0:00:13 > 0:00:15LOUD GAVEL STRIKES
0:00:15 > 0:00:20'James Dunn Barr, prisoner in Glasgow, you are indicted
0:00:20 > 0:00:25'at the instance of the Right Honourable James Patrick Bannerman Robertson,
0:00:25 > 0:00:29'Her Majesty's Advocate, and the charges against you are that you,
0:00:29 > 0:00:34'one, broke into William Gartley's house at 23 Preston Street, Glasgow,
0:00:34 > 0:00:39'on January 26th in the year 1889,
0:00:39 > 0:00:44'and stole a topcoat, a bed mat, a clock and a pair of slippers.'
0:00:44 > 0:00:48There was nae point sayin' I didnae dae it. I did.
0:00:48 > 0:00:52I stole the coat, the dress, the bed mats, the sheets,
0:00:52 > 0:00:56the jacket, the clothes basket, the muffler...
0:00:56 > 0:00:59There was another muffler an' all.
0:00:59 > 0:01:03And then there was the clock and the pair of slippers.
0:01:04 > 0:01:09And I suppose there was the scarf pin and the locket and the pipe.
0:01:09 > 0:01:11See, I thought cos I was honest and pled guilty,
0:01:11 > 0:01:14they'd gie me a few weeks in the jail like the last time.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17That was the thing. They said cos I'd been up afore the court before,
0:01:17 > 0:01:20they had tae me put in jail for nine months.
0:01:28 > 0:01:31Before Victorian times, no distinction was made
0:01:31 > 0:01:33between child criminals and the adult criminals.
0:01:33 > 0:01:36They were treated in exactly the same way,
0:01:36 > 0:01:39they were punished in exactly the same way, so they were taken
0:01:39 > 0:01:44before the same courts, they were sent to prison along with adults,
0:01:44 > 0:01:47and there are some examples of children actually being executed.
0:01:47 > 0:01:49Some children as young as nine, ten, 11 or 12.
0:01:54 > 0:01:57These children are hungry and they're very, very poor.
0:01:57 > 0:02:00And they steal easy things to steal.
0:02:00 > 0:02:04So they might take watches or jewellery or handkerchiefs.
0:02:04 > 0:02:08Things that have a value. They're not stealing these things
0:02:08 > 0:02:12cos they want them for themselves - they're stealing them so that they
0:02:12 > 0:02:15can sell them in a second-hand shop and get money for them quickly.
0:02:22 > 0:02:26You see, the rich folk, they would usually go oot and, er,
0:02:26 > 0:02:28they'd leave the servants in the hoose.
0:02:28 > 0:02:31They'd be cleaning up... they're distracted.
0:02:31 > 0:02:34They would usually leave the windows open, and, thanks to my height,
0:02:34 > 0:02:38I'd manage to sneak in, hide in the cupboards and wait till they leave.
0:02:38 > 0:02:41Then I'm the only one in the hoose.
0:02:41 > 0:02:45So, I just took what I wanted, left...back oot the window again.
0:02:47 > 0:02:48That was it.
0:02:50 > 0:02:54It was easy. And I suppose, the more you do it,
0:02:54 > 0:02:56the easier it gets.
0:02:57 > 0:03:00Cities and towns were expanding at a tremendous rate
0:03:00 > 0:03:02in the Victorian period.
0:03:02 > 0:03:07There was substantial problems that emerged, problems of overcrowding,
0:03:07 > 0:03:11too many people simply living on the same streets,
0:03:11 > 0:03:15severe problems of poverty, and I think we can see that
0:03:15 > 0:03:18as leading to an increase in criminality.
0:03:18 > 0:03:22This made the Victorians ask questions about what they could do
0:03:22 > 0:03:24to solve this problem,
0:03:24 > 0:03:28and what we see is the emergence of police forces
0:03:28 > 0:03:33and the idea that those who committed a criminal offences
0:03:33 > 0:03:36should be punished and should be sent to prison.
0:03:41 > 0:03:44I cannae believe I'm stuck in here for nine months.
0:03:45 > 0:03:47It was ma ain fault getting caught.
0:03:47 > 0:03:49It was the last hoose in Bridgeton, and I...
0:03:49 > 0:03:51shouldn't have gone there.
0:03:52 > 0:03:55If I'd no' done that one,
0:03:55 > 0:03:58I wouldnae be here stuck in this miserable cell.
