fit to take charge of the refractory subjects of legal punishment. He must be one whose moral correctness of deportment is above suspicion; he must unite to sagacity in the discernment of character, knowledge of the world, and an acquaintance with the most suitable species of mechanical labor, the best manner of executing it, and the proper results to be obtained from it; he must combine firmness with essential kindness of disposition; he must be a man of an exact and methodical mind; and, above all, he must be willing, in the spirit of Christian benevolence, to devote himself exclusively, and with singleness of purpose, to the great objects which may be attained by his agency. These are, certainly, high qualifications; but they are not so uncommon as to justify any thing like despair of obtaining them. The end to be gained is worth the exertion necessary to secure the means. The subordinate officers of a penitentiary should also be men upon whose integrity and competent acquaintance with the department they have undertaken, unshaken reliance may be placed; men whose characters have been proved trustworthy. By officers of such merit, much may be done towards introducing a valuable state of discipline, even under unfavorable circumstances. But in order to secure the great advantages of the best system of prison discipline, it is equally necessary that the buildings should be constructed with a view to its introduction. For this purpose, the plan which seems to us the best, is that which was first adopted at Auburn, and. has since been imitated in many places. One of the best applications of this plan has been made in the new state prison at Wethersfield, Connecticut, of which a plan is subjoined. (See plate, &c. p. 348.) The workshops connected with the dormitories may be arranged according to the kind of labor to be exercised, and the judgment of the managers or superintendent. We have observed that this is the plan which appears to us the best; but in order that the reader may have some means of judging of the comparative merit of this scheme, and that of solitary labor, we shall also state the plan of the prison which has been begun, upon a vast scale, at Philadelphia, with the intention of confining every prisoner to his cell, excepting for a little time daily to be given to exercise in the open air, in a court connected with his cell. The following account and observations are taken from the Third Report of the Boston Prison

Discipline Society :-"Construction. The yard wall, which is built of stone, thirty feet high, encloses nearly twelve acres. The building for the keeper's house, and the offices of the prison government, makes a part of the south wall, on each side of the centre. The magnificence of this part of the prison may be inferred from the fact, that the yard wall cost about $200,000. On the centre of the yard is erected the observatory, and on seven lines, diverging from the observatory towards the wall, the blocks of cells. Two rows of cells are arranged on each of these lines, with a passage between them. The cells are one story high. Connected with each cell, on the outside, is an exercising yard. The entrance to the cell is through the exercising yard. The place of observation for the keeper over the prisoner, is through a small orifice opening from the cell into the passage, which may be closed at pleasure by the keeper, and which is intended to be kept generally shut. The only mode of seeing the prisoner, while confined in his cell, if the doors are shut, is through this orifice. When he is let out of his cell into the exercising yard, he may be seen either by opening the door of the exercising yard, or by walking on the top of the wall over the exercising yard. The wall of the exercising yard is so high, that he cannot be seen from the principal observatory, in the centre of the large yard, unless the observatory is raised to a height far above that contemplated in the original plan. The entrance to the cell, from the exercising yard, is secured by double doors, one on each surface of the wall; the inner door of grated iron, and the outer door of plank. The orifice between the cell and the passage, which is large enough to admit the face of a man, is secured by double doors of plank."— "The estimated expense of the whole establishment, when completed, on the original design, is $500,000. And when it is completed, it will accommodate only 250 prisoners. The expense of the new prison in Connecticut, for the accommodation of 136 prisoners, was estimated at $30,000, and three fourths of the work has already been done within the estimate." An obvious remark upon these statements is, that economy is decidedly favorable to the Auburn plan; and although, as we have remarked, economy is not to be regarded as its principal recommendation, yet, unless some decided advantage is to be gained by a more expensive system, it ought to be preferred. Many evils were

