PERCENTAGE OF ACQUITTALS IN ENGLAND. Criminal Proceedings. Summary Proceedings. 1858 62 ... ... ... 25 ... ... ... 34 1863-7 ... ... ... 24 ... ... ... 31 1868-72 ... ... ... 26 ... ... ... 24 1873-7 ... ... ... 25 ... ... ... 21 1878-82 ... ... ... 24 ... ... ... 21 1883-7 ... ... ... 22 ... ... ... 20 Here also it appears that the growth of crime in England, though less than in France, is not due to the weakening of judicial severity through the greater number of acquittals. The number has, in fact, constantly diminished, especially in summary proceedings, which is just where the greatest increase of crime is manifest. Passing now to the other factor of judicial repression, that is to the percentage of persons sentenced to graver kinds of punishment, we have to take into account, amongst assize cases in France, the prisoners <p 89>sentenced to death, penal servitude, and solitary imprisonment, excluding such as are sentenced to correctional punishment (simple imprisonment and fines) as well as young prisoners sent to reformatories; and in regard to the Tribunals, we must take the percentages of those who are condemned to imprisonment, which is the most serious punishment, the remainder being fined, or handed over to their parents, or sent to reformatories. Condemned at Assizes Condemned FRANCE. ---------------------------- by Tribunals To death. To penal servitude. to imprisonment. 1826-30 ... ... 2.5 ... ... 58 ... ... ... 61 1831-5 ... ... 1.5 ... ... 42 ... ... ... 65 1836-40 ... ... .7 ... ... 37 ... ... ... 65 1841-5 ... ... 1 ... ... 40 ... ... ... 61 1845-50 ... ... 1 ... ... 39 ... ... ... 62 1851-5 ... ... 1.1 ... ... 48 ... ... ... 61 1856-60 ... ... 1 ... ... 49 ... ... ... 61 1861-5 ... ... .6 ... ... 48 ... ... ... 64 1866-9 ... ... .5 ... ... 47 ... ... ... 68 1872-6 ... ... .7 ... ... 49 ... ... ... 66 1877-81 ... ... .7 ... ... 50 ... ... ... 66 1882-6 ... ... 1 ... ... 49 ... ... ... 65 These figures, if they do not show (as might have been foreseen) so large an increase of severity as in the percentages of acquittals, yet prove that repression has not diminished even in the serious character of the punishments. On the other hand, we can see that, in the assize cases, excluding the first period, before the revision of 1832, whilst capital punishment shows a certain diminution (especially due to the laws of 1832, 1848, &c., which reduced the number of cases involving the death penalty), though continuing at a certain level since 1861, sentences of penal servitude and solitary confinement show a con<p 90>tinued increase from the second period, and especially since 1851. So also at the Tribunals, except for a few oscillations, as in the ninth period, there is a sustained increase of repression.