CHAPTER XXSUNDAY SERVICES AT NORFOLK ISLAND
I appoint two convicts (who had been educated for the Church) to officiate—Find about a hundred ex-soldiers among the convicts—Separate them from the others, with great success
THE Rev. Mr. Styles and Father McEncroe remained a fortnight with us, and took much pleasure in exploring the island. They left, promising to use their best endeavours to have clergymen sent to us, but none came for two years after this. On my arrival the only Sunday service we had for the prison population was more a mockery than a benefit. All the convicts, whether Protestants, Catholics, or Jews, were paraded together and marched up in single file to a field strongly fenced in, and there locked up. Then an officer stepped forward to the fence and there read the prayers and litany of the Church of England, not a word of which could be heard by the prisoners. They were then marched back to their prison yards, and there locked up for the remainder of the day. The troops and free population had prayers read to them in the military barracks. I renewed my application for clergymen, but the answer invariably was that none could be found to take up the appointment.
This distressed me much, and, looking over the register of the convicts some time after this, I discovered that one of the number was transported for forgery while actually a chaplain on board an English man-of-war, and also that another had been educated as a Roman Catholic priest. These two men had behaved well since their arrival, so I thought it possible I might make something of them. I sent for Taylor and told him that I had discovered the cause and offence for which he had been sent there, and I was glad to hear he was now considered a steady man. I then spoke of the sad position of our convicts from their need of religious teaching, and said that I considered what was now being done a mere mockery, and that it was doing more harm than good; also that I knew what he had been, and what he could do if earnest and willing; that I would remove him from the other prisoners, give him a comfortable hut to live in, plain clothes, and a convict servant to attend him, and finally, if I saw hopes of doing any good, that I intended without delay to build a temporary church for him, and place there a pew for myself and my civil officers, that I might have the opportunity of hearing him occasionally and judging for myself. He was delighted and appeared most anxious and earnest. I dismissed him with the hope that he would seriously ponder over all I had said, and pray to God to assist him and to sanctify his endeavours.
I then sent for the other, and spoke in the same way to the same effect; he also most gladly and willingly entered into my wishes and promised much. That same evening I put them both in my written orders to be separated at once from their respective gangs, to be quartered by themselves, and to read the services of their respective Churches to the prisoners. This gave general satisfaction, and on the following Sunday the Protestants were separated from the Catholics, and each division marched to their respective places of worship, where the services were read to them for the first time. This was continued every succeeding Sunday with such success that pulpits, altars, and pews were soon built and forms provided sufficient for each congregation, and in due time I made it my duty to attend occasionally at either service, and I was always much pleased with the order and regularity which prevailed in both churches. The soldiers and free population continued their worship as usual at the barracks.
These arrangements succeeded so well that I reported the whole to the Government, and by return of mail I had the satisfaction to receive the Governor’s approval of all my proceedings and his desire that the same arrangements should be continued, as he could not then prevail on any clergyman to go to the island. In course of a few months I became quite convinced that our humble endeavours were doing much good, that our acting ministers were conducting themselves well, and that they were respected and looked up to by their former associates. I therefore made a report of this to the Government, and recommended that they should be further encouraged by a salary of one shilling a day and the promise of a commutation of their sentence hereafter, if recommended by me for continued good conduct. All this was granted, and I had much pleasure in promulgating the same and in carrying it all out.
For two years this went on with much success, and greatly to my satisfaction. Then we got into trouble. Two convicts attempted the lives of two of their comrades, on different occasions, without any previous cause of quarrel, and, as they afterwards admitted, for no other reason than that they were tired of their own lives and wished to get hanged! The first attack occurred when the convicts were going out from their barracks after breakfast to their daily work. This gang was going to farm labour, armed with field hoes. Without a word of previous warning the would-be assassin raised his hoe and with all his might struck the convict in front of him on the head, knocking him down insensible with a fearful wound in his skull. The unfortunate sufferer was at once taken to the hospital, and remained unconscious for many days. When he recovered he clearly proved that he had never had any previous quarrel, nor had he ever even spoken to the prisoner before. The other case was that of a convict who had got away from his gang and concealed himself in the hut of one of the overseers (who was allowed to live and remain there at night), and whom he had determined to murder. He hid himself behind the door, and when the overseer entered he knocked him down senseless, but happily two other men followed, who at once secured the culprit. These cases were too serious for me to deal with, so I took the necessary depositions and sent them on to the Colonial Secretary for the consideration of the Attorney-General, and by the next arrival of our ship Judge Plunket and a military jury came for the trial of these two men. They were found guilty and sentenced to be hanged; the execution took place a few days later, in the presence of all the convicts, without a murmur. One of the men who had been assaulted recovered in due time, but the other died, and from that day we never had another serious crime.
I discovered from the registers that I had about one hundred former soldiers (amongst the prison population of seventeen hundred) from regiments in India and the Australian colonies, all transported for assaulting or threatening the lives of their officers, generally while under the influence of drink. I ordered them to be all paraded for my inspection, and then said to them, “I find you have been soldiers. I know that you were sent here for assaulting, or threatening to shoot, your officers in your drunken bouts. I have examined your registers and know all about you. Now, I am a soldier, and consider you are still almost soldiers, so I shall at once separate you from your present associates, whose offences have been very different to yours. Most of them are criminals of the worst and deepest dye—murderers, thieves, and assassins. Their companionship must in time degrade you and make you desperate, and perhaps as bad as themselves. I shall therefore try to save you as far as I can. I shall place you in rooms and messes by yourselves, and in separate working gangs. More than this, if I require you I shall put arms in your hands; for you have been soldiers (as I am now), so I shall not be afraid to trust you if I require you!”
They began to cheer with delight, which I at once stopped, reminding them that I could not allow any such expression of their feelings, and that from them I must expect perfect discipline and quiet obedience; then I concluded by saying, “In this way I mean to trust you so long as you behave yourselves and deserve my support, but if I ever again, from this day, see you speak one word to, or associate in any way with, your former companions, back again you go to them, there to remain always as outcasts in misery.” They were delighted, and could only with difficulty restrain expressions of their joy, and from that hour my arrangements were carried out admirably to the last. The mass of prisoners were, however, for some time, much annoyed by this arrangement and partiality; but after longer reflection, I was assured, they were glad of it, as it showed them that reason and justice ruled the commandant, and that belief caused a general disposition towards good order and regularity.
I may say that, taking them as a whole, and remembering their previous numerous and great crimes, the convicts during my superintendence behaved wonderfully well. After the capital crimes already mentioned we had but individual offences, such as striking or threatening their constables and overseers, disobedience of orders, and neglecting their work. For these misdeeds they were always sent to gaol, and brought before me in petty session next morning, and if found guilty, on sworn evidence, sentenced to a week or fortnight, a month or two months’ imprisonment in irons in gaol, according to their offences. In more serious and aggravated cases they were sentenced to corporal punishment—from fifty or a hundred to three hundred lashes; but these instances were comparatively few, and always avoided if possible. The average of the latter punishments, in my time, was from seventy to seventy-five cases a year, whereas in Colonel Morrisett’s time they always exceeded one thousand, though he had not at any time more than twelve hundred prisoners, while with me their number increased year by year, until we had over seventeen hundred.