348

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a, front door; b, entry, 10 feet wide and 20 feet deep; c, keeper's private room, 20 feet square; d, keeper's dining-room, 20 feet square; keeper's kitchen, 20 feet by 25; f, guard-room, 25 feet by 25; g, chapel, 35 feet by 40; h, h, h, area around the cells, 10 feet wide, and open from the ground to the roof; i, i, i, cells, 7 feet by 7, and 34 feet wide; j,j, shops, 38 feet wide and 160 feet long; k, yard, 160 by 124 feet; 1, yard gate; m, m, sentinel boxes, extending from one side of the shops to the other, and commanding a view of the external walls, of the interior of the shops, and of the interior of the yard; n, n, doors; o, oven; p, baker's stand; 9, 9, 4, 4, 7, 7, windows; r, r, r, r, points of observation and inspection; 3, 8, 8, 8, 8, water-closets, &c.; 0-0-0, steam cooking appara tus; the well and rain water cistern to be placed under the guard-room, keeper's kitchen, and that part of the shop containing the oven, so as to admit pumps and furnish the water to all these apartments at the same time; that part of the shop containing the oven and cooking apparatus to be used as a kitchen for the prisoners; the shops, j, j, to be entirely open from the ground floor, or pavement, to the roof, and from the main building to the sentinel boxes, so that the inspection may be uninterrupted from the points of observation, r, r, r, and also from the sentinel boxes, m, m; these shops are intended to accommodate either shoemakers, tailors, coopers, or weavers, all of whom in one shop may be inspected from the guard room, and all in the other from the point of observation in the main building; to be 200 feet long and 40 feet wide; the external wall of this building 24 feet thick at the foundation; the centre wall between the cella 2 feet thick, having a ventilator 4 inches in diameter in the wall from each cell to the garret or roof; the partition walls between the cells, I foot in thickness; the wall between the cells and the area 18 inches in thickness; the doors either of

9 oak plank or rolled iron, 6 feet high and 20 inches wide, having an open grate, in the top, 16 by 18 inches, with orifices 2 inches in diameter, between bars of round iron, 1 inch in diameter, crossing each other at right angles; the windows in the external wall and the windows of the guard-room to be 34 feet by 6, secured with a grate made of iron bars, Tinch in diameter, crossing each other at right angles, 2 inches asunder; the height of the external wall of the main building to depend on the height of the breast-work of cells, which may be 4 or 5 stories; each story of cells to be entered from a narrow gallery 3 feet in width, to be connected with a stair-case at the side of the chapel; the hospital to be over the guard-room, of the same dimensions with it, to be entered from a stair-case at the side of the chapel; the apartment for females to be in the 3d story, over the guard-room and keeper's kitchen, containing a room for labor over the guard-room, and as many small dormitories over the keeper's kitchen as are necessary, of the same form and size with the other cells; the entrance to the female apartment to be from the hall of the keeper's house; the orifices in the guardroom door, in the hospital door, in the wall from the keeper's private room to the chapel, in the wall between the female apartment and the chapel, and in the door from the main building into the yard, and in the wall between the main building and the west shop, to be 12 inches square, secured by an open grate, like those on the cell doors, and to be closed with an iron slide; the windows of the shops, in the wall towards the yard, to be 4 feet square, and two feet asunder, and 24 feet from the floor, and, also, in the roof towards the yard, one continued row of 7 by 9 glass; the interior wall of the shops to be 7 feet in height, and the yard wall 20 feet in height and 2 feet in thickness. Scale, 1 inch to 50 feet.

anticipated as likely to arise from imprisonment on the Philadelphia system, which was originally that of absolute solitude without labor; but the introduction of labor remedied some of these, and others seem not to have occurred. We learn from the last report of the Inspectors of the prison, dated January, 1832, that "the general health of the prisoners has been good," and that "the opinion heretofore expressed, that the practical operation of this institution is beneficial to the inoral, and not injurious to the physical, powers of the prisoners, has been confirmed by another year's experience and observation." It is thought, also, that "the prisoners can generally maintain themselves by their labor in solitude." In all this, however, we perceive no advantage of this system over that of united labor. What is here said of the Philadelphia plan may be said also of that of Auburn, and, in some respects, with much greater force; and there are some obvious points of inferiority, besides that of increased expense, the effect of which is not counteracted, so far as we can yet perceive, by any decided advantage. Thus, for instance, there is no chapel, and there can, of course, in conformity with the plan of total seclusion, be none of those public services of religion, which, by judicious management, may be rendered so serviceable in the great cause of the reformation of the unhappy convicts. Many excellent kinds of hard labor cannot be practised in solitude; and thus the chances of preserving health* are diminished, as well as the revenue arising from the labor of the prisoners. The difficulties of supervision are also much greater. Perhaps further experience may show some great benefit which will be derived from absolute solitude, that will more than counterbalance these and other disadvantages, which might be enumerated. But, as far as our information now extends, we are disposed to recommend the Auburn plan, as possessing superior advantages of economy, and greater facilities for instruction, discipline and healthful labor.

