9 months and 9 days. Average length of sentence of 96 committed last year, including 3 for life at 30 years each, was 3 years 9 months and 27 days. The nativity of the 287 prisoners was as follows: — from Massachusetts, 103; from other states in the Union, 118; from foreign countries, mostly from England and Ireland, 66. Total, 287. Their employment was principally as stone-cutters, 62; blacksmiths, 20; team hands, 9; whitesmiths, 9; tin-workers, 10; cabinet-makers and upholsterers, 61; brush-makers, 26; cookery, 15; coopers, 8; hatters, 6; shoemakers, 15; carpenters working on repairs, 8; miscellaneous occupations, 30; in the Hospital, 2; invalids, 6. Total, 287. The recommitments of 96 committed last year were 16; of whom 13 are a second time, and 3 a third time. Of the 287 convicts in Prison at the close of the year, 46 are recommitments, of whom 29 have been twice committed, 14 three times, 1 four times, 1 five times, and 1 six times. The warden says, "Of this I am certain there never was a time when the convicts were more orderly, more industrious, and more obedient, than they now are; there never was a time when the Prison was in a neater and better condition in every respect; there never was a time when the prisoners were so comfortable, healthy, and happy. The earnings of the prisoners, after paying all expenses, have left a surplus of $807 63. The expense of lights, furniture, and utensils, has been increased; the item of clothing alone has been more than $1000 greater than in ordinary years. The good effects are seen and felt in the increased comfort, health, and happiness of the convicts. There never has been a time when the health of the convicts was any where near so good as it was the last year; while there never has been a year when the health of the officers suffered so much." The expense of repairs and improvements during the last two years has been $14,431 95. Of this amount $10,611 was received from the treasurer of the commonwealth, and $3607 from the funds of the Prison. The disbursements and income, from October 1, 1844, to September 30, 1845, were as follows: The State Prison at Charlestown, Mass., has paid by the labor of the convicts, in round numbers, upwards of $6000 for provisions; $4000 for clothing; $3000 for fuel and other contingent expenses; $15,000 for salary of officers; $600 for transporting prisoners from County Prisons; $300 to convicts on their discharge, in sums varying from $3 to $5, besides a new suit of clothes to each of them; $100 to increase the library; and having done all this, has $800 left in the Prison treasury. There has been an average of 285 prisoners, and only 1 death the last year, and only 7-10 of 1 per cent. of deaths in four years, and no death since January, 1845, about 11⁄2 years; and there has been no case of discharge by pardon on account of sickness. We have the names of 101 discharged convicts from this Prison alone, who have been at liberty from 2 to 15 years, with references for their good character. There have been 16 cases of recommitment last year, 13 for second, and 3 for third offences. The prisoners who remain are orderly, industrious, and happy; and the chief magistrate of the commonwealth said, not long since, that he had seen no one in the Prison, or from the Prison, since he has been in office, who was indulging and uttering hard feelings against the government of the Prison, or the good people of the commonwealth. The cases of punishment for misdemeanor in Prison are rare and very mild. The physician states, in a recent letter, that there has been one case of insanity of a few days' continuance, and only one; and this one not sufficiently severe to make it necessary to remove him to the Hospital at Worcester. STATE PRISON AT WETHERSFIELD, CONNECTICUT. "LOUIS DWIGHT, Esq. "Dear Sir: "CONNECTICUT STATE PRISON, WETHERSFIELD, May 26, 1846. "Your esteemed favor of the 22d inst. came to hand yesterday. Our Annual Report will be made to the legislature this day, and when printed I will send you a copy. 66 197 March 31, 1846, 173 The number committed during the year ending March 31, 1846, 36 6 None discharged on account of sickness. None escaped. Died, (including one who committed suicide,). "Of the 36 committed during the year, but 5 had been in this Prison before. So far as I have heard from those discharged the past year, some are doing well, and others have fallen into crime; the proportion of each I cannot definitely state. "The earnings of the Prison, above expenses, the past year,. . . $7029 30. "The number of punishments are a fraction over 3 per month, the last 9 months of the year, and about 4 for the first 3 months, administered according to the offence and character of the offender- usually by solitary confinement of from 6 to 24 hours, or by inflicting from 2 to 5 stripes of the lash. No convict has been kept in solitary confinement, exceeding 48 hours, at one time, during the year, and but 2 have been punished to the extent of the law, which forbids over 10 stripes. "You ask, 'Are stripes necessary?' Certainly not; nor is solitary confinement, or the shower-bath. Other punishment night be inflicted, that would subdue the offender. My opinion is that, in the government of convicts, punishment is necessary; the object of which is not to torture, but to subdue. The fact that some of the most hardened and desperate characters committed to Prison may be subdued by affectionate appeals to the understanding, and by kind treatment, while others regard them not, is convincing proof that no prescribed mode or amount of punishment is adapted to every individual. In inflicting punishment, first the character of the offender should be understood; his own conviction of guilt should be apparent, and the mode and amount of punishment to correspond with the character and offence. My belief is, that there are cases when stripes properly inflicted are preferable, as a mode of punishment, to any other in general practice in our Penitentiary. "From my brief experience in Prison discipline, I am confident no great amount of punishment is necessary in the government of convicts. "Respectfully, "Your obedient servant, "ELISHA JOHNSON, Warden." 