Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1899 American Edition.djvu/1278

 922

RUSSIA

In Poland tlieve ai'e judges of peace in the towns only, their functions in the villages ])eing performed by Gmina courts, elected by the inhabitants of the Gmina. Siberia has maintained the tribunals of old ; in the Steppe Provinces there are district judges, while courts of higher instance are repre- sented by the Justice Department of the provincial administration.

There were in 1891-2 appeal departments of the Senate, 10 high courts, 85 courts of first instance. There were besides — 1,280 inquiry judges and 1,345 notaries ; 2,126 actual and 3,652 honorary justices of peace. In the unreformed tribunals there were 604 judges, 129 public prosecutors, and 156 inquiry judges.

By a law, dated June 21, 1889, the functions of the juries were limited to some extent, especially as regards the crimes committed by the representa- tives of nobility in their elective functions,

B}^ a law of April 6, 1891, reformed courts as well as chiefs of districts have been introduced in the provinces of the Kirghize Steppes, In Siberia, the reformed Courts and trial liy jury were introduced in 1897, and in Turkestan in 1898.

The following figures (the most recent published) show for the year 1889 the activity of the 62 courts, 8 chambers of justice, and 1,107 enquiring magistrates of European Russia: — Number of prosecutions, 207,060 (73,850 pending from former years) ; prosecutions terminated, 125,924 ; afiairs brought before the law courts 133,472 (ended 98,143) ; before the chambers of appeal 3,070 (ended 1,948) ; before the appeal courts of the Senate 2,008 (ended 1,726), Condemned by juries 20,952 men and women (hard labour and exile 3,580), without juries 16,984 (crimes against religion 672, murder 913, man- slaughter 1,553) ; acquitted by juries 12,228, without juries 5,746, Prosecuted before the justices of peace 81,671 ; condemned 57,524.

In Poland (10 courts, 1 appeal chamber) were: — Prosecutions 41,892 (15,832 pending from former years) ; prosecutions terminated 22,731 ; affairs brought before law courts 29,356 (terminated 19,006) ; 3,174 appeals (ended 1,784); 211 appeal cases (ended 186), Condemned by law courts (without juries) 7,978 men and women (hard labour and exile 337 ; crimes against religion 45, murder 188, manslaughter 346) ; acquitted 4,276.

According to the last report of the Chief Administration for Prisons the Russian Empire had, in 1896, 888 prisons (of which 125 were in Poland), and the prison population on January 1, 1896, appeared as follows : — ■

—

Men

Women

Under judgment

20,804

1,456

Condemned to imprisonment

40,916

4,211

,, exile.

9,628

540

Waiting transport to Siberia

5,144

507

Kept by order of Administration.

811

24

Voluntarily following their parents

or husbands ....

744

871

Total

78,047

7,609

In the course of 1896, 603,974 persons entered the prisons, and 613,976 left (each prisoner being counted several times as he is transferred from one prison to another), so that on January 1, 1897, the prison population numbered 75,654, distril)Uted as follows: — lock-ups in Russia, 57,046;