0:03:59 > 0:04:02Coming into prison for the very first time
0:04:02 > 0:04:05must have been really frightening.
0:04:05 > 0:04:07You'd be stripped of all your possessions.
0:04:07 > 0:04:09You'd have your clothes taken away.
0:04:09 > 0:04:12You'd be made to have a very cold bath,
0:04:12 > 0:04:14which would be very unpleasant.
0:04:14 > 0:04:17You'd have your hair cut into a prison style.
0:04:17 > 0:04:20You'd be given a new set of clothes.
0:04:20 > 0:04:23You'd really have your identity taken away from you.
0:04:26 > 0:04:29The idea was to strip your personality
0:04:29 > 0:04:33and just to make you a cog in the prison machine.
0:04:34 > 0:04:38Very hard to identify a repeat offender in the Victorian period,
0:04:38 > 0:04:41because...very difficult to keep records
0:04:41 > 0:04:44in the way that a modern police force can keep records.
0:04:44 > 0:04:47They didn't have the technology in the Victorian period
0:04:47 > 0:04:49that the police and the Prison Service have today.
0:04:49 > 0:04:53It was also very important that the record book included information
0:04:53 > 0:04:56about any distinguishing marks that the prisoner had,
0:04:56 > 0:05:00and the reason for this was because they needed to know if that person
0:05:00 > 0:05:03came before the courts again and whether they were what was called
0:05:03 > 0:05:07a repeat offender - somebody who had a prison record and therefore
0:05:07 > 0:05:10needed to be treated very seriously if they committed another offence.
0:05:14 > 0:05:19Photography was invented and developed in the mid-Victorian period.
0:05:19 > 0:05:22It was actually a very new invention
0:05:22 > 0:05:25at the point in time that we're thinking about.
0:05:25 > 0:05:29It's interesting that almost as soon as photography was invented,
0:05:29 > 0:05:32it started to be used by the prisons and by the police service
0:05:32 > 0:05:36to record images of criminals.
0:05:38 > 0:05:40When the prisoner was photographed,
0:05:40 > 0:05:44they had to stand with a chalkboard in front of them.
0:05:44 > 0:05:49On that would be written their name, their prison number and the date.
0:05:49 > 0:05:53And another important aspect was that they had to hold their hands
0:05:53 > 0:05:57about chest height, laid out in front,
0:05:57 > 0:06:00so that all the fingers were apparent.
0:06:00 > 0:06:05And this is really important, because some prisoners had missing fingers.
0:06:05 > 0:06:07Indeed, it was quite common to lose fingers
0:06:07 > 0:06:11in the machinery in factories and in other industrial accidents,
0:06:11 > 0:06:14so whether you had all your fingers or not
0:06:14 > 0:06:17was actually a very distinguishing physical feature.
0:06:18 > 0:06:22For the Victorians, the invention of photography now meant they could
0:06:22 > 0:06:24take pictures of criminals.
0:06:24 > 0:06:27They could forever preserve that image, so that if you were caught
0:06:27 > 0:06:31doing something later on, they could cross-reference it and they've got your picture.
0:06:31 > 0:06:36'..On February 4th, 1889, that you broke into David Whiteman's house,
0:06:36 > 0:06:39'Dalmarnock Street, Parkhead,
0:06:39 > 0:06:44'and there did steal two watches, a guard chain, a scarf pin,
0:06:44 > 0:06:48'a locket, a pipe and case, and a muffler.'
0:06:49 > 0:06:54I've been gied this uniform to wear and a prison number by what I'll be kent.
0:06:55 > 0:06:57Prisoner 171. That's me.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01Nae more James Dunn Barr frae Glasgow.
0:07:01 > 0:07:04Nae more good clothes for me.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07At least no' for the next nine months.
0:07:27 > 0:07:29TYPEWRITER TAPPING
0:07:32 > 0:07:36'On May 27th, 1877, James Fleming,
0:07:36 > 0:07:39'belonging to the Fechney Industrial School in Perth,
0:07:39 > 0:07:43'was apprehended on a charge of attempting to set fire to the institution.
0:07:43 > 0:07:46'He has been examined by Honorary Sheriff Martin
0:07:46 > 0:07:50'and committed to prison pending further investigations.'
0:07:50 > 0:07:52I'm in a lot of trouble.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55A was up in the court yesterday.
