The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1877-06-15


published BY the British Government Is
curious book, bound in black and
printed in Brixton prison. This
enormous volume contains the names
and aliases Of more than twelve thou
sand professional offenders, and is stored
with valuable information relating TO the
criminal classes Of Great Britain.
In accordance with law passed some
years ago, a vast criminal encyclopaedia
was compiled by governors of prisons
throughout the United Kingdom. Up
10 the beginning Of last year nearly one
hundred and eighty thousand indiyid-
uals, men and women, had been inscrib-
ed on this general list and summary
Of their biographies recorded. This
work had the capital fault Of being too
elaborate, and the Home Secretary was
authorized at the last session of Parlia-
mcnt TO prepare an abstract Of it, The
new volume, which will henceforth be
known as the Black Book, describes
only those who have been found guilty
Of felonies, or who have been repeatedly
convicted Of misdemean0rs. Ii is, in
short, a dictionary Of professional Grim
inals, and as such will be distributed to
inspectors of police throughout Great
Britain, as well as to the governors Of
prisons. We need not point out its USE
fulness to the former, as means Of fix
ing identity and determining the inn
portance Of given arrest, or to the lat
ter as an aid TO gauging the sincerity Of
the repentance protested by given
prisoner.
II is understood that the catalogue
will be forwarded 70 the police Of the
several Continental States and of this
country, and very properly, since IT COM
prises the names of more than a hum
dred individuals of foreign birth. Among
these cosmopolitan criminals we find a
notice of Augustus Wintcrhalter, who
escaped one day from jail in Constants
nople, and turned up "a few months af-
stated by Lieut.. Col Du Cane, who SUI
pervised the publication, that this is the
first time mass of information at once
so complete and so accessible has been
furnished to the police of any country.
The records of the French police are
Justly celebrated for their range and
minuteness, but the volumes holding
them are too numerous and bulky TO be
readily consulted or transported from
place to place.
To sum up the contents Of this book,
il appears that there were last year in
England twelve thousand dangerous
persons, thieves, burglars, or murderers
by vocation, who were temporarily him
dcred by Imprisonment from proving
upon society. If now we de-
compose this total with a view 10 the
birthplace Of criminals, we obtain some
singular results. 1t might have been
supposed that almost all could be traced
to the refuse population Of great cities.
The contrary proves 10 be The fact, for
London, if we bear in mind the ratio Of
professional offenders TO the whole body
of inhabitants, must be placed after
number Of counties, several large pro-
vincial cities, and some small towns.
Even more noteworthy is the distribu-
ton Of individuals according to nation
alities. OF those catalogued, but one
twelfth were born in Ireland, and only
lbs, or about on per cent, in Scotland.
How distinctly this circumstance seems
to point to connection between crimi-
nality and defective education, and what
tribute it is to the common school
system of Scotland. We observe,
further, that Of the persons designated
in this volume more than two-thirds are
males, and that single men are twice as
numerous as married offenders.
We may call attention TO one more
fact brought out by the Black Book, and
that is the close relation shown to ex-
ist between disease or bodily deformity
and criminality. Almost every individ-
ual described had some physical defect.
Many were scrofulous, and the majority
bore scars Of some sort, or were marked
with the smallpox. What is more GU
rious, as suggesting survival Of the
decorative customs no less than of the
predatory instincts Of the savage, nearly
every one Of the professional criminals
here registered was tattooed One pris-
oner, for example, had branded on his
left arm six fishes, four stars, as many
diamonds, heart, and two arrows; the
wrist was embellished with bracelet,
two stars, and crown. The coinci-
dence is perhaps worth noting that this
individual has been thrice convicted of
violent crimes.---Ncw York Sun.