Data were collected through a census taken on March 1, 1981, and interviews conducted 3 weeks later with 208 of the 213 Aboriginal prisoners and a matched comparison group of 96 non-Aboriginal inmates. Aborigines constituted 5.8 percent of the New South Wales (NSW) prison population, compared to .44 percent of the NSW population aged 18 and over as reported in the 1981 Census of Population and Housing. It was estimated that, between 1973 and 1981, Aboriginal males were imprisoned in NSW at 10 to 17 times the rate of non-Aboriginal males. Aboriginal prisoners were similar to the non-Aboriginal group in that most were male laborers who had never married. Employment histories and social security benefits were also similar. The Aborigines, however, tended to be slightly younger and have completed less schooling than their non-Aboriginal counterparts. Major differences in criminal histories were reflected in the Aborigines' higher rates of previous commitments to correctional institutions. The most common offenses for which both groups were imprisoned were property offenses. More Aborigines were in prison for major assault, assault of an unspecified nature, and rape than were non-Aborigines, while a larger proportion of the latter group were in prison for theft, robbery, and drug offenses. Additional survey results are detailed. Tables and nine references are supplied.