0:07:55 > 0:07:59There were aw these men in long gowns saying things I didnae understand.
0:07:59 > 0:08:03I did it, so I had tae plead guilty...
0:08:03 > 0:08:05and now I'm in the jail.
0:08:05 > 0:08:09The last place I stayed was called an industrial school,
0:08:09 > 0:08:11but it felt mair like a prison to me.
0:08:16 > 0:08:18My real hame's the street.
0:08:18 > 0:08:20I've never had anyone tell me what to do
0:08:20 > 0:08:23or had more than the clothes on my back...
0:08:23 > 0:08:27but I was free to go wherever I liked wi' my pals.
0:08:28 > 0:08:30I always got by, like.
0:08:30 > 0:08:34I tried to stay out of trouble, but a policeman saw me begging,
0:08:34 > 0:08:36and begging's no' allowed.
0:08:36 > 0:08:39You're no' allowed to dae nothin',
0:08:39 > 0:08:42so I got put in Fechney Industrial School.
0:08:46 > 0:08:51Children who were sent to industrial schools hadn't committed any serious crime,
0:08:51 > 0:08:55but there were concerns that if they were wandering on the streets,
0:08:55 > 0:08:57they might turn to crime.
0:08:57 > 0:09:02They might start thieving and they'd come into the company of criminals who would corrupt them further.
0:09:02 > 0:09:07So the industrial school was an initiative to stop children from becoming criminal.
0:09:07 > 0:09:11I've heard of kids being sent to reformatory schools for stealing,
0:09:11 > 0:09:15but maist of the kids in the industrial school had just been
0:09:15 > 0:09:18found wanderin' round the streets cos they had nowhere else to go.
0:09:23 > 0:09:28Living in a slum in Victorian cities, in overcrowded houses,
0:09:28 > 0:09:31several families living in the same property,
0:09:31 > 0:09:35rats running around, lice, disease and dirt,
0:09:35 > 0:09:39kids having to play in the streets, running around with no shoes on.
0:09:39 > 0:09:42A really unpleasant experience.
0:09:42 > 0:09:45It's like being poor is a crime.
0:09:45 > 0:09:47When I got taken into the school,
0:09:47 > 0:09:50a heard the headmaster tell the policeman that we'd been taught
0:09:50 > 0:09:53to beg, cheat and steal since we were born.
0:09:53 > 0:09:55But we hadnae done nothin'.
0:09:55 > 0:09:58Well, not yet anyway.
0:10:02 > 0:10:05The Victorians did believe in a criminal class.
0:10:05 > 0:10:10They looked at the working classes and they looked at the people who were in deepest poverty,
0:10:10 > 0:10:13and some of them, they said, were actually born criminals.
0:10:13 > 0:10:17And this was really bad for you if you were growing up in that situation,
0:10:17 > 0:10:21because you're likely to be identified as a criminal,
0:10:21 > 0:10:24and it might just be cos of the way you look
0:10:24 > 0:10:27or the area of town that you live in.
0:10:29 > 0:10:31It was very different from my life on the street.
0:10:31 > 0:10:34We had to get up at six in the morning
0:10:34 > 0:10:37and work for 12 hours a day.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40We'd have to clean the place before cleaning ourselves,
0:10:40 > 0:10:43brushing our boots an' that. Then we'd be put to work.
0:10:43 > 0:10:46Shoemaking, tailoring,
0:10:46 > 0:10:49carpentry, wood chopping or gardening.
0:10:49 > 0:10:53We'd get taught reading, writing and the Bible too.
0:10:53 > 0:10:56We'd get some time to play every now an again,
0:10:56 > 0:11:00but it was always over quick and then back to more work.
0:11:02 > 0:11:05Sometimes we'd just sit there straightening nails for them
0:11:05 > 0:11:08till our fingers near fell off.
0:11:09 > 0:11:13The children's tasks did need to be profitable.
0:11:13 > 0:11:16That was one of the ways in which the school got by.
0:11:16 > 0:11:20Things like washing, laundry work, for example,
0:11:20 > 0:11:23could attract quite an income from outside.
0:11:23 > 0:11:26But there were also cases in which children seemed to be doing fairly
0:11:26 > 0:11:30pointless labour, and there was some criticisms of that at the time.
0:11:30 > 0:11:34These were things like the straightening of nails
0:11:34 > 0:11:37which people could see little purpose for.
