233 A PARTIAL JUDGE. 



I 



V 



perhaps in some degree, the consequence of 

 those severe enactments, such as the Lei/es de las 

 Indias (the kiws of the Indies), which rendered 

 many tliefts and robberies punishable with 

 death. Tlie magistracy contracted the habit 

 of frequently winking at crime, rather than 

 resort to the barbarous expedients prescribed 

 by the letter of the law. The utmost that can 

 be gained now by public prosecution, is the 

 recovery of the stolen property, if that be any- 

 where to be found, and occasionally a short 

 period of imprisonment for the culprit This 

 is more particularly the case when the prose- 

 cutor happens to be a foreigner; while on the 

 other hand, if he be the party accused, he is 

 hkely to be subjected to very severe treat- 

 ment A remarkable circumstance of this 

 kind occurred in Chihuahua in the year 1835. 

 One of our most respectable Mssouri mer- 

 chants had bought a mule of a stranger, but 

 the animal was soon after claimed by a third 

 person, who proved that it had been stolen 

 from liim. The Missourian would have been 

 perfectly satisfied to lose the mule, and end 

 the matter there ; but to the surprise of all, he 

 was directly summoned before an alcalde, 

 and i^trthwith sentenced to jail : the partial 

 judge having labored to fix the theft upon the 

 innocent purchaser, while the real culprit, who 

 was a native, was permitted to go at large. 



The love of gambling also deserves to he 

 noticed as a distinguishing propensity of these 

 people. Indeed it may well be said, without 

 any undue stretch of imairination, that shop- 



