ing admitted into prison. After a
certain time, if the prisoner was so fortunate as to escape being
"reported" for any offence against the prison rules, he would be placed
in the third class, and again, after being a certain time in the third
class he was passed, subject to the same condition, into the second,
and so on. Should he have made any mistake and allowed himself to get
"reported," he either missed his chance of getting into the higher, or
was degraded into a lower class. The object of this classification no
doubt was to get all the well-behaved men together, but the blunder
committed was in making obedience to the prison rules the only test of
qualification for the higher classes. This, as I have already
explained, was really worse than no test at all, because the frequently
convicted criminal, who was thoroughly posted up in all points of
prison discipline and regulations, was more likely than the novice to
escape being "reported" for violation of them. The consequence is, that
in respect of character, disposition and moral quality, there is really
no difference to be found amongst the men in any of the classes. The
scheme operates in this way--suppose that a clergyman by some mischance
gets sentenced to penal servitude, and enters the prison in company
with one of the very worst villains that could be selected out of our
criminal population; both these men, the one with a first sentence, the
other with a long string of convictions against him, enter the
"probation class" at Millbank, on precisely the same terms. The "jail
bird," knowing all about the ways of the prison, would probably pass
with ease into the third class. The clergyman, being new to the
discipline, might make a mistake and get "reported," and in that way
would not be so likely to reach the third class so soon as the other;
but granting that he did so they would still be together, the man
inured to guilt and crime would still be beside the new and casual
lodger, the man who had never been in prison before would still have
the opportunity of learning the evil ways of the confirmed rogue.
Again, should the clergyman be fortunate enough in passing into the
higher classes at the usual time, the jail bird would certainly not be
behind.

If a thousand prisoners, from all parts of the country, of all ages,
habits, and antecedents, were brought to one of our convict
establishments, they would go through their time in the same way, good,
bad, and indi