до

FIRST

REPORT

OF THE

COMMISSIONERS

APPOINTED TO INQUIRE AS TO THE BEST MEANS OF
ESTABLISHING AN EFFICIENT

For Her Majesty's Stationery Office.

1839.

Nature and Extent of the chief Evils to be Prevented or Repressed.
Absence of official information as to the extent of Crime committed
Causes of the absence of such information

Evidence that Crime is more extensive than is supposed
New evidence as to the number of offences committed

3567

Instance of a comparison of the number of Crimes committed with the number of the same offences punished

Fallacious reasonings from Returns of Convictions only

11

12

8

Career of Delinquency, and number of Crimes committed before a conviction
Extent of Crime inferred from numbers of habitual Delinquents
Enumerations of habitual Delinquents known to the Police
Comparative number of known Delinquents in the Metropolis and different
Cities

Returns of the numbers of houses kept for the accommodation of Delinquency or Vice

Erroneous estimates of the number of the criminal population

Duration of the Career of habitual Delinquents

Amount of money obtained by Depredators

13

Comparative Career of Delinquents in Town and Country

Inferences from the Evidence as to the relative number of Crimes and Committals

Description of the Depredations committed

Migration of Depredators from the Metropolis and the larger Towns to the Rural Districts

Proportions of Migrant and Resident Delinquents Confessions of Delinquents; practices, and unchecked career of Migrant Depredators; obstacles to House-breakers; effects of Imprisonment on Rustic Prisoners in Town Gaols, and of communication between Delinquents in Prison

26

27 to 55

Vagrancy the extensive source of other Crime; prevalence of in the Rural Districts; practices of professed Vagrants, and Description of the offences committed by them

Vagrants' Lodging-Houses, Description of; Crimes promoted in
State of the Rural Districts in respect to Crimes committed

Depredations on Agricultural produce

56 to 64

64 to 70

70

75

Insecurity of Labourers' property in some Districts, and want of protection for 76 State of personal security in remote Districts

Instances of unpunished murders, and of the negligent escape of murderers

79

80 to 82

Instances of the impunity of Rioters in the Rural Districts
Insecurities of the weak in the enjoyment of Legal rights against the ag-
gressions of the strong in remote Districts

Inadequate enforcement of Civil Process

State of Protection on the Highways; extinction of mounted Highwaymen
Insecurity of single Travellers on the Highways

Comparative security of single Travellers on the Continent