How easily an innocent action may be misconstrued under the Contagious Diseases Acts may be seen by the evidence of Mr. Parsons, an examining surgeon under these Acts, who when examined by the Parliamentary Committee as to his definition of a prostitute (there being none under the Acts), defined it as “any woman whom there is fair and reasonable grounds to suspect to be _going_ to places which are the resort of prostitutes, and at times when immoral persons are out,” and added, “It is a matter of _mannerism_ more than anything else.” Footnote 53: The only witness required under the Contagious Diseases Acts is the paid spy. Footnote 54: A woman may be detained for nine months at a time in hospital, on evidence given by the hospital surgeon only (see clause 22, Act 1866, and clause 7, Act 1869); and the hospital authorities, whose servant he is, receive £30 a year for every bed which is filled. Footnote 55: If the difficulty of proving innocence in this case be so great, we may consider the difficulty much greater for a woman to prove, not only that she had no intention of an evil nature, but that she is in fact a chaste woman. It has been said that it is impossible even for Diana herself to prove her own chastity. Footnote 56: In a recent pamphlet, one of the supporters of the Contagious Diseases Acts says of the women, “No _crime_ is laid to their charge!” See Lane’s answer to Duncan M‘Laren. Footnote 57: This is precisely what we say of the Acts which we oppose. Footnote 58: The malicious whisper of a single man, under the Contagious Diseases Acts, may destroy the character of a woman. A gentleman who lately visited Paris was sitting in the boulevards with a young Frenchman, who, observing a great many young women passing, remarked to his English companion, “I could have any one of these sent to prison to-morrow by a single word to the inspector of police.” Footnote 59: