THE DISTURBANCES AT CHATHAM PRISON.—QUESTION. (Hansard, 15 February 1861)

SIR GEOEGE LEWIS

said, that perhaps the most satisfactory answer he could give to the question of the hon. Member would be to state what had taken place a Chatham. Early in January six prisoners at Chatham endeavoured to make their escape; but the attempt having been frustrated they were removed to the Penitentiary at Millbank. One day in the beginning of the present month a disturbance occurred while the convicts employed on a small island named St. Mary's, in the Medway, were at dinner. The ten convicts who were implicated in that disturbance alleged as the reason of it the poverty of the soup which was furnished for their dinner. That complaint, however, was entirely unfounded, and was merely a pretext for creating a disturbance. These ten men were removed to separate cells to await the decision of the Director of Prisons, Captain Gambier. That gentleman went down to Chatham on Monday the 11th, and was engaged in trying the prisoners; when he received information that the men on parade, returning to their work, were in a state of insubordination. A number of the convicts, who began shouting and throwing up their hats, were separated from the rest by the warders and 473 obeyed the order of the Governor to return to the prison, and the first four parties were locked up in their respective cells. Some of the others began shouting and creating a disturbance, and shutting the doors of the cells, preventing a number of the convicts from re-entering their cells. Upon this the disturbance became general and the excitement great. The Governor of the prison and Captain Gambier remonstrated with the unruly convicts, but without effect, and the military were therefore sent for. During the interval that elapsed before the arrival of the soldiers the convicts broke some windows and upset some stoves. That was, he believed, pretty nearly the extent of the mischief which they did. When the military arrived they suppressed the disorder in a short time without loss of life or bayonet wound, and the prisoners were all locked up. No warder was injured as stated in some of the newspapers. On Tuesday Sir John Jebb and Captain Gambier went down to the prison, and forty-six of the ringleaders were punished by thirty-six lashes each, on that and the following day. All the prisoners who had taken part in the disturbance were placed on bread and water and confined to their cells, and all their gratuities and privileges were withdrawn. The number of convicts engaged in the outbreak was about 850. He had investigated the matter with some care, but was unable to give any very clear explanation of the affair; nor could the officers of the prison satisfactorily account for it. The general cause, however, which certainly operated to a very large extent, was that the refuse of the hulks were transferred to Chatham Prison on its first opening and tainted the prison population, together with some of the inferior officers. Hence it was difficult to enforce strict discipline, without creating discontent, and the discipline at Chatham was strict compared with that which prevailed in the old hulks. It was necessary for him to observe that there was no change of discipline or diet to account for the outrage, and no specific grievances had been alleged by any convict engaged in the disturbances, either before or after they took place. A picket of about forty soldiers was now stationed at the prison as a measure of precaution. He could not say whether the convicts had undergone the reformatory discipline at Millbank and Pentonville, as he had received no notice of the question.