1824.] Sociefi/ for the rmprovcment of Prrsv7i DhcipUne. 509 



other mineral, vegetable, and animal, shire, merchant; for ccilain iniprove- 



siibstance.s, toncther with a method of ex- ments on, or additions to, hainei-s, piiiuii- 



aniininj and regnlating tlie process whilst pally applicable to carriages drawn by one 



such substances are exposed to the opera- horse. — Feb. 23. 



tions before mentioned. — Feb. 28. 



John Gnnby, of New Kent-road, Surrey, 

 sword and gun-manufacliner ; fora process 

 by which a certain material is prepared 



William Jaiues, of Westminster, land 

 a5;ent and engineer; for certain improve- 

 ments in the conslrnctioii of rails and tram- 

 roads or ways, which rail or tram-«ays. 



and lendered a suitable substitute for lea- or roads, are applicable to other useful 



ther. — Feb. 28. 



John Christie, of Mark-lane, London, 

 merchasit, and Thomas Harper, of Tani- 

 worth, Stafford, meichaut, for their im- 

 proved method of coiiihinin;,' and applying 

 certain kinds of fuel. — Fel). 28. 



purposes. — Feb. 28. 



INIauriee de Jonf;h, of Warrington, Lan- 

 cashire, cotton-spinner; for a mode of 

 constructing and placing a coke-oven 

 under or contiguous to steam or other 

 buih-rs, so as to iiiiike tlio heat arising from 



William Yetts, of Great Yarmouth, making coke, or other intense combustion 

 Norfolk, merchant and ship-owner; for in tl.c said oven, subset vient to the use of 

 certain apparatus to be applied to a the boiler, instead of fuel used in the I'oni- 



uiudlass. — Feb. 



.Tames Wright Richards, of Caroline- 

 street, Biriiiingliam, ^V■arwickshirc, metal- 

 lic hot-house maker; (or an improved me- 

 talllc frame, and lap, applicable to allhot- 



mon way, and to exclude such heat from 

 the boiler, when required, without delri- 

 ment to the operations of the oven. — 

 Feb. 28. 



Copies of the specifcalions, or further 



liouses, green-houses, horticultural frames notices of uiiij of Ihise inventions, u'ill be 



and glasses, sky-lighis, and other inclined inserted free of expense, on being- iiansmitted 



lights and glasses. — Feb. 28. to the Editor. 

 William Greaves, of Sheffleld, York- 



PROCEEDINGS OF PUBLIC SOCIETIES. 



SOCIETY /or <Ae IMPllOVEMENT (f PRI- 

 SON DISCIPLINE, and for the kefoh- 



MATION of JV\ESILE OFI'ENDEKS. 



IT is now (says the Report just dislri- 

 huted,) fifty jears since llie iiHinoi- 

 lal Howard commenced Ihat illnslrioua 

 career, which lias conferred on bis coun- 

 try sucli important blessings, and jnslly 

 ranked him nmon^ the greatest benefac- 

 tors of mankind. T^iose who arc unac- 

 quainted with the wiitings of this cxlra- 

 ordinar- man, can form but an iinpeifect 

 concc|)tien of the state of the prisons of 

 this country at that period. Dnngcons, 

 dark, filthy, dani|i, and unventilated — 

 chains and fetters of oppressive weight 

 — food, unwholesome and' insullicient — 

 were flic prominent characteristics of 

 prison-treatment. 



A fatal disorder, known by^iR name 

 of the gaol-distcnipcr, had a#dinerent 

 periods of onr history made fref|ueiit 

 and dreadful ravages. About the mid- 

 die of the sixteenth century, an assize 

 was held at Oxford, which was after- 

 wards denominated, from its conse- 

 <|uences, " The Ulack Assize ;" when, 

 the disease being introduced into court, 

 all who were present, consisting of the 

 jiidg(?, the siierifl', and about 300 persons, 

 (lied within forty hours; and Lord 

 Bacon, in allusion to this event, ob- 

 serves, '' that the most pernicious infec- 

 tion, next tu the plague, is the saicU of 



a gaol wlicre the prisoners Iiavc been 

 long and closely kejit; whereof we liavo 

 had, in our time, ixpcrience twice or 

 thrice, when boti* the judge thai sat upon 

 the beiicii, and a niiinber who attended 

 the business, or weic presiuit, sickened 

 upon it and died." IVecpicnt occur- 

 rences of a like awful nature might be 

 related ; and even so lately as in the 

 middle of the last ccntmy, the gaol-fever 

 was introduced into the court atliieOld 

 Bailey, when tiie judges presiding, and a 

 considerable nmiiber jiresent, fell victims 

 to this dreadl'iil malady. 



The pi(-anilile of the new Prison Act 

 declares that i( is expedient that sucii 

 measures should be adopted, and sticii 

 arrangements made in prison discipline, 

 as shall not only provide fur the safe cus- 

 tody, but shall also tend more eli'eetually 

 to preserve the health and improve the 

 morals, of the prisoners, and shall insure 

 the pro|»er measure of punishment to 

 convicted offenders: and that due classi- 

 fication, inspection, regular labour and 

 cnjploymen:, ai:d religions and moral 

 instruction, are essential to the disci- 

 pline of a prison, and the lel'ormation of 

 oll'enders. 



It is not necessiuy that the Committeo 

 should give, on the present occasion, the 

 substance of IIk? vaiious clauses of this 

 Act. It uill, howi'V(;r, be interestiu<c 

 to the leader (u learn, thai the l'ullo\vinK 



