WRITING ON THE WALL.

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 228, 26 September 1929, Page 16

WRITING ON THE WALL.

IN CELLS OF OLD BAILEY.

A3>VICE FROM OLD-TIMERS.

COMMENT AND CANDOUR

Not a few of those in enforced occupation of the cells at the Old Bailey express their thoughts in writing on the wall. These are obliterated, when the periodical white-washing .takes place, and before the work was begun recently .a Press representative made selections of some of the inscriptions. Some of them reflect on the judges, and run:— " Sir Ernest Wild is a good sort and listens to reason.", "When Wild's wild he's wild." "God bless Atherley Jones." " Fifteen months for coining. Expected five years. Good old Atherley." " Dickens is- unjust," wrote a man, but the' "unjust" was crossed through by another .prisoner,, and the words added, " a good fellow." To the comment, "Dickens is fair with sentences," was a shaky addition, "Pray the Lord lie'will deal leniently with me;" A warning to. accused persons about giving evidence "theriiselves was neatly phrased: "Take advice from a .wily o'd fox and don't —it's optional—go in the box." The truth of this apparent.y occurred to the man who wrote, " Always tell the truth, as the prosecuting counsel will find you out, and it will be the worse for you." "Never squeak on a pal," is another bit of advice. " That is how the cops beat you every time." The only clever criminals are those who are never brought to book, according, to the man who wrote this: " There are no clever people in prison. Any mug can do a job, but it takes a clever man not to be convicted." The warders come in for a good word. "I must admit that the warders here treat you like gentlemen." "Yes, but wait till they get you in stir," was the comment below. High above the Old Bailey building, as most people know, towers, the figure of Justice holding in one hand a sword and in the other-a pair of scales. It is not , so well known that a hole is drilled' through the scales so that the water cannot collect. One observant-prisoner appeared to have noticed this, for he \Vrote after sentence: "The scales of justice are not true. They have holes in j them." Below a signature'was , a reference to the Josephine O'Dare case: " This signature was the means of bringing.'the O'Dare gang to book."; Educated and talented men have occupicd these places. Some of the inscriptions were in French and Latin, and there were quite a number of quotations from the poets. The panel of a door had-been used for an artistic sketch of the Castle of Chillon, and beneath it was an extract from Byron's famous poem. Other, prisoners with an artistic bent had made clever drawings of judges, counsel, and of convicts in chains.