0:11:37 > 0:11:41A range of punishments were used in industrial schools.
0:11:41 > 0:11:45This would extend from things like solitary confinement
0:11:45 > 0:11:48to withdrawal of certain types of privileges,
0:11:48 > 0:11:52particular types of foods that were deemed to be special,
0:11:52 > 0:11:56but we also know that corporal punishment
0:11:56 > 0:11:58was used quite extensively.
0:11:58 > 0:12:04For boys, this would consist of caning with a birch stick.
0:12:07 > 0:12:09LOUD LASHING SOUNDS
0:12:18 > 0:12:22Oh, I can almost feel it!
0:12:23 > 0:12:27That was the reason I did it. I hated that school
0:12:27 > 0:12:31and I thought that would be the only way to get oot of there.
0:12:31 > 0:12:33And it wasnae just me.
0:12:33 > 0:12:34It was ma pal, George,
0:12:34 > 0:12:37who came up with the idea to burn the school doon.
0:12:39 > 0:12:41We had it all worked oot.
0:12:41 > 0:12:44We'd been collecting wood shavings from the workshop.
0:12:44 > 0:12:47We'd put them in our pockets when nae-one was looking
0:12:47 > 0:12:50and then hide them under the bench in the machine room.
0:12:53 > 0:12:57It was Sunday when everyone was in morning worship.
0:12:57 > 0:12:59George said we had to be quick.
0:12:59 > 0:13:02He'd stolen some matches from the kitchen.
0:13:02 > 0:13:04He lit one and gave it to me.
0:13:07 > 0:13:10I was scared. I didnae want to be the one to dae it,
0:13:10 > 0:13:13but it was burning down to my fingers.
0:13:13 > 0:13:16And George was saying, "Hurry up! Dae it! Dae it!"
0:13:16 > 0:13:21We could hear footsteps, so I flung it in, and it went up in flames.
0:13:34 > 0:13:37Now George and me are both in the jail
0:13:37 > 0:13:41and we're being sent to a different school - a reformatory school.
0:13:41 > 0:13:43I've heard it's going to be worse than the one we were in before.
0:13:44 > 0:13:46We shouldnae have done it.
0:14:12 > 0:14:17My name's Jane Angus. I live in Govan on the River Clyde.
0:14:19 > 0:14:22My dad works at the shipyards.
0:14:22 > 0:14:25My folks, me and my two sisters,
0:14:25 > 0:14:28we live in a two-roomed tenement on Main Street.
0:14:29 > 0:14:33Well, I did live there before all this trouble.
0:14:33 > 0:14:36Before I was caught stealing.
0:14:42 > 0:14:44It was back in May.
0:14:44 > 0:14:48I was in Greenock, a bit further doon the Clyde.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51There was a real thrang of people at the train station.
0:14:51 > 0:14:55A paddle steamer had just arrived at the quay from the Isle of Bute.
0:14:56 > 0:14:58I seen this well-dressed lady.
0:14:58 > 0:15:02She was waiting on the platform for the train back to Glesgae.
0:15:02 > 0:15:05She put her basket doon,
0:15:05 > 0:15:07and...I picked it up.
0:15:07 > 0:15:10WHISTLE BLOWS You! Stop!
0:15:10 > 0:15:14I was nearly out the station. I was nearly away.
0:15:14 > 0:15:19But the next thing I know, she's screaming for the police and I'm in the jail.
0:15:21 > 0:15:24Miss Nelson was her name... the lady whose basket I stole.
0:15:24 > 0:15:27She was frae Grangemouth.
0:15:28 > 0:15:30The basket had her jewellery in it.
0:15:31 > 0:15:36The policeman, Sergeant Mearns, said the jewels were worth £50!
0:15:37 > 0:15:39I don't know what came over me.
0:15:39 > 0:15:41I was famished.
0:15:41 > 0:15:44Look at me, I'm skin and bone!
0:15:45 > 0:15:51I was locked away in the jail in Greenock for ten days and nights.
0:15:51 > 0:15:55Then they brought me here. It's called a reformatory school.
0:15:56 > 0:15:59I have to stay here for five year!
0:16:01 > 0:16:03The Victorians tried something new.
0:16:03 > 0:16:06They very much thought that it was wrong
0:16:06 > 0:16:09to keep adult prisoners and child prisoners together,
0:16:09 > 0:16:13so they set up a new institution called the reformatory school.