It would extend this article beyond all reasonable limits, were we to go into

From the same report of the inspectors of the Philadelphia prison above referred to, we learn that the average of deaths that have occurred, from all causes, during the last year, is rather less than six per cent. on the whole number of prisoners. This exceeds the average of some other prisons, for the same period; thus at Charlestown (Massachusetts), and Auburn, the centage is two and a half, and at Wethersfield, Connecticut, and Sing Sing, it is three. 30

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the details of the system of discipline which may be most advantageously practised. Many of these details, too, may and must be varied by the circumstances that occur in the prison, or in the community; and much must, in all cases, be left to the wisdom and the ingenuity of the superintendent, combined with the results of his practical experience. For all the details which can be usefully communicated in writing, we must refer to the reports of the Boston Prison Discipline Society, which contain a very great amount of most valuable information, and are highly honorable to the intelligence, the perseverance, and the elevated principles, of their author. In conclusion, we shall refer to some of the points which are either material to, or intimately connected with, the improvement of the system of prison discipline, and which require more attention than has hitherto been bestowed ou them. The first and most essential is, the provision for the religious and intellectual instruction of the convicts. There is not a prison in this country, and we know of none elsewhere, in which what we should consider adequate provision is made, to secure the entire services of an able and faithful clergyman. Yet it cannot be doubted, that the labors of such a one may be, must be, considered likely to contribute as much as any thing in the whole scheme, to that reformation of character which is contemplated as the great object of all the means of prison discipline. And is it too much to ask, is it too costly an effort, to furnish a faithful teacher of the best principles and highest motives to the sunken and degraded subjects of the authority of the laws? The discipline of the penitentiaries ought to be regarded merely as a part of the great system of public instruction, which it is the boast of this country to have extended farther than others. And as the subjects of this discipline are advanced, not only in life, but in vice; as they have learned much which they ought to unlearn,-the difficulties of instructing them are increased, and even a more liberal provision should be made for them than for others. We lament to say it is, in fact, the reverse; and the best system of prison discipline cannot be said to have been fairly tried, till the scanty pittance provided for the support of a clergyman shall be so augmented as to secure the whole time and talents of competent laborers in this important field. The effects of this plan, as The reverend Louis Dwight, secretary of the

society.

a system, cannot be justly exhibited, till it shall have been vastly more extended. It should be carried not only into all our penitentiaries, but into those scarcely inferior seminaries of iniquity, the county gaols. It should be made, as far as the nature of the case will admit, universal, and then it may be judged of fairly; and hardly till then. Its benefits may be made immeasurably greater than have yet been experienced from it, and in a vastly greater ratio of increase than is indicated by the mere number of similar institutions. Connected with the system of internal discipline is the length of time for which every criminal is to be under its influence; and this brings us directly to the criminal code. It would be highly desirable, and in the United States, not very difficult to effect, that each crime should receive the same degree of punishment in different states and countries; from which there should be little chance of escape, and after conviction no hope of pardon. The power of pardoning has been so much misused, and the danger of its abuse is always so great, that we look upon it as a thing which might very safely be dispensed with. As a part of the same grand system of universal instruction, and a part most highly important to the general welfare, the houses of reformation for juvenile offenders ought to be favorably regarded. They are conducted on the same general plan as the prisons for older violators of law, with such modifications as adapt it to the tenderer years, and more docile dispositions of these youthful subjects of punishment. Nothing can have a greater tendency to reduce the number both of criminals and prisons, than the general establishment of houses of reformation. It may not be improper to add, that the reputation of our systems of prison discipline is high in Europe, and soon after the great changes made in the French government by the revolution of July, 1830, two commissioners were sent by that government to examine the prisons in the United States, with a view to the improve

ment of those in France.

PRIVATEER; a vessel of war owned and equipped by private individuals to seize or plunder the ships of an enemy. Such a vessel must be licensed by government, or she is a pirate. It is a matter of just astonishment that a species of warfare so repugnant to all our better feelings, and so inconsistent with the respect paid to private property in warfare on land, should so long have prevailed. It is a relic of the plundering habits of barbarous times.

For several ages after the irruption of the northern barbarians, war and plunder might almost be considered as individual rights. Every one might seek his fortune by predatory incursions upon the enemy, by land or sea. The infidel powers bordering on the Mediterranean covered that sea with small piratical vessels, and the Christian states, partly in self-defence, partly from hope of gain, fitted out smalĺ cruisers, or armed their merchant ships. No public commission was required. The first check to the practice of private plundering upon sea was by confining the right to those who received letters of marque or reprisals. These were issued upon the petition of a subject who complained of injustice done him by some foreign prince or subject, and they empowered the party to obtain satisfaction by seizing the goods of any subject of the offending state. It does not seem to have been considered necessary to be provided with letters of reprisals till the fourteenth century, and no mention is made of them in treaties prior to that time. It is probable that, in the fifteenth century, commissions began to be issued to private subjects in time of war similar to those which were granted for making reprisals in time of peace; but the practice of granting commissions to privateers did not become general before the end of the sixteenth century. The first instance in which their aid appears to have been considered important in carrying on war was in the contest between Spain and her revolted provinces of the Low Countries, which began in 1569. In 1570, the prince of Orange, in the hope of replenishing his impoverished finances, by seizing on the money sent from Spain to the Netherlands, issued commissions to many of his adherents, authorizing them to cruise against the ships of Spain. A considerable fleet was equipped, and, increasing daily in numbers, they soon became terrible by their depredations, not only on the commerce of Spain and the Netherlands, but on that of their own and of other countries. It is said that their country suffered from them not less than from the despotism and cruelty of Alva. The French, however, were probably the first to send out in considerable numbers these scourges of the sea. Their code exhibits the most ancient regulations concerning privateers, and their maritime laws have always been the most severe against the commerce of neutrals. In 1555, the people of Dieppe fitted out nineteen ships and six brigantines, in consequence of

