OCR Text |
Show Substitute Prisoners of India. The number of aged men among tho prisoners in the jails of India aro said to be very large, and tho explanation is this: It is a common practice, when ,a theft Is brought to a man by tho police, po-lice, for him to get an old father or uncle to take the blamo on himself, or he puts up a younger brother to do so. Before tho court they mako fulland circumstantial confession. They arc convicted, and the real thieves get off. It is done to benefit the family. A sturdy stur-dy young man is able to do moro for the family support by honest labor or by thieving than an old man or a boy., This js a custom which prevails moro or less in all Oriental countries. The judges and the people seem to argue In this way: "Somebody has committed a crime, therefore somebody some-body must be punished. Now tho law is no respecter of persons, and one person is tho same .id another; therefore, there-fore, it can mako no difference to tho law who is punished. So, if the law punishes somo person for the crime, it makes no difference if he did not commit the crime, tho law has been vindicated." |