0:16:16 > 0:16:20The idea behind this was that it would be a training school,
0:16:20 > 0:16:23effectively, for child criminals.
0:16:23 > 0:16:27Rather than simply punishing them, it wanted to change their lives.
0:16:27 > 0:16:29It wanted to take them off the streets,
0:16:29 > 0:16:33to give them a short, sharp, shock, because in some cases, they would
0:16:33 > 0:16:36be sent to prison for a short time as well,
0:16:36 > 0:16:39but then to lead them into a new life.
0:16:40 > 0:16:43It's very hard to say whether reformatory school was cruel or kind.
0:16:43 > 0:16:46By modern standards, most people would think it was fairly cruel,
0:16:46 > 0:16:50but, by Victorian standards, it wouldn't have been too bad a place.
0:16:50 > 0:16:52Certainly that was the intention -
0:16:52 > 0:16:55to create an environment where children would have the space
0:16:55 > 0:16:58to learn to behave,
0:16:58 > 0:17:01but also to learn important life skills.
0:17:07 > 0:17:10There was a very strict routine that involved
0:17:10 > 0:17:12a very regimented timetable.
0:17:12 > 0:17:16Absolutely every second of the day was detailed in advance,
0:17:16 > 0:17:20in terms of where you had to be and what you had to do.
0:17:20 > 0:17:23Children had no free time to pursue their own interests
0:17:23 > 0:17:27and they didn't really have any rights.
0:17:28 > 0:17:30We get up at six every morning.
0:17:30 > 0:17:32The first thing we have to do is wash.
0:17:33 > 0:17:37Breakfast is bread and butter with a big mug of tea.
0:17:37 > 0:17:41In the mornings, we do schoolwork - reading, writing and arithmetic.
0:17:45 > 0:17:49Then it's dinner time - 20 past 1 every day.
0:17:49 > 0:17:51You could set your watch by it!
0:17:52 > 0:17:54Monday is barley soup and potatoes.
0:17:55 > 0:17:58Tuesday is stewed beef and potatoes.
0:17:59 > 0:18:02Wednesday is bread and cheese.
0:18:03 > 0:18:06Thursday is barley soup... and potatoes.
0:18:07 > 0:18:09Friday we get a bit of fish...
0:18:10 > 0:18:13..and potatoes.
0:18:13 > 0:18:15Saturday is lentil soup... and potatoes.
0:18:17 > 0:18:19Sunday we get stewed beef...
0:18:19 > 0:18:21and potatoes.
0:18:22 > 0:18:25Every week's the same.
0:18:27 > 0:18:31The Victorians had clear ideas about the, sort of, the separation between
0:18:31 > 0:18:34boys and girls and the sorts of things that they would do in life.
0:18:34 > 0:18:37A Victorian boy in a reformatory
0:18:37 > 0:18:41would be expected to learn basic manual labouring skills.
0:18:41 > 0:18:44He would learn carpentry skills so he could work.
0:18:44 > 0:18:47Whereas, a young girl, it'd be quite different.
0:18:47 > 0:18:50Most girls that came out of reformatory schools
0:18:50 > 0:18:53would be expected to go and work in service,
0:18:53 > 0:18:55so that means as a servant in a big house.
0:18:55 > 0:18:58They need to learn how to behave as a servant.
0:18:58 > 0:19:02They would also need to learn how to sew and cook -
0:19:02 > 0:19:05those are the sorts of skills that a young girl would need
0:19:05 > 0:19:07when she left a reformatory.
0:19:13 > 0:19:17Our school mistress is soor-like. I've never seen her smile.
0:19:17 > 0:19:20There's so many rules.
0:19:20 > 0:19:23We're not allowed to talk when we're eating or working.
0:19:23 > 0:19:25Her punishments are harsh.
0:19:25 > 0:19:29If you don't behave, you get bread and water for your dinner.
0:19:29 > 0:19:33I dinnae mind that as much as being locked in a room on your ain.
0:19:36 > 0:19:40I heard that some boys ran away from their reformatory school in Paisley.
0:19:41 > 0:19:46We've been warned that if we try and run away, they'll cut our hair off!
0:19:58 > 0:20:02I left the reformatory school in June 1878.
0:20:02 > 0:20:06I didn't want to be a servant, so I managed to get a job
0:20:06 > 0:20:10in the shipyards, along with my dad, working as a French polisher,
0:20:10 > 0:20:13finishing off all the wood in the cabins.
