Clark.

To some of the prisoners the art of reading and writing is an all but
insoluble mystery. Every man is allowed a small slate, and many of the
prisoners spend an incredible amount of painful toil and mental
wrestling in preparing a petition, which, by the way, never does any
good. Poor Niblo for a whole year, through all the Summer's warmth and
Winter's frost, spent his spare hours producing this petition, and I
think my reader will agree with me that it is a masterpiece of its
kind.

PETITION.

Register No. Y 19. Name, Niblo Clark,
Present Age, 40. Confined in Chatham Prison.
Date of Petition, January 15, 1890.

CONVICTED. CRIME. SENTENCE. REMARKS.
When. Where.
1880. Old Bailey, Burglary. 15 Years. In Hospital.
London. Troublesome.

To the Right Honorable Henry Mathews, Her Majesty's Principal
Secretary of State for the Home Department:

The Petition of Niblo Clark Humbly Sheweth--

The Right Honorable Secretary the great benefit your humble
petitioner would derive by a speedy removal from this damp and
foggy inhospitable Climate to a milder one; the atmostphere here
his thoroughly prejudicial to your petitioners health and causes me
to be a great Sufferer i am Suffering from asthma accompanied with
bad attacks of Chronic bronchitis and have been now 3 long years
Confined to a bed of Sickness in a Sad and pitable Condition and
upon those Clear grounds and physical proofs your petitioner humbly
prays that it may please the Right Honorable Secretary to order my
removal to a warmer and milder Climate necessity also compels me to
complain of repeated acts of injustice and Cruely committed again
me, and which in some respects Might Justly undergo the imputation
of ferocity there are numbers and frivolous and false charges
conspired against me and every time i am discharged from here the
Governor takes them Seperate one each and trys to murder me: i have
been No less then Six weeks at one time on bread and Water
accompanied with a little penal Class and all the officers are
incouraged to practise all kinds of barbarious maltreatment against
me and other sick men--theres is one officer here place here for
the express purpose of tantelizing me and other his Nam