having received a commission to attack several Dutch ships of great burthen, returning from Spain. Spain and England, shortly after the depredations committed under the commissions of the prince of Orange, issued commissions to great rumbers of privateers. The expeditions of Drake and Frobisher are said to have been of this nature. The Dutch war for independence, which began in 1569, did not end till 1648. In that long contest, the use of privateers became familiar, and has remained so since in all wars between maritime countries, and governments have greatly encouraged them. The evils suffered from them and the complaints of neutrals have been so great, that various expedients have been resorted to for checking their excesses; but it has been hitherto found impossible to impose effectual restraints upon forces called into action by motives so sordid. Considering the injustice and immorality of privateering, the many seamen thrown by it into prisons, and thus taken from the service of their country, and the distress thus brought upon their families; the difficulty of procuring sailors to man the fleets, or defend the coasts, when they are lured by the hope of plunder to embark in long and distant cruises; the ill will and jealousy excited in neutral nations by the vexation to which their commerce is exposed from it; the murders and piracies which it inevitably produces, and the injury done to the morals of the communities engaged in it, it is strange that the example of the U. States, in their treaty with Prussia, in 1785, has not been more imitated. That treaty provides that "neither of the contracting powers shall grant or issue any commission to any private armed vessels, empowering them to take or destroy trading vessels." (For the laws respecting captures by armed vessels, whether public or private, see Prize.)

PRIVET (ligustrum vulgare); a European shrub, allied to the lilac, now naturalized in some parts of the U. States. The leaves are lanceolate, entire, opposite, and smooth; the flowers small, white, slightly odorous, having two stamens and a single style, and disposed in terminal panicles. The berries are usually small and globular, purple or black, and remain on the tree during the winter season.

PRIVILEGE; any kind of right, preroga

* It is said that, at the close of the war terminated by the peace of Amiens, there were 30,000 French sailors in English prisons. It is well known what numbers of our seamen were thus lost to us for the time, in the late war with England.

tive or advantage attached to a certain person, condition or employment, exclusive of others.-Privilegium canonis is the protection of a Roman Catholic clergyman, by which every person is excommunicated who strikes him. The pope only can suspend this excommunication. The word privileged was very frequently used in the French republic, as the odious privileges of certain orders mainly contributed to produce the revolution.

PRIVY COUNCIL in Great Britain. (See Council, Privy.) Orders in council are orders issued by the king, by and with the advice of his privy council, either by virtue of the royal prerogative, and independently of any act of parliament, or by virtue of such act, authorizing the king in council to modify or dispense with certain statutory provisions, which it may be deemed expedient, in particular conjunctures, to alter or suspend. When a permission is to be given to a particular individual, it is usual to grant it by license; but orders in council are of a more general nature, and contain dispensations or prohibitions ex tending to a whole branch of commerce.

PRIZE. By the term prize is generally understood any thing captured in virtue of the rights of war (jure belli). Property captured on land is usually called booty, and is generally disposed of at once by the commanding general, or reserved for the disposal of his sovereign, who is accustomed to bestow and distribute it according to his discretion. Few rules are therefore to be found in treatises of public law on the rights of war, in regard to captures on land. The conqueror, indeed, generally respects private property from motives of policy or clemency. He observes, or ought to observe, the terms of capitulation, if there are any; and, ordinarily, he does not give up any place which is conquered to pillage or sack. But property captured in battle of a general or movable nature is commonly subjected to immediate distribution; and the principal question which arises is how it is to be treated upon recabture. Is it to be restored by the law of postliminy (jus postliminii) to the original owner, or does it belong to the recaptor? In general, upon principles of strict law, if the capture has been absolute, and the possession complete by the enemy, it is deemed his property, and the title of the original owner is divested, so that he cannot reclaim it. But most nations have introduced into their own laws some mod

*The importance of this subject to a commercial community is our apology for the length of the following article.