Darkest India Part 10

The past year was suitably finished up by providing a special feast to which only ex-convicts were admitted. No less than 150 accepted the invitation.

About this branch of our work a leading daily paper, the Ceylon _Independent_, writes as follows.--

Most of our readers have read in our columns of the good work the Army is doing at the Prison Gate, in reclaiming from criminal courses the discharged prisoners who have served their time of confinement. In that critical moment, when the wide world is once more before the newly discharged culprit, when he emerges from confinement to overwhelming temptation, big it may be with fresh schemes of crime, armed with enlarged experiences to aid in its accomplishment, to be met, taken kindly by the hand, and led gently to the pleasanter and more peaceful path of honesty, industry, and virtue, is a surprise that is calculated to disarm temptation at least for a moment, and thus virtue gains time for thought.

The success of the Prison Gate Brigade has. .h.i.therto been surprising, and quite beyond its founders' antic.i.p.ation. It has been especially useful in reclaiming juvenile offenders, of whom a large number have been induced to take to the honest means of livelihood, chiefly carpentry, which the Home provides.

OUR BOMBAY PRISON GATE BRIGADE.

This work in Bombay was commenced some two years ago at the instance of a leading Pa.r.s.ee gentleman, with a generous subscription of Rs. 1,200.

Owing partly to the fact that we have been hitherto unable to secure suitable premises and partly to the entire absence of any a.s.sistance on the part of Government, the work in Bombay has been much more uphill and discouraging than in Ceylon. Nevertheless we have persevered in the teeth of all sorts of difficulties, and the results have been very encouraging. Recently in one week no less than three of the inmates of our Bombay Home were accepted as cadets, to be trained up as future officers. Previously to this nine others had been similarly accepted.

One of these, Lieut. Hira Singh, is now himself taking an active part in the rescue of other convicts, while another is sucessfully working in Gujarat. Accounts of their lives are given further on.

Indeed Bombay has proved itself to be an even richer field than Colombo itself; and now that some of the peculiar difficulties that have hitherto hindered the work, are one by one being removed, there is every reason to believe that this work will soon make rapid progress.

The returns for the past year show that the prison gates have been visited 235 times, for the purpose of meeting the convicts on their release. Since the commencement of the Home about 134 men have been admitted. Of these 74 have professed conversion, about 12 having been accepted as officers by ourselves and the remainder having mostly found employment elsewhere. The number of meals given during the past year has been about 7,800.

One of the special features of the work here consists in the constant visitation of the liquor dens, with a view to persuading those who were frequenting them to give up their evil ways. No less than 430 such were in this way visited and a large number of papers distributed. While the opposition was in some instances severe, as a rule our officers were well treated even by the grogshop-keepers, who while admitting that their trade was evil, pleaded that they had the Government's approval, and that they must somehow support themselves and their families.

Besides the regular inmates, a large number of casuals have been relieved and a.s.sisted, but of these we have no exact figures.

The following are some specimens of the work done by us among the criminal cla.s.ses in Bombay and Ceylon:--

LIEUTENANT HIRA SINGH

Is a Hindu of the Kshatraya caste. He comes of a soldier race and family, his father having served in the East India Company's army before him, and he having from his youth followed the same profession for the past eighteen years, serving successively as Private, Lance-Corporal, Corporal, and Sergeant in a native Regiment. He went through the last Afghan campaign, having been to Cabul, Quetta, and other places.

For many years his conduct was excellent, but latterly he took to drinking, got into serious trouble with the police, and was sent to prison for forty days, thus losing his post as well as his claim to pension. He was met by our officers on his release, accompanied them to the Home, gave his heart to G.o.d, and has now been an officer in our ranks for more than a year. During most of this time he has been connected with our Bombay Prison Gate work, and has in turn helped to rescue many others. But for the help he then received, a life of drunkenness and crime would probably have been, almost forced upon him.

He is a good specimen of numbers who would _like_ to reform, but with ruined reputation have no choice, save between starvation and crime.

HARMANIS.

"I am a native (Singhalese) of Kalutara in Ceylon. My father was a toddy-drawer. We were very poor. Sometimes my uncles would give me a cent or two for mounting guard to give them warning about anybody's approach while they were slaughtering stolen cattle in the jungles.

Once, being very hungry, I climbed up a palm tree to steal cocoanuts, but was caught by the owner and handed over to the police. The magistrate sent me to jail for three weeks. After my release I came to Colombo, and falling in with the Salvation Army, I went to their Home for prisoners, and now thank G.o.d I am saved."

PODI SINGHA

This is only one of the many aliases by which he is known. He has been one of the worst thieves and bad characters to be met with even in Colombo, where there is a pretty good a.s.sortment of the sc.u.m of slumdom.

