I typed up some entries from what I call the magistrate's book. It's recorded as "Police Record Book, 1842-1843" but all the charges listed in it are against men already under sentence, not the general populace, and from some further digging, they all seem to be men in the first part of the probation period. Now any misconduct during that period would see the prisoner sent before the magistrate for disciplining, so I'm assuming that's what this book is recording.
Whatever, when I first looked at it, I thought this needs reading indexing, and Jon said "Go for it" so I did. It's interesting to read index because the details are enough to bring this "world" to life. Mostly this comes just from reading indexing the whole thing but that is a bit much to type up so I'm just sharing a few of the interesting ones.
Thomas Webster was charged "with misconduct in tampering with his eyes by having placed lime in them to become exempt from labour" (For that, he got 6 days in solitary confinement).
John Briggs, occupied in stone breaking on the government domain was charged with "Disobedience of Order in refusing to take the Medicine ordered by the Medical Officer." He pleaded guilty and got 7 days solitary confinement.
This is the one that prompted my Twitter comment about trivialness:
Robert Holman was "charged on the complaint of Overseer Boden with neglect of duty yesterday". He pleaded Not Guilty. Thomas Boden stated "the Prisoner is employed under me wheeling Barrows & I saw him yesterday sitting on his barrow. In the previous part of the day he had done his work very well." For that, Holman was "Reprimanded and discharged".
And then there is this one...
William Dowling, Thomas Evans, Henry Ashworth, John Parkes, Joseph Gosling and John Shehan, were "Charged on the complaint of Mr Simmmonds with being absent from their gang without leave last evening." Their plea: We were ordered by Mr Henry to go. Robert Henry was sworn in and stated: "I am Supt of the Domain Quarry the Prisoners are employed under Mr Simmonds in working the Quarry. I gave Mr Simmonds the order that some stone was to be taken in Town at Night & had the cart loaded for that purpose but I did not give the prisoners an order that they were to leave work before the rest of the men. About 5 o'clock in the afternoon I was going along the top of the Quarry & I told them to take a rope? with the Cart. One of the men asked me if they were to go. I said I did not know what the Clock was. The Prisoner Shehan than asked me if they might get a smoke? & I told him to ask his Supt. Parkes came & asked me afterwards where the Stone were to be left & I told him." They each got six days in Solitary Confinement.
Sometimes it goes the other way.
Thomas Guy was "Charged on the complaint of Overseer Boden with being absent from his Gang yesterday afternoon without leave."
Boden states "yesterday afternoon after 3 O'Clock I saw the Prisoner going across the Paddock having left his work without any leave he returned after 5 O'Clock in sufficient time to come in with the Gang. I did send after him but the Constable could not find him. I did not ask Mr Simmonds about him. When he was ordered into imprisonment he turned around & gave Mr Simmonds a pass."
Henry Simmonds states "Yesterday afternoon Mr Henry in charge of the Quarry said he wanted a man to go to Town & I gave the Prisoner a pass to go for Mr Henry." Case dismissed.
I can't help wondering if Guy did that on purpose to get back at the Overseeer (The Overseers were usually convicts too and often took advantage of their extra bit of power).
Of course, amongst all those men there were many who, well, needed that extra bit of prompting to stay in line.
William Jones & William Dickenson were charged with "disorderly conduct". The complainant said "The prisoners were quarrelling in the morning & directly my back was turned the prisoners began to fight. They are very disorderly & lazy."
Richard Sheridan was "Charged on the complaint of Mr Simmonds with misconduct in violently assaulting his fellow prisoner by kicking him in the eye & otherwise ill using him." (He was sentenced to be kept to hard labor on the Roads for 12 months.)
The last two entries are included because they say a lot about the wider context.
Matthew Trainer, a "patient at the colonial hospital, under sentence to Tasman's Peninsula" was charged "with misconduct in defacing his Irons" (Pleaded Guilty, and was given 14 days solitary confinement.) I have a feeling defacing of irons was done as a form of protest (need to follow that up). Also interesting that he's in irons in the hospital? And I assume he'd been brought up to the hospital in Hobart.
And finally, William Moss & John Gabell were "Charged on the complaint of Overseers Hodgson with misconduct in trafficking with Govt shoes yesterday". (Gabell was Reprimanded & discharged, Moss got 14 days Solitary Confinement.) I wonder how widespread that was? Passing tobacco along was commonplace. Also the shoemakers (and other tradesmen) seemed fond of doing "private work" although some of that was initiated by government officials who didn't see why they shouldn't get their work done on the cheap. Something for me to keep watch for more information on.
