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[21] [1822 Jan. 5] [Governor's Message]

found either very inconvenient or impracticable, as by the Act of March 19, 1821, this part of the former law is repealed and the Court is authorized to order the punishment by solitary imprisonment to be executed in the county gaols "as far as the situation of the prisons, the state of the convict, and the circumstances and aggravation of the offence shall render proper."

By the operation of the latter Act the punishment by confinement to hard labor seems to be substantially abandoned, or at least suspended for the present. Indeed it is entirely impracticable, without the addition of yards to the prisons, erected and secured with reference to that object. By repealing the law by which this was required, the Legislature seem to have been of the opinion that it was inexpedient to have thus provided.

Before the separation of Maine from Massachusetts, in all or nearly all cases, where convicts for the more aggravated offences were sentenced to a long period of confinement, the sentence was ordered to be executed in the State Prison. This relieved the counties from a considerable proportion of their prisoners and particularly those of the most dangerous character.

Since that time all have necessarily been confined in the county gaols, and the consequence has been so great an accumulation of prisoners, that some of the gaols have been inconveniently crowded. There is reason to believe, that with the growth of our population, the number of convicts will not be diminished, but considering our contiguity to the provinces of a foreign Government, they will rather increase.

Should this be the fact, it will become necessary for many of the counties to enlarge their prisons, or for the Legislature either to erect a State prison, or substitute some other mode of punishment in the place of imprisonment. The restraint of personal liberty, either with or without hard labor, seems to be pointed out by the general practice of civilized nations, as a suitable mode of punishing crimes against the peace and security of society. It is certainly desirable to connect with