They had neither beds nor bedding, but women, old and young, and little girls, slept in filth and rags on the floor.
No one seemed to care for them, and the Government merely furnished food to keep them alive.

Mrs.Fry visited Newgate, calmed the howling mob, and told them she wished to establish a school for the young women and the girls, and asked them to select a schoolmistress from their own number.

They were amazed, but chose a young woman who had been committed for stealing a watch.

In three months these "wild beasts," as they were sometimes called, became harmless and kind.

The reform spread until the Government legalized the system, and good women throughout Great Britain became interested in the work of educating and clothing these outcasts.