There were 9,200 men and 4,583 women who had incurred six or more previous convictions, whereas in 1913-14 there were over 28,000 men and 15,000 women who had done so.

One thousand one hundred and thirty-seven of the men had previously been sentenced to penal servitude, and 38 of the women. Eight hundred and forty-five out of the 1,137 men fell into the age groups of 40 and over, and 28 of the women.

Information has been collected showing the number of individual persons represented by the figures of receptions into prison on conviction during the year under review. The figures of receptions are 34,921 in the case of men, and 7,923 in the case. of women. The individuals represented number 31,431 men and 4,958 women, leaving a balance of 3,490 receptions of men and 2,965 receptions of women attributable to the repeated convictions within the year of a somewhat smaller number of those individuals (some of them having incurred more than two convictions within the 12 months).

The value of these figures is limited. They do not by any means deal with the whole mass of recidivism in prison at the present time (as is clearly shown by the preceding paragraphs of this section). They probably give some idea of the amount of petty recidivism, because habitual petty offenders are naturally those most likely to receive two or more short sentences during any given year. But very few of the persons convicted of grave offences and receiving sentences of penal servitude, or sentences of a year's imprisonment or more, can be included among those who are convicted more than once in twelve months.

It is possible that a further analysis of this information might produce some useful results, and this will be undertaken if the statistical work entailed is not found to be too great.

The figures enable us to make one useful addition to the table on page 5. We can now say that the number of individuals received on conviction during the year under review was 936 per 100,000 of the population of the country. The figure of 1101 per 100,000, which is given in the table, is the ratio of the receptions to the general population.

Committals to prison of younger women continue to be small in number, and to decrease. Women under 30 received into prison numbered only 1,862 this year as compared with 1,952 last year, and 2,136 the year before.

The number of women under 21 received was 224 this year, 227 last year, 294 in 1923-24, 383 in 1922-23, and 629 in 1921-22.

*The 6,756 for one week or less includes 720 for 5 days.

The small decrease we were able to record last year has been followed by another. This is, so far satisfactory, but the short sentence remains an outstanding defect in our penal system and difficulty in prison administration. Repetition on this point is not amiss. The highest administrative and judicial authorities have taken the same view, and have drawn attention to the uselessness of the short sentence. The International Penitentiary Congress in August 1925 passed a resolution to the same effect. There is no doubt but that the prospect of prison has a strong deterrent effect on those who have never yet passed its gates; nor that, once the disgrace of imprisonment has been incurred, much of that effect has been lost. It can also be readily understood what an impediment to the development of a sound system of prison training is the presence of a number of men who only come in for a few days, and cannot therefore be taught any work other than the simplest. The difficulty, of course, is to find proper alternatives. The most hopeful prospect lies in the development of the probation system. A point may be reached when many offenders can be so well supervised in the open that, if they fail, a period of custodial training of substantial length will be justified.

V.-YOUNG PRISONERS.

The number of lads received into prison on conviction between the ages of 16 and 21 (exclusive of Borstal cases), was 2,064 as against 2,227 last year. An analysis of the information about them is as follows:

Lads.

Ages:-16, 112; 17, 227; 18, 414; 19, 603; 20, 708.
Previous Convictions*

Charges dealt with under the Probation Act, 1907, are not included

among the previous convictions.

There were 199 receptions under sentence of imprisonment, as compared with 193 the previous year. Their ages were as follows:

16, 4; 17, 18; 18, 38; 19, 68; 20, 71.

* Charges dealt with under the Probation Act, 1907, are not included

among the previous convictions.

Particulars of Young Prisoners who had no previous Convictions:—

(2) 514 lads and 45 girls were convicted of Indictable offences, of whom :-

388 lads and 35 girls were for the various forms of Larceny.

65

17 18

0

0

5

Sexual offences.

Burglary, Housebreaking, etc.

False Pretences.

178 lads and 11 girls were convicted of Non-indictable offences akin to Indictable, of whom :

94 lads and 5 girls were for Assault.

36 lads and 3 girls for Malicious Damage.

24 lads for Frequenting.

15 lads and 3 girls for Indecent Exposure.

335 lads and 42 girls were convicted of other Non-indictable offences, of whom :

51 lads and 9 girls were for Breach of Police Regulations.

17 lads were for offences against Merchant Shipping Acts.

5 girls were for Prostitution.

3 lads were for offences against Revenue Laws.

4 lads were for offences against Game Laws.

16 lads were for Cruelty to Animals.

* Charges dealt with under the Probation Act, 1907, are not included among the previous convictions.

Of the 2,064 lads, 1,130 were sentenced to a month or less. Out of these 465, or 41 per cent., were committed in default of fines; 162 of the 465, or 35 per cent., paid their fines after reception; 260 had been allowed time in which to pay, but 205 had not. There were 92 fewer of these short sentenced lads than

last year.

The following table, which includes persons sentenced to Borstal detention, shows the decrease during recent years in the total numbers of lads and girls between the ages of 16 and 21 who have been received into prison.

The number of young prisoners under 16 who were received. into prison, under the special provisions of Sections 97 and 102 of the Children Act, was 24; 22 boys and 2 girls. Three of the boys were received under a sentence of imprisonment.

VI. INTERNATIONAL PENITENTIARY CONGRESS.

Last year we mentioned the successful meeting of the ninth International Penitentiary Congress which was held in London in August, 1925. This year we refer briefly to a few salient points in the resolutions passed by the Congress. The week's deliberations dealt with 13 questions, divided into three groups, legislative, administrative, and preventive.

The Congress was divided for the preliminary debates into three sections, to each of which one of these groups of questions was allotted. Each question was first discussed in its appropriate section, and the provisional resolution passed by the section upon. it was afterwards dealt with finally in the General Assembly of the Congress. The text of the questions, and of the resolution which was passed by the Congress in reply to each, will be found in Appendix 3, page 56.

A number of the questions and resolutions deal with matters. outside the sphere of prison administration. The proper style of the Congress is "The International Penitentiary Congress,' though it is sometimes loosely called a "Prison Congress." There is a permanent body called the International Penitentiary