2. The above earliest possible periods of removal to Intermediate Prisons, apply only to those of the most unexceptionable character, and no remission of the full sentence will take place unless the Prisoner has qualified himself by carefully measured good conduct for passing the periods in the Intermediate Prisons prescribed by the Rules, and any delay in this qualification will have the effect of postponing his admission into the Intermediate Prisons, and thereby deferring to the same extent the remission of a portion of his sentence.

3. Convicts under sentence for "Life" will not be eligible for consideration for remission under 12 years; in the event of their misconducting themselves they will not be eligible at so early a period, and may be retained even for "Life."

4. According to the requirements of the Colony of Western Australia, a certain number of Convicts may be sent from this country from time to time; the selection will be made from the well conducted at about half the period of their sentence. Convicts under "Life Sentences" will not be eligible for removal until 8 years from the date of their conviction.

5. It will be quite evident to the Convicts that their future position depends upon their own exertions, and that the importance of the Classification in force in the Prisons and of the marks regulating it, has been much increased by these rules.

6. It will be necessary, therefore, that each Convict should make himself thoroughly acquainted both with these Rules and the Classification which is to govern them as quickly as possible, for which every facility will be afforded him. He will thus learn the importance of preserving a good character in Mountjoy Prison as well as on the Public Works.

7. There may be exceptional cases and crimes of such a heinous description as to preclude offenders from being treated in the ordinary manner; these will be dealt with specially by the Government.

By Order,

WALTER CROFTON, Chairman.
JOHN LENTAIGNE,

J. S. WHITTY, } Directors.

It will be observed that in the ordinary prisons convicts have the opportunity of working themselves, by a system of marks, into the Intermediate Prison, in which are to be applied the final and more natural tests of his fitness for conditional liberty.

The system of Registration does not confine the liberated convict to the United Kingdom; but if he remains amongst his companions, where his temptations will be great, he must register himself until the maximum period named by the Judge shall have expired.

We may congratulate ourselves, as far as Ireland is concerned, on this most important matter having been at last finally, and so satisfactorily, settled.

We now have a system equal to the requirements of the country; sound in theory, and proved by hard, stern experience to be so in practice; a system which has enabled the Recorder of Birmingham to declare, in his paper on Irish Convict Prisons, that "the vast majority of all who enter our prisons as criminals can be sent back into the world, after no unreasonable term of probation, honest men and useful citizens;" a system which has found imitators in continental Europe, and which has excited the admiration of the great writers upon Prison Discipline in France, in Prussia, in Sardinia, in Germany, and in Italy. Well and truly did Lord John Russell observe, in his inaugural address at Liverpool, referring to the Irish system of convict management,—

"With less care and intelligence it may be admitted the system would not have succeeded; but the same thing is true of the reformed administration of the Poor-laws, and indeed of every department of Government which is well conducted. We may surely presume that the country will always furnish men of ability and energy competent to such a task; it must be left to our responsible rulers to make their ability and energy a title for employment."

We quite concur in this observation, which almost bears in it a note of warning. It would, indeed, be an evil day if principles so sound as to have attracted the attention of many eminent continental writers, and of several European states, and which have, perhaps, met with more public approval than any social measure yet introduced, should ever prove unproductive of results through the supineness or want of intelligence of any future administrators of the system. The machinery is perfect, but it is fine, and must be kept in working order.

The Chinese say that we may measure a great man by his detractors, and a great system by its imitators, as we measure the height of a tower by the length of its shadow. Latterly, we have arrived at the conclusion, that you may estimate the success of any system by the number or position of those who attempt to claim the merit of its origin for themselves, after somebody else shall have made the system one to which men informed upon the subject in its various bearings, give approval, support, and earnest advocacy. "Never steal," says the old lady to the little thief-pupil, in Paul Clifford, when any body sees you;" all very right, says the supporter of an old system, who is endeavouring to wriggle himself into the adoption of a new system which he had maligned, misrepresented. and poo-pood, until success, and those terrible enemies of incapacity, or laziness, or red-tape, PUBLIC OPINION, and the PRESS, had driven him into the consideration of the new scheme-perhaps no body will see me, perhaps no body will detect me; of course, the system is good, excellent, I thought of it—and tried it, long ago, but circum

stances made it impossible of developement, but I thought of it lig ago, God bless my soul, I'm so glad to find that my old plans are being carried out so admirably.

This is no fancy sketch. It is precisely what is being done this moment in England, in what is called "The Jebb and Crofton Controversy."

Whilst Colonel Jebb could, or rather dared, to deny or ignore the success of the Irish system of Convict Management, he i deny and did ignore it. But public opinion was becoming strong. strong against the ticket-of-leave system as carried out in Englani equally strong in favor of that carried out in Ireland; any, who wish to judge accurately, of the importance attached to the Irish system, need but refer to the number of the IRISH QUARTERLY REVIEW for January, 1858, and they will there find the opinions of the Press of all shades of politics, English and Irish collected, and all declaring unanimously, that the English system of convict management, julged by the success of that adopted in Ireland, was a blunder, as disgraceful to the Nation, as it was damning to the capacity of Colonel Jebb.

