the rest of the inmates, being separated from
them for the remainder of the day, and left
to his own reflections in his lonely cell.

A man, compulsorily subjected to solitude
and short commons, may make up his mind
to it, and resign himself to his fate. But
no one will voluntarily subject himself to
such a test who is not tired of a dishonest
life, and anxious to reform. In nearly nine
cases out of ten it unmasks the impostor.
Many shrink at once from the ordeal, and
retire. Others undergo it for a day or two,
and then leave; for, as there was no compulsion
on them to enter, they are at all times at
liberty to depart. Some stay for a week, and
then withdraw, whilst instances have been
known of their giving up after ten or twelve
days' endurance. The few that remain are
readily accepted as objects worthy the best
efforts of the establishment.

The applicants, particularly the vagrants,
are generally in the worst possible condition,
as regards clothing. In many cases they
are half-naked, like the wretched objects who
make themselves up for charity in the streets.
Their probation over, they are clad in
comparatively decent attire, consisting chiefly of
cast-off clothing, furnished by the contributors
to the institution. They are then released
from their solitary dormitory, and admitted
to all the privileges of the house.

The tried and accepted inmates of the
Institution have, for the two past years, averaged
about thirty each year. They get up at an
early hour, their first business being to clean
out the establishment from top to bottom.
They afterwards assemble at breakfast, which
consists of cocoa and bread, of which they
make a hearty meal. The business of
instruction then commences, there being two
school-rooms on the first floor, into one of
which the more advanced pupils are put by
themselves, the other being reserved for those
that are more backward and for the new
comers. It is into this latter room that the
probationers are admitted during school-hours.
During school-hours they are instructed in
the fundamental doctrines of religion, and in
the elements of education, including geography
–––particularly the geography of the colonies.
The master exercises a general control over
the whole establishment. The upper class is
taught by a young man, who was himself one
of the earliest inmates of the Institution, and
who is now being trained for becoming a
regular teacher. The other class is usually
presided over by a monitor, also an inmate––
but one who is in advance of his fellows. Most
of those now in the house are able to read,
and many to read well. Such as have been
thieves are generally able to read when they
enter, having been taught to do so in the
prisons; those who cannot read being
generally vagrants, or such as have been thieves
without having been apprehended and
convicted. They present a curious spectacle in
their class-rooms. Their ages vary from
twenty-one to sixteen, there being two in at
present under sixteen, but they were admitted
under special circumstances. With the
exception of the probationers, they are all
dressed comfortably, but in different styles,
according to the character and fashion of the
clothing at the command of the establishment.
Some wear the surtout, others the dress-coat;
some the short jacket, and others again the
paletot. They are all provided with shoes
and stockings, each being obliged to keep his
own shoes scrupulously clean. Indeed, they
are under very wholesome regulations as to
their ablutions, and the general cleanliness of
their persons. As they stand ranged in their
classes, the diversity of countenances which
they exhibit is as striking as are the contrasts
presented by their raiment. In some faces
you can still trace the brutal expression which
they wore on entering. In others, the low
cunning, begotten by their mode of life, was
more or less distinguishable. You could
readily point to those who had been longest
in the establishment, from the humanising
influences which their treatment had had
upon their looks and expressions. The faces
of most of them were lit up with new-born
intelligence, whilst it was painful to witness
the vacant and stolid looks of two of them,
who had but recently passed the ordeal of the
dormitory. Generally speaking, they are
found to be quick and apt scholars, their
mode of life having tended, in most instances,
to quicken their perceptions.

Between the morning and afternoon classes
they dine,––their dinner comprising animal
food three times a-week, being chiefly confined
on other days to bread and dripping. They
sup at an early hour in the evening, when
cocoa and bread form again the staple of their
meal. After supper, they spend an hour or
two in the training-school, which is a large
room adjoining the probationers' dormitory,
where they are initiated into the mysteries ot
the tailors' and shoemakers' arts, under the
superintendence of qualified teachers. They
afterwards retire to rest, sleeping on beds laid
out upon the floor, each bed containing one.
When the house is full, the two class-rooms
are converted at night into sleeping apartments.
They are also compelled to attend
some place of worship on the Sunday, and, in
case of sickness, have the advantage of a
medical attendant. During a part of the day
they are allowed to walk out, in different
gangs,––each gang iinder the care of one of
their number. In their walks they are
restricted as to time, and are required to avoid,
as much as possible, the low neighbourhoods
of the town. Should any of them desire to
learn the business of a carpenter, they have
the means of doing so; and two are now
engaged in acquiring a practical knowledge of
this useful trade.

Such is the curriculum which they undergo
after being fully admitted into the house. They
are so instructed as to wean them as much as