As will be seen from the following Table, the daily average Local prison population has fallen enormously since 1913-14—52 per cent. in the case of males and 40 per cent. in the case of females. But as regards the number of males committed by Ordinary Courts, the fall in the average population is much greater, for included in the daily average population shown below is an average probably not far below 2,000 prisoners committed by Courts Martial, the larger number of whom were cases of men, who, having failed to obtain from local tribunals exemption on the ground of conscientious objection under the Military Service Acts, were ultimately committed to prison for breach of military discipline. Further, there are also included many cases charged under the Defence of the Realm &c. Acts. Excluding all these, the daily average male population in 1918-19 had fallen by over 60 per cent. of the number at which it stood in the year before the War. A fall of over one-half is also shown in the male average population of Convict Prisons:—
| Daily Average Population of | |||||||||||
| Local Prisons | Convict Prisons | Borstal Institutions | |||||||||
| M. | F. | M. | F. | M. | F. | ||||||
| 1913-14 | 12,116 | 2,236 | 2,609 | 95 | 841 | 87 | |||||
| 1918-19 | 5,751 | 1,322 | 1,146 | 83 | 566 | 194 | |||||
This great fall in the prison population is still more strikingly shown in the Table showing the total committals to prison on conviction by Ordinary Courts for the years named:—
| Year. | Committals to Prison on Conviction. | Proportion per 100,000of the Population | |||
| On Indictment | Indictable OffencesTried Summarily | Non-indictableOffences | Total | ||
| 1913-14 | 7,738 | 15,598 | 113,088 | 136,424 | 369 |
| 1918-19 | 3,486 | 8,568 | 13,996 | 26,050 | 70 |
| Decrease since 1913-14 | 55% | 45% | 88% | 81% | 299 |
This great fall in the numbers committed must, of course, be attributed to a great extent, to conditions arising out of a state of war: but, at the same time, it must be borne in mind, as shown above, that a decrease in grave, as well as in the less serious, forms of crime, had been proceeding for some years before the war. The general call upon the manhood of the nation for service with the Forces: the endless opportunities for employment for those who, in ordinary times, would probably not be eligible for want of necessary qualifications—to which must be added the intense spirit of patriotism pervading all classes, leading men and women to abstain from evil—have, no doubt, been chiefly responsible for so few persons coming to prison. But the War alone, or the spirit engendered by the War, cannot be said to have been the sole cause of this great fall. In the first year of the War, the Criminal Justice Administration Act, 1914, came into operation, which provided new facilities for the payment of fines; and, whereas before the operation of this Act between 75,000 and 100,000 persons had been committed annually in default, the number so committed in 1918-19 had fallen to about 5,300 only. This low number is probably to be accounted for by the high wages prevalent, thus affording means to pay the fines imposed. As a result of this, the total number of short sentences fell enormously. Before the War, and the passing of the Act of 1914, there had been nearly 100,000 sentences annually to two weeks or less, while in 1918-19, only 4,000 were received for those terms.
As regards the actual offences which have contributed to this decrease during the War,—amongst grave crime, the offences of Burglary and Housebreaking showed the greatest fall, viz:—57 per cent., the numbers having been 1,960 in 1913-14, and 840 in 1918-19. Larcenies, including the less serious cases dealt with summarily, fell from 22,459 in the first-named year to 8,915 in the latter year, or 60 per cent. (A large increase in the case of Bigamy was noted,—the number which had averaged about 80 per annum before the War, had risen to 420 in 1918-19). Cases punishable by fine fell greatly, and amongst these was the offence of Drunkenness: 51,851 persons were received on conviction in 1913-14 and only 1,670 in 1918-19, a fall of 97 per cent., the number for the latter year probably representing largely the cases which were committed without the option of a fine. Assaults also fell from 8,666 in 1913-14 to 1,269 in 1918-19, or 85 per cent., and offences against Police Regulations from 8,661 to 889, or 90 per cent.
A striking feature of statistics during the War has been the decreased proportion of recidivists convicted of serious crime tried on indictment. In 1913, 3,462 persons, or 34 per cent. of the total convicted, had incurred six or more previous convictions: in 1918, this number had fallen to only 786, or 17 per cent. of the whole.
Soon after the outbreak of War, drastic measures were enforced on the sale of intoxicating liquor. On the 31st August, 1914, the Intoxicating Liquor (Temporary Restriction) Act, 1914, was passed, and under its provisions numerous Orders were made by the Licensing Justices, suspending the sale or consumption of liquor on licensed premises or clubs. Similar Orders were also made by Naval and Military Authorities. In June, 1915, the Central Control Board (Liquor Traffic) was constituted under an Order in Council, which established the Defence of the Realm (Liquor Control) Regulations 1915, pursuant to Act of Parliament. Statistics for the offence of Drunkenness showed a remarkable decrease year by year, as will be seen from the following Table:—
| Year | Convictions for Drunkenness in England & Wales | ||
| Males. | Females. | Total | |
| 1913 | 153,112 | 35,765 | 188,877 |
| 1914 | 146,517 | 37,311 | 183,828 |
| 1915 | 102,600 | 33,211 | 135,811 |
| 1916 | 62,946 | 21,245 | 84,191 |
| 1917 | 34,103 | 12,307 | 46,410 |
| 1918 | 21,853 | 7,222 | 29,075 |
| Decrease per cent since 1913 | 86 | 79 | 85 |
Another remarkable feature of prison statistics during the War was the practical disappearance of the Vagrant, convicted of Begging and Sleeping-Out. In the years before the War, as many as 27,000 had been committed annually for this offence (see chapter XIII), while in 1918-19 only 1,066 were received, and these were said to have been largely the aged and the mentally or physically weak.