Page:The Green Bag (1889–1914), Volume 06.pdf/332

 Rh Saxon border; in Prussia, worse in the Saxon provinces of that kingdom. The fewest suicides in Europe occur in Ireland and Russia, in both of which countries there is the greatest suffering, but which seem to escape the mania by their great distance from Saxony. The metropolitan cities, of course, present a greater amount of crime than the country around them. London, Paris, Berlin, Vienna, Rome, St. Petersburg, New York, come in the order. There are 80,oo0 professional criminals in London, constantly menacing the public peace, the safety of life and property of all, of whom only one-sixth are in prison. Vienna and Buda-Pesth seem to make a specialty of burglary. Murder, it is found, is in inverse proportion with the civilization prevailing. The higher the civilization the fewer the number of murders committed. The only exception to this rule is in Turkey, where the Islam faith is productive of a certain religious sentiment which makes murder the greatest crime against human and divine laws. In Greece there were 316 murders and 473 murderous assaults last year, or one to, every 2,8oo persons. Next comes Spain, where an increase in bloodshed goes hand in hand with the gradual decline of the country. Theft like murder, goes with lack of culture and civiliz ation. It is very rare in Sweden and Norway, while Turkey, Russia, Hungary and the Balkan States show the greatest number of thieves. London is a Mecca of swindlers. Germany also makes a bad record, of late there being a marked decline in the honesty in business transactions, while Belgium, France, and Switzerland rank favorably in this respect. Spain, Italy, Greece, Turkey, and, above all, Russia, lead in fraud.' Bucharest is known to-day as the greatest den of swindlers in the world. It will be seen that it is possible to make a criminal map of Europe, showing that certain sections produce murder, others burglary or suicide, just as they produce fruit or wheat or cotton. — New Orleans TimesDemocrat. Law as She is Classified. — Under the head of " Children Playing in Street" a well-known legal publication places the statement that, " An elephant properly driven may be a traveler within the meaning of the statute," citing Gregory v. Adams, 14 Gray Mass.) 242.

303

The jury system of the District of Columbia is peculiar, and has been unchanged since the time of Lord Baltimore and Queen Elizabeth. The old colonial laws of Maryland obtain, under which the court can even now punish a woman for gos siping or telling tales to her neighbor, or failing to keep her house neat and clean. The law pro hibits planters from feeding their workmen terra pin and canvas-back duck, and requires that housekeepers shall give their servants wholesome food. People can be fined so many pounds of tobacco for swearing on the streets or for not attending church. When Earl Ferrars had been convicted of murder, great efforts were made to obtain a par don, on the ground that he was insane. His mother being applied to, and requested to write a strong letter on the subject, answered : " Well, but if I do, how am I to marry off my daugh ters?" , A curious relic of the spirit of those old days when noblemen held their estates by virtue of an undertaking to supply their sovereign with a stated number of armed men when occasion re quired was to-be witnessed at Windsor recently when the duke of Wellington visited the Castle for the purpose of " paying the rent " of Apsley House. It appears that the Apsley House prop erty is held by virtue of an undertaking that the Duke of Wellington shall each year, on the anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo, or on such other day as may be more convenient to the Queen, present Her Majesty with a miniature royal standard, and if, from any cause whatso ever, this quaint service be omitted in any year, the property becomes forfeit to the Crown.

BOOK NOTICES. LAW.

The American State Reports. Vol. XXXV. Containing the cases of general value and de cided in the courts of last resort of the several ' states. Selected, reported, and annotated by A. C. Freeman. Bancroft, Whitney Co., San Francisco, 1894. Law sheep. S4.oo. This volume contains reports of over one hundred and fifty cases selected from decisions in the courts