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of New York, limiting the period for the paymentof an annuity therein expressed. The crowded situation of our state prison makesit necessary, either to enlarge the present buildingor to erect a new one at Albany, Utica, or some otherplace. The plan of the present prison was entirely myown, and, although I visited Philadelphia, and ex-amined many of Howard's plans, and was furnishedwith several by my friend William M. Pitt, a memberof Parliament for Dorchester, of prisons in England,yet a most striking error was committed in our plan;—it should have contained 500 rooms, 7 feet by9 feet, in order to keep the prisoners separate atnight—in the day they are at work, and have keep-ers constantly with them, so that they have no oppor-tunity to corrupt each other;—this entirely destroysthe designs of a penitentiary establishment, intendedto amend and improve the habits of the convicts.A few years since, one of the commissioners appoint-ed to build a penitentiary at Boston, came to New-York, with a view to get information as to the planfor them to adopt; I urged them to have a separateroom for each prisoner, and had such a plan drawnunder my direction; this was adopted, and it is theonly prison in this country calculated to answer thedesign of forming such establishments. Having somany rooms, does not increase the expense, as theprison need not be built so strong, because there isless danger of escape. If another prison should be erected, I sincerely hope it may be on the plan ofhaving a separate room for each convict. The number of convicts are considerably increased (at least in this city) on account of the sum whichmakes grand larceny—this is twelve dollars anda half; it was fixed at fifty dollars, it would con-siderably lessen the number of prisoners in the stateprison. I respectfully offer these hints, as some sub-ject relating to the state prison, or the existing penal