JB/116/545/001

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Letter 3d

12 Dec 1802

XVI Improved prisons

14
On the same
articles, under the
plan professed and
acted upon for in
respect of penitentiary
houses—setting up
250 for one
of one 501/502.

Wasteful as that poor-house plan of Mr Pitt's would have been,
in comparison of the Suffolk poorhouse plan, itself
wasteful in comparison of the Panopticon poorhouse plan
first official plan, for covering the country with microscopical poor houses,
would have been frugal in comparison of the second official plan,
for covering it with microscopical penitentiary houses.

Upon the scale of ten establishments instead of
one, the expence (Your Lordship sees) is about
midway between three times and four times as much
as it need be:—to keep clear of exaggeration, say
but three times:—waste £2 out of £3. But, upon the this
second official plan, the origination of which
presently—the plan transmitted to Your Lordship in a
whisper by particular friends—the plan upon which

I mean the plan for covering the country with microscopical
penitentiary houses, these are all would be 253 instead of 257 such local penitentiary
houses, instead of the one national large one prescribed
by Parliament: prescribed by Parliament seriously, and
afterwards bespoken by me in jest in by the late Treasury
and the Duke of Portland.(a) Two hundred and fifty seven
penitentiary establishments houses instead of one: and these are not poor houses
but penitentiary houses: say for round numbers, only 240
only

Note—Treasury Letter about the 2000

(a) Mr Secretary Long to Mr Bentham—Copy—Treasury Chamber 25th March 1800
"Having laid before the Lords Commissioners of his Majesty's Treasury a letter from
"the Duke of Portland, relative to the number of Convicts which the Panopticon
"proposed to be erected by you is intended to accommodate, I have never received
their Lordship's commands to acquaint you that the proposed building of a Panopticon
is to be calculated to accommodate two thousand persons. I am" &c.+

Note continued
This ways in answer to
a letter of mine, written
more than 7 months before:
viz: on the 17th of August
1799: asking of Mr Long
the number I was to build
for, that I might
for, for the therein declared purpose
of my making preparations
accordingly.

Identifier: | JB/116/545/001 "JB/" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 116.
Date_1	1802-12-12	Marginal Summary Numbering	14
Box	116	Main Headings	panopticon versus new south wales
Folio number	545	Info in main headings field	letter 3d
Image	001	Titles	note continued
Category	correspondence	Number of Pages	1
Recto/Verso	recto	Page Numbering	f12
Penner	jeremy bentham	Watermarks	1800
Marginals	jeremy bentham	Paper Producer
Corrections	jeremy bentham	Paper Produced in Year	1800
Notes public	letter was never sent; see note 8 to letter 1747, vol. 7	ID Number	38078
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