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       From data supplied by jail officers we find that rice costs on an average one
anna per man daily, so that there should be a saving of 3 pies on each prisoner
per day. Calculating on a basis of 16,000 prisoners in Bengal, from rice alone
this would work out at a saving of over three-quarters of a lac of rupees yearly.
Besides this, if our suggested means of obtaining fish were possible, there would
very nearly be a similar saving on dal, wheat and makkai ata.

       The details would require to be worked out with regard to local conditions,
but we have no doubt that in most of the central jails, and in many of the smaller,
fish could be cheaply obtained. On the whole there would certainly be a lac of
rupees saved every year—and probably much more, if the diets which we have
shown to be much superior in every detail to the present standards were
introduced.

       5. With regard to the cooking of these vegetable food-stuffs we have not
been able to make any observations; but from the evidence afforded by other
observers we would recommend that the dal be ground to meal before being
cooked. We hope to be able to make some investigations on this important
subject later. As already mentioned, lentils given after soaking and boiling show
over 40 per cent. of the protein unabsorbed; whereas when ground to lentil meal
only from 8 to 10 per cent. of the lentil protein passes out in the fæes.

Y2.