The Tuapeka Times. Tuapeka Times AND GOLDFIELD REPORTER AND ADVERTISER. SATURDAY, DECEMBER 19, 1874. "MEASURES, NOT MEN."

Tuapeka Times, Volume VII, Issue 406, 7 November 1874, Page 2

The Tuapeka Times. Tuapeka Times AND GOLDFIELD REPORTER AND ADVERTISER. SATURDAY, DECEMBER 19, 1874. "MEASURES, NOT MEN."

Thb subject of the classification of prisoners, is one which ought to be urged upon ihe Government with the utmost zeal. We are spending a large sum of money on education every year ; and the argument is : Educate the people, and by so doing you'will diminish crime. Well, we believe that education, in the widest! sense, is a good. antidote to crime, though we have not that reliance in public school education to effect the object which some seem entertain. As a proof of this, Victoria has perhaps as high an educational standard as any of these Southern Colonies, and yet iv that Colony, larrikinism in some of its worst features is rampant ; more so, perhaps, than in any of the sister Colonies. There are other things needed than mere school education. The absence of a religious life in the homes of the parents is a desideratum which, while it continues, will hinder the, rising up among us of an orderly and moral population. But it is not so much to enforcethis lesson that we have alluded to the question of public education as needing some supports beyond itself to secure what it is sometimes represented as of itself fitted to secure, but to point out that we may be striving to build up with one hand, while we are pulling down with the other. In illustration of our meaning, we' w.ould point out what His Excellency,. Sir Jamea Fergusson has again and again referred , to as defective in our prison discipline — viz., The want of proper classification of our prisoners. This was very pointedly referred to by the Resident Magistrate of Dunedin, the other day, "A young woman waa" at first

brought np on a charge of theft, but ultimately committed on the charge of vagrancy. In passing sentence upon her, Mr. Bathgate made the following remarks, which shewrf the necessity there is for classification of prisoners :—": — " Hia Worship said that it was a painful thing to see so young a woman brought up under the Vagrant Act. If she were to conduct herself properly, she would have no dimoulty in obtaining employment at good wages : people could not get servants. If a girl were willing to work and would conduct herself properly, there was no fear but she , would get employment. This poor girl seemed to prefer a life of vagranoy. It was shocking. If he were to send her to gaol, he-had no doubt but that she would come out worse than she went in. But he could not help this. Until such time as the Legislature would see fit to provide proper prisons, he could only use those now in existence. He could not let her off. He hoped that some good benevolent ladies would look into her case, in order to see if some means could not be taken to • save her from destruction. He then sentenced her to 30 days' imprisonment, with hard labor : but cautioned her that if she were to appear before him again, the sentence would be twelve months." Now, we would observe — and, indeed, have done so before — that spite of prison accommodation in our midst, the 'prisoners who have been tried for a first offence have been hurried away from us to mingle with all sorts of prisoners in Dunedin, with the prospect of coming out with their education in crime advanced to perfection. Would it not be preferable in the meantime to make the Lawrence prison a place where criminals, under a first conviction, should serve their term, and arrange the discipline and treatment accordingly ? We make this suggestion, because hitherto we have had mostly cases of this nature before our Supreme Court. Snch being the case, instead of sending away criminals of this class to Dunedin, it would be better to send those similarly classed to Lawrence. In this way, the money expended by Government on Lawrence prison would be utilised, and a step taken in the right direction. '