The Chronicles of Newgate, vol. 2/2Griffiths, Arthur
History
The Chronicles of Newgate, vol. 2/2
Griffiths, Arthur
Criminals -- Great Britain; Newgate (Prison : London, England); Prisons -- England; Punishment -- Great Britain
I come now to the debtors in Newgate. The quarters they occupied were
divided, as I have said,[36] into three principal divisions--the
master's side, the cabin side, and the common side. Payment of a fee of
3_s._ gained the debtor admission to the two first named; those who
could pay nothing went, as a matter of course, to the common side; a
further fee was, however, demanded from the new-comer before he was made
free of either the master's or the cabin side. This was the
reprehensible claim for "garnish," which had already been abolished in
all well-conducted prisons, but which still was demanded in Newgate.
Garnish on the cabin side was a guinea at entrance for coals, candles,
brooms, &c., and a gallon of beer on discharge; on the master's side it
was thirteen and fourpence, and a gallon of beer on entrance, although
Mr. Newman, in his evidence in 1814, said it was more, and gave the
garnish for the common side at that sum, which is five shillings more
than Mr. Neild says was extorted on the common side. Numerous tyrannies
were practised on all who would not and could not pay the garnish. They
were made to wash and swab the ward, or they were shut out from the ward
fireplace, and forbidden to pass a chalked line drawn on the floor, and
so were unable either to warm themselves or to cook their food. Besides
these fees, legitimate and illegitimate, there were others which must be
paid before release. The sheriff demanded 4_s._ 6_d._ for his liberate,
the gaoler 6_s._ 10_d._ more, and the turnkey 2_s._; and thus when the
debtor's debt had been actually paid, or when he had abandoned his
property to the creditors, and, almost destitute, looked forward to his
liberty, he was still delayed until he had paid a new debt arising "only
out of a satisfaction of all his former debts." The fees were not always
extorted, it is true; nor was non-payment made a pretext for further
imprisonment, thanks to the humanity of the gaoler, or the funds
provided by various charities.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account