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CHAPTER IV. EXTRACTED

FROM THE DIARY OF THE

REV.JAMES NORTH.

ugust 24th.—There has been but one entry in my jour-
Anal since the 30th June, that which records the advent
of our new Commandant, who, as I expected, is Captain
Maurice Frere.
So great have been the changes which have taken place
that I scarcely know how to record them. Captain Frere has
realized my worst anticipations. He is brutal, vindictive,
and domineering. His knowledge of prisons and prisoners
gives him an advantage over Burgess, otherwise he much
resembles that murderous animal. He has but one thought—
to keep the prisoners in subjection. So long as the island is
quiet, he cares not whether the men live or die. ‘I was sent
down here to keep order,’ said he to me, a few days after his
arrival, ‘and by God, sir, I’ll do it!’
He has done it, I must admit; but at a cost of a legacy
of hatred to himself that he may some day regret to have
earned. He has organized three parties of police. One
patrols the fields, one is on guard at stores and public build-
ings, and the third is employed as a detective force. There
are two hundred soldiers on the island. And the officer in