tained day and night, and occasionally crude fragrant gum
Benjamin was thrown upon it. The natives believe that an aromatic
perfume exhaled by fire keeps off all noxious effluvia; and we certainly
found that they were in better health from the use of this incense, and
from the fresh plastering of the floor every morning with cowdung
diluted with water, which is a common practice in most of the native
huts in India. This was regularly kept up by two convicts of the invalid
class, who also acted as caretakers. The entrance to the enclosure was
secured by a stout gate, which, after the roll was called, was locked
every night at nine o'clock. The number of convicts stationed on one
"command" averaged about thirty, and they were under the charge of a
responsible convict warder of the grade of a tindal, with a peon and two
orderlies and a native "moonshi," or timekeeper, to keep account of work
done, and to forward reports to the main jail. By a system of surprise
visits both day and night occasionally, we rarely found that any
irregularities occurred.

[Footnote 4: Simpson, in his _Side Lights on Siberia_, uses
"command" as denoting a jail outside of the prison walls.]

It has not been already mentioned that the local jails, or houses of
correction, though according to law they were kept distinct from the
convict jails at the several settlements, nevertheless were in their
superintendence placed under the Superintendent of Convicts and convict
petty officers. A good proportion of these local prisoners were employed
upon extramural works, under the guard of these convict petty officers,
who, being natives of India, had nothing in common with the Chinese and
Malays who formed the bulk of these prisoners, and they kept them well
under control, and allowed but few escapes, and, moreover, they were
never found open to the taking of bribes from the prisoners' relations
and friends, who now and again would attempt to offer them forbidden
articles.

At Penang there were a considerable number of these Indian convicts upon
ticket of leave, who gained their livelihood in a variety of ways. Some
of them were the first to discover the palm known by the Malays as "Plas
tikoos," and by botanists as the "Licuala acutifida," a small palm,
ordinarily not higher than from five to six feet. From this palm, which
grew mostly upon the Penang Hill, were constructed walking-sticks called
"Penang lawyers," and the process of preparing them