Adopted as an infant by a pious Mahomedan, he was trained up in that religion. But in spite of every effort that was made for his reformation, he rapidly went from bad to worse, till at length he found himself in the hands of the police.

His first sentence was twelve months for throwing sand in a Singhalese man's eyes and then robbing him of his comb. When released he fell in with other criminals, from whom he learnt many new tricks of the trade.

Once he was stealing some clothes from a line when the lady of the house saw him. A hue and cry was raised, and he soon found himself surrounded with coolies and dogs. Seeing that there was no chance of escape, he began to jump and scream and go through all sorts of antics. The lady, thinking he was mad, and having pity on him, let him go.

He has seen the inside of nearly all the Colombo jails, but without being made any better. Finally, he was received into our Home. At first he was rather troublesome, but after a short time he gave his heart to G.o.d, and has been doing well. "He cannot read or write," says the Captain in charge, "but he prays like a divine, and I am believing to see him become an Officer some day."

JANIS

Was brought from his village by a Singhalese gentleman when quite a little boy, but, leaving his master, thought he would start life on his own account. He soon became a practised thief. "I always managed to escape," he says, "till one day with some of my companions I robbed a Buddhist temple. I managed to get a silver 'patara' (plate), which we sold for Rs. 24, but was caught and sent to jail." "But you were yourself a Buddhist," said the Captain. "How came you to rob your own temple?" "What of that? I thought nothing of sin in those days. But it is all so different now. I am saved, and mean to spend all my life in saving others. I am just now practising a song to sing in the meeting to-night."

The Captain asked him whether he did not think it a great disgrace to go to jail. "Oh, no! I thought everybody in Colombo had been there some time or other. All the people with whom I mixed had been." "Well, how did you like it?" "Oh, it was not such a bad place! The food was fairly good, and I had not to work very hard but I wish I had known about salvation sooner. Even then I used to wish that I could find something which would _make_ me good, but all my efforts were in vain till I came to the Home, and got saved."

In conclusion, I feel sure that a few brief particulars regarding this branch of our work in Australia will be read with interest, and will serve to prove the usefulness of this portion of our social reform scheme:

Some six or seven, Prisoners' Homes have been established in Australasia. The Victorian Government give an annual grant of 1,000, to a.s.sist us in this branch of our work. Special facilities are afforded to our Officers in visiting the prisoners, and in some of the jails printed notices are posted up by the authorities to the effect that any prisoner, previous to discharge, may communicate with the officers in charge of our Home, with a view to making a fresh start in life.

The testimony of Sir Graham Berry, Agent General, the Chief Secretary, the Inspector General of Penal Establishments, and the Chief Commissioner of Police, proves conclusively how much good has thus been done. The following extracts from their letters are copied from our Australasian Prison Gate report:--

H.E. SIR H.B. LOCH, K.C.B., G.C.M.G., writes through his Private Secretary to express "his approval and appreciation of the work done by the Salvation Army in connection with the Prison Gate Brigades and Rescued Sisters' Homes, and has great pleasure in expressing his belief in the good which has resulted from the philanthrophic endeavours of the Salvation Army to rescue and afford material a.s.sistance to those in whose interests these organisations have been formed."

SIR GRAHAM BERRY, Agent General for Victoria, writes:--"I have confidence in the permanent results of your labours, because you, treat these unfortunates as if they were human beings and capable of better things. I believe your organisation is a very powerful agency for good among that cla.s.s which is practically neglected by others."

CHIEF JUSTICE HIGGINBOTHAM says that "it is only proper to mention that there is no better nor more useful work done in rescuing discharged prisoners from relapsing into crime, than that effected by the Prison Gate Brigade of the Salvation Army."

Similar letters have also been received from the following gentlemen:--

The Hon. ALFRED DEAKIN, M.L.A., Chief Secretary.

The Hon. JAMES BALFOUR, M.L.C.

The Hon. M.H. DAVIES, M.L.A. (Speaker of the Legislative a.s.sembly).

The Hon. F.F. DERHAM, M.L.A., Postmaster General.

The Hon. H.T. WRIXON, M.L.A., Attorney General.

The Hon. W.F. WALKER, M.L.A., Commissioner of Customs.

Mr. JUSTICE KERFERD.

The Bishop of MELBOURNE.

W.G. BRETT, Esq., Inspector General, Penal Department.

H.M. CHOMLEY, Esq., Chief Commissioner of Police.

A. s.h.i.+ELDS, Esq., M.P., Medical Officer, Melbourne Jail.

CHAPTER X.