66 NEW PENITENTIARY IN PHILADELPHIA. The Seventeenth Annual Report of this Prison is a neatlyprinted octavo pamphlet of 72 pages. It contains the reports of the inspectors, the warden, the physician, and the moral instructor. It appears from the report of the inspectors, that the number of prisoners on the 1st of January, 1845, was 340; 1st of January, 1846, 344: 143 had been received, and 139 discharged. 160 The mortality, with an average of 342 prisoners, had been 15, or 1 in 22,83, or more than 4 per cent. This is attributed by the inspectors to the fact that so many of the prisoners are poor, sickly, colored prisoners. Of the 1470 different persons committed to this Prison, 173 have died, which is 1 in 8,49 The pardoning power was exercised in favor of 32 prisoners, which is 1 in 106% of the Prison population. This was done, the inspectors say, at the instance of their friends, and not of the inspectors, with one exception. The reasons of this free exercise of the pardoning power are not stated. The re-convictions in this Prison, according to the warden' statement in the Appendix, have been as follows, during the whole period since 1829: "First convictions to this or any Prison, so far as known, Second convictions under the separate system, 1470 85 Second convictions to this Penitentiary of those who had been in other Prisons previous to their first reception here, 111 Second convictions of those who are here for the first time, but have 170 4 18 112 1 52 18 Third convictions to this Penitentiary of those who had been in other 71 The great result, that of 2059 convictions, 1470 are first convictions, and 589 are old convicts, of whom 196 had been in this Prison twice, 22 three times, and 1 four times; and 370 had been in other Prisons before they were committed to this Prison; or, in other words, of 1470, the whole number of persons committed to this Prison from its commencement in 1829, 583 had been in this and in other Prisons from two to nine times; i. e., 1 in 2,49% were old convicts; and 219 had been in the Eastern Penitentiary two, three, or four times; i. e., 1 in 67% had been in this Prison two, three, or four times. The cases of insanity developed last year in the New Penitentiary, were 8 new cases, a tabular view of which is presented, showing that 4 were in good health on admission, 2 had imperfect health, 1 was epileptic, and 1 was subject to fits; 4 had no hereditary tendency to disease, 2 had insane mothers, and 1 had an uncle an insane suicide. They were all men; 6 were white men, and 2 were black men. They were from 20 to 39 years of age. They became insane after being in Prison from 10 months to 2 years and 5 months. They all had what the physician calls monomania, except 1, whose disease is called partial mania. When the report was made, 2 had been cured; 1 was improved, another much improved; 1 was uncertain, and 3 remained unimproved. In addition to these, the physician says, (pp. 59 and 60,) — "Independent of the many whose minds I consider more or less defective, 13 have been received decidedly insane; more than one of them so obviously so that their judges were fully aware of it." In regard to the effect on the bodily health, it appears from C some tables in the physician's report, that, in addition to the 173 who had died out of 1470 persons committed, 200 were received in good health, and discharged in impaired health, and 236 were received in imperfect health, and discharged in imperfect health; leaving 861, out of 1470, alive and in good or improved health. Of the 173 who died, 78 were in good health on admission. The proceeds of labor in the Eastern Penitentiary (the number of prisoners being an average of 342) amounted to $12,705 50; the subsistence amounted to $18,529 84; leaving a balance against the institution, not including the salary of the officers, of $5824 34. The proceeds of labor at Charlestown, Mass., (the average number of prisoners being 285,) amounted to $31,801 65, and the subsistence, including the salary of the officers, ($15,528 10,) and some other items of expense, such as fuel, bounty to discharged convicts, transportation of prisoners, repairs of real estate, amounted to $30,994 30; leaving a balance of income of $807 35. MILD AND HUMANE PUNISHMENTS. The warden of the New Hampshire Prison says, in his report, June, 1845, "The golden rule, 'Whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them,' is as valuable in as out of the Prison. The nearer I have kept myself and others to this rule, the more successful have I been in the government of the Prison. All requirements of the officers should be reasonable and proper to secure a ready obedience. "My endeavors have been, that the government of the convicts should be free from insolent, domineering, and overbearing harshness; that the deportment of all the officers should be gentle and kind; and that all proper and prompt obedience should be yielded by the convicts; and happy am I to find the concurrence of all the officers with me in opinion, that this is not only proper, but practicable; not only for the good of the convicts, but for the best interests of the institution; and their ready cooperation has been to me a source of much gratification. Between the contractors and the officers of the Prison there exists perfect harmony of feeling." The keeper of the Clinton County Prison, in the state of New York, says, "On the 3d of June, 1845, 50 convicts, who were removed from the Prison at Mount Pleasant, arrived here. These were employed in draining the ground, and making preparations for building, whie from the Prison at Au |