Fry, Elizabeth Gurney, 1780-1845; Prison reformers -- Biography
This cordial co-operation of the Colonial Office in her schemes of
improvement for the female convicts at Paramatta, encouraged her to
attempt the same good work for the convicts at Hobart Town, Tasmania. It
happened that by 1843 the transportation of females to New South Wales
had ceased, the younger establishment at Hobart Town receiving all the
female convicts; but, like the hydra of classic lore, the evil sprang up
there as fresh and as vigorous as if it had not been conquered at
Paramatta. Lady Franklin and other ladies communicated with Mrs. Fry,
showing her the great need that still existed for her benevolent
exertions in that quarter. From these communications it seemed that the
assignment of women into domestic slavery still continued, in all its
dire forms. When a convict ship arrived from England, employers of all
grades became candidates for the services of the convicts. With the
exception of publicans, and ticket-of-leave men, who were not allowed to
employ convicts, anybody and everybody might engage the poor banished
prisoners without any guarantee whatsoever as to the future conduct of
the employer toward the servant, or specification as to the kind of work
to be performed. Those convicts who have behaved themselves best on the
voyage out were assigned to the best classes of society, while the
others fell to the refuse of the employers' class. As it was a fact that
a large proportion of the tradesmen applying for servants were convicts
who had fully served their time, it may be imagined how lacking in
civilization and integrity such employers often were. But if the
condition of the convicts was hopeless after their assignment to places
of service, it was, if possible, more hopeless still in the home, or
"factory," in which they were first received. Some of the letters before
referred to cast a flood of terrible light upon the condition of the
poor wretches who had quitted their country "for that country's good,"
even when under supposed discipline and restraint. A passage from one of
these letters reads like an ugly story of "the good old times!"
The Cascade Factory is a receiving-house for the women on their
first arrival (if not assigned from the ship), or on their
transition from one place to another, and also a house of
correction for faults committed in domestic service; but with no
pretension to be a place of reformatory discipline, and seldom
failing to turn out the women worse than they entered it.
Religious instruction there was none, except that occasionally on
the Sabbath the superintendent of the prison read prayers, and
sometimes divine service was performed by a chaplain, who also had
an extensive parish to attend to.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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