Hubert W. Peet

“ Instead of the depression, there came into my mind that joy that had so continually been mine in prison; the experience that the isolation, driving one back upon oneself, had brought one into the presence of the Beyond-Oneself; the sense that God, and Good, and Beauty were one; the honour of being privileged to help stem the tide of an evil force. ”

“ Their graceful form, their easy motion, their association in one’s mind with the free and open life of sea and shore, of sunshine and “whale-backed down,” were as a refreshing breeze which blew away some of the gaol cobwebs in the mind.
Outstanding in my prison life will always be the remembrance of the joy with which I happened upon Wordsworth’s lines:—
“Whose dwelling is the light of setting sun. ”

“ It is pitiful to see the old, bent, grey-haired men who have evidently become habituated to prison as their home, and still more tragic to watch the “juvenile adults” branded as criminals almost before they have left school, whose defiant eyes contrast strikingly with the dull look of older prisoners. ”

“ Usually, little capes are available for extra warmth during exercise in cold weather. All garments are dated, and one day I noted a cape that had been in use for 21 years! I have also seen a man with his trousers turned up at least eight inches to make them fit.
The great luxury of prison life is the weekly bath. The bath-house resembles a loose-box stable with a bath for each man. One can have as much warm water as one wants without the worry of thinking whether the kitchen boiler is empty or not! ”

“ I believe, therefore, I shall best spend my limited time in pigeon-holing mainly in subject and paragraph form, as completely as I can, an account of the ordinary life that I and my fellow C.O. prisoners have led, and shall again be leading by the time this will be read by you. [1] Thus, and thus only, can we best serve our dear ones, our country and humanity in the upward struggle towards that great Unity of life here and hereafter. ”

“ A prison chaplain with the best will in the world cannot avoid being just one of the officials on the staff, each and all of whom form part of the State machinery of punishment. Nevertheless, he may be looked upon as “Officer of the Humanities,” for he is responsible for the library, the source of what is practically the sole alleviator of prison life—books. ”

“ He declined to plead, declaring that though he might be technically a soldier, he was not one in reality and could not be made one against his will. He must disobey all military orders because of his conviction that all warfare, and not merely killing, was wrong. ”

“ The opportunity for brooding over grievances is a corrosive evil. What it must be to the ordinary prisoner—victim of social conditions—I can well imagine from the effect on myself of the mountain of annoyance aroused within me by the molehill incident of delay in getting the promised privilege of a pint of breakfast tea, owing to a temporary error in allocating me the proper marks which entitled me to this addition to the menu. ”

“ Of course, no work is done on this day. During the first month, at all events, the only time one sees another human being is for the few moments when the door is opened for meals, etc., at exercise, and at Chapel.
After this period has elapsed, prisoners are supposed to work in association in the morning and afternoon in canvas, brush or tinsmith’s shops, laundry, bakery, etc. In my case, however, owing, I believe, to the congestion in these departments, I worked over ten weeks of my prison life alone in my cell, in practically solitary confinement ”

“ In one cell was a man beginning his life sentence for manslaughter—because he had taken life. In other cells were scores of young men, confined there because they would not take life. In one wing of the prison were soldiers in detention, mostly for being absentees, and, therefore, apparently, tired of killing; and beneath the C.O.’s were imprisoned some Germans because they had been too eager to kill.
Prison Life—“Meals and Mail Bags”
The prison regime provides every temptation to atrophy, and to let oneself vegetate. ”

“ After hearing discourses of this nature it was interesting to go back to one’s cell to read, for instance, that one of the indictments against the Abbot of Wigmore at the time of the Dissolution of the Monasteries was that he had taught that one should hate one’s enemies and not love them. ”

“ In one prison a prominent figure at exercise was a full-blooded negro objector, a former resident of the West Indies. Mingled with the ordinary prisoners, mostly old men or young boys, though there was a good sprinkling of men of military age, were yellow men, brown men, and black men, and late one night the whole prison was roused by the arrival of the crew of a captured German submarine under a strong armed guard. ”

“ The prisoner never knows when he is being watched, and however innocent his action it is unpleasant to feel that complete privacy can never be relied on. During the evening officers wear silent felt slippers, and their visits are only known by the slight click of the shield over the hole as he moves it to look through. ”

“ The legal but ignored right of absolute exemption is the only one that should be striven for, either by us or by our non-pacifist sympathisers. We do not invite suffering, but we are only too willing to pay this price rather than that the fundamentals of our stand should be in danger of being obscured. ”

“ There were even some cases, however, of men working all the time in their cells. In any case, it will be noted that prisoners are entirely isolated for fourteen hours between supper and 6 a.m. Think what the effect of such life must be on ordinary prisoners who can find no joy in reading after finishing work in the evening, or on the “juvenile adult,” the poor little boy thieves and hoc genus omne in their teens during these empty hours.
Prison Diet
The Food Controller has not yet interfered with the diet. The “A” menu is practically nothing but bread and porridge. ”

“ In consequence, out of 800 C.O.’s at the Scrubs 200 attended the Quaker meeting, while when some 300 men were transferred to Wandsworth to make room for new arrivals at the Scrubs, I found 99 were classed as “Friends.” Though Quakers form so large a proportion of the prisoners, nearly every denomination is represented. I recognised this one day when, in company of six men and our religion was asked, I found myself the only Quaker, while there was one Wesleyan, two Baptists, a Congregationalist, a Unitarian, and a Churchman. The warder asked one of the men if he was not an “anti-theologian”! ”

“ Prisoners are accompanied everywhere by a warder, and are always under supervision. Surprise searches of cells take place at intervals to detect the presence of contraband of any sort; while the individual is searched. ”

“ A Prison Day
Perhaps the outsider will imagine that temptations to break the rule occur on more occasions than is actually the case. Of this they can judge from a rough time-table of the day’s happenings. This is as follows:—5.30 a.m.—Get up, wash, make bed, put plank bedstead and mattress (the latter is supplied after 14 days) against wall, sweep out cell. 6.0 a.m.—Warder opens door. Put slops out. Ward Officer walks round to note any applications to see the Governor, Doctor or Chaplain or any small complaints. ”

“ On Monday, 10 oz. of haricots with 2 oz. of crude fat bacon (“beans in candle grease”) . On Tuesday and Friday, 1 pint of soup—usually thick and good, and meat has been found in it. On Wednesday and Saturday, 10 oz. of suet pudding made with brown flour—good if received still hot; and on Thursday, 4 oz. of cooked meat without bone, but not without fat or gristle. ”