106
HISTORY OF INDIA.
[Book IV.
A.D. —
Police and eapiouage.
"two sorts of rogues — the open and the concealed;" open, who "subsist by cheating in various marketable commodities;" and concealed, "who steal and rob in forests and the like secret places." There are also " receivers of bribes, extorters of money by threats, debasers of metals, gamesters, fortune-tellers, impostors, and professors of palmistry ;" in short, " scoundrels with depraved souls, who secretly prowl over this earth" — worthless men, all the more dangerous from often " bearing the outward signs of the worthy.' As a security against their machinations, and for the prevention of robberies, the king must employ soldiers, stationary and patrolling, as well as secret watchmen at "much-fre- quented places, cisterns of water, bake-houses, the lodging of harlots, taverns, and victualling shops, squai'es where four ways meet, large well-known trees, assemblies and public spectacles, old courtyards, thickets, the houses of artists, empty mansions, groves and gardens." It will also be requisite to employ " able spies." The description given of them is cm-ious. They are to be men who were " once thieves," and thus " knowing the various machinations of rogues, associate with them and follow them," for the purpose of enabling the king to " detect and draw them forth." Even their mode of proceeding is detailed. On some pretext or other, such as the promise of " dainty food and gratifications," the spies are to procure an assembly of rogues. Being thus brought within the grasp of the law, the king is to seize them all at once, as well as any of their gang whose suspicions may have deterred them from joining the assembly, and do summary j ustice by putting them to death, "with their friends and kinsmen, paternal and maternal."
After recommending a number of other executions, conceived in the same sanguinary spirit, the code disposes of a variety of minor delinquencies, pro- perly falling within the department of police ; such as taking away the water of an ancient pool, obstructing a water-course, breaking down a foot-bridge, or removing a public flag. For all these fines are appointed. In other cases offenders are punished by imprisonment. Of course, prisons are necessary, but the only information given with regard to them is, that they are to be placed " near a public road, where off'enders may be seen wi-etched or disfigm-ed." From the suliject of police the code adverts to various forms of meditated crime, which, though they may have failed of their effect, deserve punishment. Those par- ticularly mentioned are, "sacrifices to destroy innocent men," "machinations with roots," and " witcheries." From these an abrupt transition is made to Fraudulent scvcral fraudulent practices. After specifying the sale of bad grain for good, the placing of good seed at the top of the bag to conceal the bad below, and the removal of known landmarks, and declaring that those guilty of such offences " must suffer such corporal punishment as will disfigure them," the code con- cludes its denunciations of fraud with the following startling sentence : — " But the most pernicious of all deceivers is a goldsmith who commits frauds ; the king shall order him to be cut piecemeal with razors." The barbarous punishment
Prisons.
