palace, shall, upon such an accusation, under no circumstances, be put to the question; and if proof of the alleged offence is wanting, he who is accused must declare his innocence under oath. All persons of inferior rank, and freeborn persons, when accused of theft, homicide, or any other crime, shall not be tortured upon such an accusation, unless the property involved is worth more than fifty _solidi_. But if the property is of less value than fifty _solidi_, and the accused is convicted upon legal testimony, he shall be compelled to make restitution, as prescribed by other laws; or if he should not be convicted, after purging himself by oath he shall receive the satisfaction granted by the law for those who have suffered from an improper demand for torture. We hereby especially provide that a lowborn person shall not presume to accuse a noble or one of higher rank than himself; but if such a person should accuse another of crime, and proof of the same should be wanting, the person accused shall at once purge himself of all guilt by oath, and swear that he never took, nor has in his possession, the property on account of which he was prosecuted; and oath having been made, as aforesaid, he who brought the false accusation shall undergo the penalty for the same, as prescribed by a former law. But whether the person subjected to the torture is a noble, one of inferior rank, or a freeman, he must be tortured in the presence of the judge, or of certain respectable men appointed by him; and in such a way as not to lose his life, or the use of any of his limbs; and because the torture must be applied for the space of three days, if, as the result of accident, or through the malice of the judge, or the treachery of anyone else, he who is subjected to it should die; or if the judge, having been corrupted by the bribes of the adversary of the accused, should not prohibit the infliction of such torments as are liable to produce death; the judge himself shall be delivered up to the nearest relatives of the accused person, that, on account of his injustice, he may undergo at their hands the same sufferings which he unlawfully inflicted upon the accused. If, however, he should declare himself under oath to be innocent, and witnesses who were present should swear that death did not result from any malice, treachery, or corruption of which he was guilty, but only as a result of the torture itself; for the reason that the said judge did not use his discretion to prevent excessive cruelty, he shall be compelled to pay fifty _solidi_ to the heirs of the deceased; and if he should not have sufficient property to pay said sum, he shall be delivered up as a slave to the nearest heirs of the former. The accuser shall be surrendered to the nearest relatives of the deceased, and shall suffer the penalty of death, which he suffered who perished through his accusation.[32] =ANCIENT LAW.=