on
was the jail; the airiness and cleanliness were both perfect, and the
arrangement was to me totally novel. Independent of the ground outside,
which is walled all round, the jail itself is built under a large outer
case, affording abundance of light and ventilation. This outer building
forms a corridor all round the jail, affording protection to the keepers
from all weathers, and thus enables them to keep an efficient watch over
the inmates. Supposing any prisoner to escape from his cell, he is still
hemmed in by this outer case, which has only one door, so situated that
no one can approach it without being seen from a considerable distance;
and, even if these difficulties be overcome, the outer wall common to
all prisons still remains. As far as I could learn, no prisoner has ever
been able to force his way out. At night a blaze of gas in the outer
hall lights all the dormitories and the corridor which runs round
outside the jail, thus rendering escape as difficult at night as in
broad daylight. Water is freely supplied to every room on every storey,
and means of bathing are arranged in various parts of the building.
School-rooms, private rooms, and a chapel are all contained within this
leviathan outer case. In short, to those who take an interest in
improving the airiness of jails and the security of prisoners, this
building is well worth the most careful examination; and I trust we may
some day profit by the improvements which the ingenuity of the New
Englanders has here exhibited, for the frequent escapes from our jails
prove that some change is requisite.

The Bostonians have applied the telegraph to a most important use,
which, I believe, we have totally overlooked in England. The town is
divided into sections, in each of which are a certain number of
stations; all of these latter have a telegraph-office, communicating
with one grand central office, by which means they explain where the
fire is. The central office immediately indicates to every section the
information thus obtained by the ringing of alarm-bells; and, by this
method, every fire-station in the city is informed of the locality of
the danger within a few minutes after its occurrence.

The naval arsenal at Boston is moderate in size, kept very clean; but
when I visited it there were little signs of activity or life. They have
only three building sheds, in one of which a vessel has been in progress
for twenty years; the other two are vacant. The pri