0:20:13 > 0:20:16It's not just men that work in the ships, you know!
0:20:16 > 0:20:18But my health was poor.
0:20:18 > 0:20:22I had to stop working and I quickly got worse.
0:20:22 > 0:20:25They said I had consumption.
0:20:25 > 0:20:29It was in my lungs - they were all choked up.
0:20:30 > 0:20:33You would notice the onset of consumption,
0:20:33 > 0:20:37because you'd develop a nasty cough and you'd also very, very rapidly
0:20:37 > 0:20:40lose weight and become very, very feeble.
0:20:40 > 0:20:44We still have what was called consumption now,
0:20:44 > 0:20:48but we call it tuberculosis, and it is very, very serious,
0:20:48 > 0:20:53but it's not the killer today that it was back in the 1870s.
0:21:01 > 0:21:04I knew there was nae cure...
0:21:04 > 0:21:06and so did they.
0:21:08 > 0:21:12I passed away on August 4th, 1879,
0:21:12 > 0:21:16just eight days short of my 18th birthday.
0:21:35 > 0:21:39My name's John Smith. I'm from Blairgowrie, Perthshire.
0:21:41 > 0:21:45I work as a ploughman for the farmer, Mr Mitchell.
0:21:45 > 0:21:50Sometimes, when he asks, I run errands for him to the town,
0:21:50 > 0:21:53collecting goods and that from local shops.
0:21:55 > 0:21:58It was Mr Mitchell, he went straight to the police
0:21:58 > 0:22:02when he found out that he owed money for goods he says he never bought.
0:22:02 > 0:22:05He told them that I, John Smith,
0:22:05 > 0:22:09must have forged his signature on letters, pretending to be him,
0:22:09 > 0:22:14ordering fancy goods from the shops - shoes, boots and a shirt.
0:22:15 > 0:22:18The letters all said that Mr Mitchell would pay for everything later.
0:22:18 > 0:22:21But it couldnae have been me,
0:22:21 > 0:22:22it couldnae!
0:22:22 > 0:22:25Cos...I cannae write.
0:22:25 > 0:22:28I left school when I was 12 to work on the farm.
0:22:28 > 0:22:32I never had time for writing. I told that to Inspector Ross.
0:22:32 > 0:22:35He's the policeman who came and arrested me.
0:22:35 > 0:22:37But he didnae believe me.
0:22:37 > 0:22:39'John Smith!'
0:22:39 > 0:22:44The Victorians didn't really make a distinction in the early part of the 19th century
0:22:44 > 0:22:47between children and adults - they were just small adults, really.
0:22:47 > 0:22:52They could have spent up to three months waiting for trial in the early part of the 19th century.
0:22:52 > 0:22:57It would be hard for children in those days to understand what was happening to them
0:22:57 > 0:22:59when they went up to a court or a prison.
0:23:00 > 0:23:06'John Smith, on this day, January 25th, 1876,
0:23:06 > 0:23:11'this court hereby finds you guilty of all charges against you.
0:23:11 > 0:23:13'That you did falsely...'
0:23:13 > 0:23:17They had the letters in court - the ones that asked the shopkeeper
0:23:17 > 0:23:19to give me the clothes and the boots.
0:23:20 > 0:23:25The letters that I wrote pretending to be Mr Mitchell.
0:23:26 > 0:23:29Of course I can read and write, and well for a ploughman.
0:23:29 > 0:23:33It's just that things haven't gone well for me lately.
0:23:33 > 0:23:37I ran away from hame and fell into some bad company.
0:23:37 > 0:23:39I told that to the Sheriff.
0:23:39 > 0:23:41I'm only 14, I said.
0:23:41 > 0:23:44I hoped he'd no' be too hard on me.
0:23:45 > 0:23:48He gie us six calendar months.
0:23:48 > 0:23:52Six months locked up in here.
0:24:10 > 0:24:13For hours every day, I have to do this.
0:24:13 > 0:24:16Separating the fibres on these old bits of rope.
0:24:16 > 0:24:19Picking oakum, it's called.
0:24:19 > 0:24:23It's hard on your hands, like, and can cause terrible blisters.
0:24:23 > 0:24:25It hurts,
0:24:25 > 0:24:30but then again, I was a farmhand, so I'm used to grafting.
