Ciiap. VIII.
BRITAIN.
611
upon the top of the railing of the balcony, in front of the doors of the cells ; the whole isfirmly braced together and bound by screws: the upper part of the figure represents theelevation of the iron framing, and the two wheels placed upon the edge of the railing: themiddle figure is the section orelevation of the carriage in theother direction. By the bracingor trussing introduced beneaththe frame, it is rendered capableof carrying a considerable weight,and from the care used in ar-ranging it, there is no apparenttendency to force out the verticalposition of the balcony railing.
When the crab or windlass in thebasement is worked, the wholemounts in a perfectly steadymanner, without any irregularaction, and thus continues tothe end of its destination : thematerials given out to the pri-soners from the warehouses be-low to be manufactured are allhoisted in the same manner, andwhen wrought so descend toother depots. So ingenious acontrivance would be of thegreatest service in our publicestablishments, and ought to bemore generally introduced:some years ago the writer con-trived similar machinery for thegreat laundry at the top of theBurlington Hotel in Cork Street,which he erected, and which has been found of essential service to that establishment, fromthe great economy of labour.
In detailing the several contrivances here introduced, we are struck with the differencespresented to us in comparing them with the general state of prisons up to the end of thelast century : let us take for example the description given by a French writer of the Con-ciergerie, which was formerly a portion of the Palais de Justice, and still preserves itsancient feudal character: “ the towers, the entrance court, the dark corridor by which theprisoners pass, produce a sensation of melancholy and terror ; those condemned to remainthere, if not provided with sufficient money to pay for the hire of a bed, must lie in dark,damp, and fetid cells, straw only being allowed, amidst a number of other wretched indi-viduals : the vast court, constructed in the thirteenth century, in which the prisoners takeexercise, is sunk 10 or 12 feet below the level of the neighbouring streets; their food isconfined to one ration of poor bread and thin soup.” In other prisons, we find the cellswere not sufficient in height for the inmates to stand upright. The minister Neckerinterested himself most ardently in endeavouring to remedy many of these evils, and wassuccessful in some particulars. In the House of Correction at Ghent , commenced in 1773,during the reign of Maria Theresa , great improvements were introduced, which awakenedconsideration to the subject throughout the continent; fire-places were constructed, andthe cells were made of a dimension sufficiently ample for the number they were to contain ;light and air were admitted, and cleanliness was encouraged and enforced; exercise wasallowed to the unhappy individuals, and they were no longer punished by their allowanceof food being withheld.
Regulating cistern , pipes and cocks for the distribution of water. The cisterns are placedin the roof, which has a rising main, together with a service-pipe, and two rows of troughs,divided into compartments, containing six gallons, or one day’s supply for each cell. Thereare also regulating cisterns, and ball-cocks for turning on and shutting off' the water to thetroughs.
The supply pipe for the upper troughs is connected with the main service pipe, andruns to the extreme end, where it fills another trough, which then overflows, and suppliesanother, and so on, till all are filled. The last is furnished with a waste-pipe, to convey thesurplus water into the regulating cisterns, which, raising the hall as it fills the cistern, actsupon the stop-cock to which it is attached, and shuts off all further supply to the troughson the roof. The troughs under the upper gallery floor, for the use of the cells beneath,
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SECTION.
PJ.AN AND SECTION OF CARRIAGE.