What Colonel Jebb himself, in a grave public document, (bis last Annual Report) has thought proper to do, most of our readers know. It was neither more nor less than an attempt, by misstating and mis-quotation, to deprive Captain Crofton and his zealous colleagues, of that reputation which they have so hardly earned. Captain Crofton's reply to this disingenuous attempt of Colonel Jebb's, is too well known to require comment.

Lately, however, that very respectable Magazine, Meliora, in its number for January, 1859, has placed before its readers a paper on the "Jebb and Crofton Controversy," so false in facts and conciusions, that we think it right here to refer to, and set right, some of its most glaring errors.

We are informed at page 311, that when transportation was abolished, the whole system of Prison Discipline required to be remodelled. But it was, this we are not told, Colonel Jebb who had, by his abuse of the system, by the hoards of ruffians whom he had sent out as convicts, driven the colonists to rise in desperation against such invasions of demons. What Colonel Jebb did, to abolish transportation by mismanagement, we learn from the return printed in the Third Report of the Select Committee of the House of Commons, on Transportation, in 1856.

From this return, showing certain particulars in relation to prisoners upon the Western Australian Convict Establishment, who, by the nature of their crimes, or by reason of their incorrigible character, were considered by the Superintendent, and are usually regarded at the Home Imperial Prisons, as ineligible for association with others,

we gather the following particulars. The total number in the return is 53, and of this total, 14 were for unnatural offences, for which the punishment is death.

The other sentences were on men re-convicted in the Colony, for bad conduct, and varied from 18 months to 7 years, with hard labor and flogging.

It appears to us that no amount of red tape, that no length of existence amongst sealing-wax and Government stationary, could make any man so careless of all results as these figures prove some body to have been, in sending out those men, whose conduct was infamous to the world, bad as bad could be in the prison, and fully as incorrigible in the Colony.

We ought to have hung most of these 53 men-14 of them we could have hanged-there were others whose offences may be named, and we shall here insert some specimens :

Name-George Hanks, alias "Ram," alias Charles Rock; real name Whittaker. Nature of Crime-Burglary with violence; sentence, "life." Information as to past life-Convicted of burglary in 1850; sentenced, 10 years' transportation; attempted to escape from Oxford Castle, while waiting for trial; escaped from Dartmoor Government Prison, 1851; attempted to escape from Oxford Castle, 1852; attempted, from Portsmouth, 1854. Conduct in Western Australia-Three weeks bread and water; dark cells; 6 months in irons.

Name-William Deane. Nature of Crime-Burglary; after previous conviction of felony; also breach of prison rules, 22 years, (15,7). Information as to past life-March 1837, 6 months; February 1839, 14 days; June 1839, 2 months; June 1840, 7 years, at Knutsford; January 1850, 12 months; January 1851, 1 month; 2 April 1853, 7 years; character, "very bad;" embarked in cross-irons. Conduct in West Australia-Bread and water 7 days, cells; class suspended 3 months; admonished.

Name-Teddy Kenny, Nature of Crime-Burglary, 15 years. Information as to past life-Conspired with four others to attack the turnkey, when unlocking, to effect their escape; two of the five made a violent attack upon the officer on the 19th August; the officer received several bruises on the head, body, and throat; they

threw him down, rifled his pockets, took the keys from him, and threatened to murder him; kept in close confinement from the 19th to the 30th. Conduct in Western Australia-Bread and water 7 days, cells; class suspended 3 months.

Name-William M.Farlane, alias Jamieson, Brennan, Suith. Nature of Crime-Theft, by housebreaking, prison breach, and assault on an officer; 14 years. Information as to past life-Has been a very bad prisoner; not to be trusted; two years forfeited when removed from public works; was transported about 14 years ago; is a dangerous character; broke out of Greenock prison before trial. The governor of Paisley prison states, "This man is the most dangerous character ever I had under my charge; it woz'd be well that officers and others who come into contact with him be upon their guard." Glasgow, most dangerous. Perth, incorrigible. Hulks, bad. Portsmouth, very bad. Millbank, bad. Recommended to be sent to Norfolk Island. No Record of conduct in the Colony.

Name-Michael Fleming, alias Jones. Nature of crime-Stealing from the Person; 14 years. Information as to past life—A very bad-tempered and violent prisoner, and likely to give bad advice to other prisoners. July, 1843, 7 years; March, 1851, 18 months, highway robbery. Conduct in Western Australia. Bread and water 7 days, cells. Class suspended 8 months. Bread and water 2 days, cells. Class suspended 1 month. Tobacco stopped. Class suspended 3 months.

Name James Cannon; this is the sweep who was so notorious about five years ago for assaulting the police. Nature of CrimeAssault with intent to murder; life. İnformation as to past lifeOften for assaults upon the police; not to be trusted. No record of conduct in Western Australia.

With these facts before him and they are not the worst cases, the reader can understand the condition to which Western Australia would be reduced if this system of Transportation were continued. Let him calculate, if he can, how long the Colonists would endure this outrage on all justice, this sweeping away from our shore, where we could manage them cheaply and securely, if we could not reform them, those criminals whose offences made hanging on the highest gibbet in the universe too mild and too undegrading a punishment; we could have kept them safe and at a cheap rate here; we sent them to a Colony where we cannot hold them cheaply, and where we liberate them to the injury of the Colonists.

Why were they sent? Let Colonel Jebb answer. We quote his evidence given before the Select Committee of the House of Lords, on Transportation, 1856:—