TREE PLANTING CAMPS.

Rangitikei Advocate and Manawatu Argus, Volume XXXIV, Issue 9173, 17 June 1908, Page 5

TREE PLANTING CAMPS.

A PRISONER’S STORY. Press Association, Wellington, June 17. A prisoner who served a portion of his sentence at Dumgree camp, Marlborough, states that be was one of the leading spirits in the campaign of persistent and systematic breaking of the rules of the camp. He had a number of grievances against the administration of prisons generally and endeavoured to be brought before the Court to state his case. He alleges that a section of the men had an absolutely free run of the place, although everybody was expected to keep within a certain boundary. As soon as things were fairly quiet in his cabin he and his three mates would unscrew the lock of the door and the three would roam country to their heart’s content, the ocner man remaining in the cabin to refasten the lock in case of the warder trying it at any time daring the night. The officers, however, found out what was going on and padlocked the door, but prisoners still secured their liberty by lifting out the window frame. Inmates of other cabins adopted similar means to get out into the open air. This man further states that prisoners robbed station and rabbi ters’ camps, stuck up people for money and tobacco, killed sheep, threw some of their tools in the river, smuggled drink into camp and buried bundles of trees, instead of planting them and cut roots off others before putting them into the ground.

The Minister of Justice doubts the truth of the story told by the exprisoner in Dumgree tree-planting camp regarding the conduct of prisoners. This is the first he has heard of it and it is a remarkable thing that the people alleged to have been stuck up and robbed never reported the occurrence. The Minister defends the tree-planting scheme and, while admitting that defects have been shown to exist, contends they are far outweighed by the advantages.