walter Crofton, with whose views on prison management he agreed. But the difficulty with the Government was whether they could justify the maintenance of that system without incurring enormous expense. He hoped the deputation would see that the Irish Government felt the deep importance of this subject, and that the general scope of their views did not differ really from the principles laid down by the deputation. The larger recommendations of the Commission would be taken up as rapidly as possible.

Mr. Hastings thanked Lord Spencer for his great kindness and courtesy and the deputation withdrew.