CONNECTICUT. 



221 



the number of 75, and the places are all tilled. 

 More room is'needed for the reception of such 

 girls as may apply for admission, and are enti- 

 tled to it, or the number of admissions must be 

 limited in some manner. The institution is now 

 on a paying basis, and maintains itself, but has a 

 debt of $7,500, contracted for necessary ex- 

 penses at its beginning. 



The State Reform School for Boys, at Meri- 

 den, continues its successful work. Their 

 number at the end of March, 1871, was 292 ; 

 those received in the school during the twelve 

 months ending March 81, 1872, were 152, 

 making a total of 444 for the year. Of these, 

 there were 150 discharged within the same 

 period, leaving 314 in the school on April 

 1, 1872. 



Of the 152 boys received, 138 were born in 

 the United States, 5 in. England, 4 in Ire- 

 land, one in Scotland, one in Canada ; their 

 ages being from nine to 16 years. Three were 

 nine, five 16, and forty 13 years old. They were 

 committed for theft, burglary, and other of- 

 fences ; one " for being a common drunkard." 

 Of the 150 discharged, 31 had "served their 

 time;" 70 were returned to their parents or 

 friends; 20 placed with farmers; 2 escaped; 

 3 died. 



Its receipts in the year have been sufficient 

 to pay expenses, and leave in the hands of its 

 treasurer a surplus of $839.84. The receipts 

 were $67.090.32 ; the expenses $66,250.48. 



The net proceeds of the labor of the boys 

 during the year were $11,967.86 ; of which 

 sum $10,203.36 was from their work at the 

 chair-shops, where they are employed in can- 

 ing; and $1,704.50 from their work at the 

 farm, which belongs to the establishment, and 

 the products of which amounted in the year 

 to $9,858.47. Besides the above-mentioned 

 sum earned by the boys at the chair-shops and 

 the farm, they worked also at sewing coats, 

 pants, shirts, and a great variety of other arti- 

 cles, in very large quantities; and were em- 

 ployed in "kitchen and other domestic work, 

 much of which is performed by the inmates 

 of the school." 



The State Penitentiary appears to be under 

 good management and effective discipline. 

 The custom of inflicting corporal punishment 

 on the convicts when refractory, or otherwise 

 offending while in prison, has been lately abol- 

 ished ; and the satisfactory results which this 

 change has already produced have proved its 

 wisdom. 



The number of convicts in confinement dur- 

 ing the year ending March 31, 1872, and other 

 particulars relating to them, are shown by the 

 following extract from the warden's last re- 

 port: 



Whole number in confinement March 31, 1871, 

 11 ; since received, 88 ; total, 297. Discharged by 

 expiration of sentence, 84 ; pardoned by Legislature, 

 9 ; pardoned by Secretary of the Navy, 5 ; trans- 

 ferred to Insane Hospital, 5 ; delivered for execution, 

 1 (James Wilson) ; died, 1 ; leaving in confinement 

 March 31, 1872, 192. Of these, 175 are in for their 



first offence, 11 for the second, 4 for the third, and 

 2 for the fourth. 



There are 140 white males ; 43 colored males ; 8 

 white females and 1 colored female ; 156 are Amer- 

 icans ; 36 foreigners ; 61 were born in Connecticut ; 

 under 20 years of age there are 20 ; between 20 and 

 30 there are 88 ; between 30 and 40 there are 51 ; 

 between 40 and 50 there are 16 ; over 50 there are 

 17 ; and there are 19 sentenced for life. 



The financial condition of the penitentiary 

 is prosperous, owing almost exclusively to the 

 earnings of the convicts. 



Concerning the pardoning power, which is 

 vested in the General Assembly, the Governor 

 says in his message: "I desire to call your 

 attention to the remarkable fact that there are 

 now in our State-prison three convicts who 

 have been once pardoned out by the General 

 Assembly while serving a previous sentence, 

 and that two of these are now applicants for 

 legislative clemency." He observes that this 

 pardoning power should be in the hands of 

 the Governor instead of the Legislature; "but 

 he should have an advisory board, which should 

 recommend to him the proper subjects of ex- 

 ecutive clemency." 



The amelioration of the penitentiary system 

 has engrossed the attention of the General 

 Assembly for several years. At the session 

 of 1871 they passed an act, on the authority 

 of which the Governor appointed three com- 

 missioners, giving them in charge "to look 

 into all matters connected with the State- 

 prison; its management; its discipline; the 

 contract system ; its sanitary and hygienic con- 

 dition; moral training; whether the system 

 should be reformatory, and to what extent." 



The result of these observations, and the 

 conclusions arrived at, the commissioners laid 

 before the General Assembly, in a full report, 

 which they close as follows : " In conclusion, 

 we recapitulate the foregoing recommenda- 

 tions: 1. The appropriation of a sum not to 

 exceed six thousand dollars, to be expended 

 by the warden, in a few improvements neces- 

 sary immediately, for the security and comfort 

 of the prisoners, and the accommodation of 

 the officers. 2. The erection, as speedily as 

 may be, of a new State-prison, in a different 

 and better place. 3. The creation of a non- 

 partisan State Board of Charities, with such a 

 tenure of office as is deemed expedient ; and 

 the immediate investigation of the jails, work- 

 houses, and other penal, reformatory, and char- 

 itable institutions of the State, and an inquiry 

 into the condition of the paupers in its limits." 



As to the commission of crime in the State 

 generally, it appears from statistics collected for 

 the purpose that there were between ten and 

 eleven thousand criminal prosecutions during 

 the year 1871, of which 2,207 were in New Ha- 

 ven, 1,533 were in Hartford, 1,124 in Bridge- 

 port, 313 in Norwich, and 188 in New London. 



Eight towns report no prosecutions at all, 

 and in each case give as a reason that no in- 

 toxicating liquors are allowed to be sold in 

 the town. 



