XI.
B. Weisz.31
“The wants that man must satisfy are numerous, but there is none which makes itself felt so much as hunger. If he cannot satisfy his wants in a lawful fashion, necessity drives him to other means.”
To prove what he says Dr. Weisz produces the following table:
France.
| Years. | Accusations of Crime. | Price of Wheat. |
| 1845 | 5054 | 19.75 |
| 1846 | 5077 | 24.05 |
| 1847 | 5857 | 29.01 |
| 1848 | 4632 | 16.65 |
| 1849 | 4910 | 15.37 |
| 1850 | 5320 | 14.32 |
| 1851 | 5287 | 14.48 |
| 1852 | 5340 | 17.23 |
| 1853 | 5440 | 22.39 |
| 1854 | 5525 | 28.82 |
| 1855 | 4798 | 29.32 |
| 1856 | 4535 | 30.75 |
| 1857 | 4399 | 24.37 |
| 1858 | 4302 | 16.75 |
| 1859 | 3918 | 16.74 |
| 1860 | 3621 | 20.24 |
| 1861 | 3842 | 24.55 |
| 1862 | 3906 | 23.24 |
| 1863 | 3614 | 19.78 |
| 1864 | 3447 | 17.58 |
With but seven exceptions criminality here follows prices. When the figures for crimes against property are substituted for those for general criminality in the table, the agreement becomes greater: [61]
| 1847 | 4537 | 29.01 |
| 1848 | 3020 | 16.65 |
| 1849 | 2895 | 15.37 |
| 1850 | 3174 | 14.32 |
| 1851 | 3126 | 14.48 |
| 1852 | 3327 | 17.23 |
| 1853 | 3519 | 22.39 |
| 1854 | 3761 | 28.82 |
| 1855 | 3133 | 29.32 |
| 1856 | 2766 | 30.75 |
| 1857 | 2689 | 24.37 |
| 1858 | 2315 | 16.75 |
| 1859 | 2019 | 16.74 |
| 1861 | 2146 | 24.55 |
| 1862 | 2144 | 23.24 |
| 1863 | 1941 | 19.78 |
| 1864 | 1744 | 17.58 |
Belgium.
| Years. | Price of Wheat. | General Criminality. | Offenses against Property. |
| 1841 | 20.02 | 444 | 332 |
| 1842 | 22.17 | 468 | 361 |
| 1843 | 19.41 | 434 | 346 |
| 1844 | 17.75 | 455 | 336 |
| 1845 | 20.06 | 387 | 275 |
| 1846 | 24.53 | 616 | 498 |
| 1847 | 25.20 | 579 | 496 |
| 1848 | 17.37 | 529 | 427 |
| 1849 | 17.15 | 451 | 338 |
| 1850 | 16.15 | 270 | 168 |
| 1851 | 16.71 | 247 | 132 |
| 1852 | 20.16 | 290 | 140 |
| 1853 | 25.13 | 264 | 191 |
| 1854 | 31.48 | 336 | 238 |
| 1855 | 32.92 | 299 | 212 |
| 1856 | 30.73 | 332 | 268 |
| 1857 | 22.96 | 309 | 197 |
| 1858 | 23.55 | 278 | 167 |
| 1859 | 24.00 | 314 | 187 |
| 1860 | 31.15 | 254 | 161 |
It is to be noted here that in the years 1850–1860 the penal law was changed. The correlation is not constant but appears in many cases. The years of the crisis, 1846–1847, are especially interesting. [62]
| Years. | Infanticide. |
| 1845 | 5 |
| 1846 | 17 |
| 1852 | 7 |
| 1853 | 13 |
| 1854 | 12 |
| 1855 | 14 |
England.
| Years. | Price of Wheat. | Number of Criminal Offenders. | |
| 1816 | 78 | .6 | 9,091 |
| 1817 | 96 | .11 | 13,932 |
| 1846 | 54 | .8 | 20,072 |
| 1847 | 69 | .9 | 22,451 |
| 1852 | 40 | .9 | 24,443 |
| 1853 | 53 | .3 | 27,187 |
| 1854 | 72 | .5 | 27,760 |
| 1855 | 74 | .8 | 31,309 |
| 1856 | 69 | .2 | 29,591 |
| 1857 | 56 | .4 | 26,542 |
| 1858 | 44 | .2 | 24,303 |
—The value of Dr. Weisz’s information would be greater if he had given us the relation of the figures for criminality to those for population.—