0:24:32 > 0:24:36They use the rough bits for sealing the joints on ships.
0:24:36 > 0:24:39I wonder where this will end up. Australia maybe.
0:24:41 > 0:24:45There were a range of punishments that were used in prison.
0:24:45 > 0:24:47One of the most important was the silent system,
0:24:47 > 0:24:52which meant that the prisoner had to conduct all their daily activities in complete silence,
0:24:52 > 0:24:56without talking to the other prisoners.
0:24:56 > 0:24:59The reason for this was that it was thought that it meant
0:24:59 > 0:25:03they wouldn't be able to corrupt or contaminate the other prisoners
0:25:03 > 0:25:06and, similarly, they wouldn't be corrupted by them.
0:25:06 > 0:25:08It could be worse.
0:25:08 > 0:25:12If I was a year older, I'd be turning the crank.
0:25:15 > 0:25:19You just turn a heavy handle on a machine for hours and hours,
0:25:19 > 0:25:21and for no reason.
0:25:21 > 0:25:23It doesn't even do anything useful.
0:25:23 > 0:25:25It's just there to keep you busy.
0:25:25 > 0:25:31It seems stupid to me to have folk doing something useless,
0:25:31 > 0:25:34but I wouldnae dare to say that.
0:25:34 > 0:25:37Then again, I wouldnae dare to say anything.
0:25:39 > 0:25:43I'm no' meant to talk, and it's a long day when you cannae talk to anyone.
0:25:46 > 0:25:51The Victorians would expect to use a philosophy of "spare the rod and spoil the child".
0:25:51 > 0:25:55Fortunately, children wouldn't have to be punished in this way.
0:25:55 > 0:25:58Children wouldn't be put through the crank, but they would be whipped
0:25:58 > 0:26:02and they would be birched and they would have their food stopped.
0:26:02 > 0:26:05So there were pretty serious punishments for you as a young offender.
0:26:11 > 0:26:14Whipping was used as a punishment in prison
0:26:14 > 0:26:17for boys under the age of 14.
0:26:17 > 0:26:20It would involve a whipping table
0:26:20 > 0:26:25and prison wardens who would whip the boy with birch sticks.
0:26:25 > 0:26:28It seems unlikely that this was used for girls,
0:26:28 > 0:26:32but it was undoubtedly used for boys on quite a regular basis.
0:26:32 > 0:26:35SOBBING
0:26:36 > 0:26:39I dinnae want to think about the poor soul in the next cell.
0:26:39 > 0:26:42Just hearing his sobbing is bad enough.
0:26:42 > 0:26:45I'll keep my heid doon. I'll do as they say.
0:26:45 > 0:26:48I'll pick oakham, nae bother!
0:26:48 > 0:26:51The sooner I'm oot of this place, the better.
0:26:51 > 0:26:55The warden says I'm lucky I wasn't transported to Australia.
0:26:58 > 0:27:04In the early Victorian period, transportation was used as a very important form of punishment.
0:27:04 > 0:27:09This mean that you were to be sent overseas to Australia
0:27:09 > 0:27:12to start a new life there,
0:27:12 > 0:27:17but it was a very extensive regime of discipline, hard labour
0:27:17 > 0:27:20and a very brutal experience.
0:27:20 > 0:27:23Taking a ship across the oceans in the 19th century
0:27:23 > 0:27:26is quite a perilous affair at the best of times.
0:27:26 > 0:27:30To do it as a prisoner, shackled and below decks,
0:27:30 > 0:27:35it's almost a death sentence, because it might not actually make it to Australia.
0:27:35 > 0:27:39So this is a real sentence being taken to, effectively,
0:27:39 > 0:27:42a whole continent that is a prison
0:27:42 > 0:27:46where there's no chance of escape, but then, at the end,
0:27:46 > 0:27:50some chance of redemption, because once you've served your sentence,
0:27:50 > 0:27:52which might be seven years or 14 years,
0:27:52 > 0:27:56you get the chance to live and work in that colony and start a new life.
0:28:05 > 0:28:10At least I'll be hame by September and helping with the harvesting.
0:28:10 > 0:28:12This rotten place...
0:28:12 > 0:28:15it isnae for the likes of me.
0:28:15 > 0:28:18Once I'm oot, I'm turning over a new leaf.
0:28:18 > 0:28:22I won't be back here, that's for sure.
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