BILL SIKES, HIS PRIVILEGES

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 324, 16 January 1909, Page 4

BILL SIKES, HIS PRIVILEGES

HE HAS IHS KKiHTS. AM) OETEX KNOWS IT. When is ;i burglar not a burglar? l( is unite possible for a man to break into a private, house, help himself i„ th.-' family plate, ami even proceed to tin. extremity of knocking the inoll'ciisivo housekeeper on the head, and vol not lie a burglar. The law of England declares that the «i >f burglary mn only lie committed between nine o'clock at night an I six o'clock in the morning. If ]ji|| Sikcs carries out his operations at any other tune he is simply a housebreaker. And the law does not. under very exceptional circumstances, punish a housebreaker as severely as a burglar. So 'Bill Sike-, by choosing the right lime'say a <|iiartcr to nine at nijjlit—t-a». make pretty sure u f receiving a lighter sentence than if he went to work at a later, hour. A 'burglar has other rights and privileges in England. The law even goes so far as to protect his valuable limbs and life for him. You may think you have a right to plant spring-guns aiul mantraps in vour garden for the purpose of making' Hill Skes uncomfortable if lie pavs von a. nocturnal visit, liut you haven't.' The setting of such villainous instru-me-.its, even foj- the sake of self-protec-tion against a potential criminal, is illegal. If a man-trap or spring-gun set by you should maim or kill an unwelcome midnight visitor, you would lie lucky if you escaped penal servitude. Xorfhave you a right to kill Dill ,Sike s -it sight, •Mirny a peaceable liousci holder sleeps with a loaded revolver under his pillow, and nourishes the delusion that if he wakes up at, say, midnight and sees a burglar creeping through the window, he has a perfect right to open lire at once. He has no-.. The law, tenderly solicitous for I lie ■burglar's sal'etv", says that no householder or anybody else, liny fire on him unless his own iife is actually threatened. Therefore, if the burglar is unarmed, and contents himself with iitlcling ferocious threats without displaying any deadly weapon, and you shoot iihn. it is manslaughter, and unpleasant consequences are likelv to follow.

' Hut if .Hill Sikes himself produceunci threatens to use a revolver, and. more impivvtant still, it" lie actually does Use one. llicn tile householder 'is entitled to open fire in self-defence.

Recently a burglar in Clasgow broke into 11 house, ami, being surprised, iired two shots at the owner of ilie plnee. ! The gentleman returned the fire, as he had a perfect rijrlil to do. and shot tin- burglar dead. A jurv brought in a verdict of •' justifiable homicide." Ojieer though it seems, the law also, to a certain extent, protects a buru'lur in getting away with his plunder.' If 'Hill Sikes pays a visit to you and departs willi your silver spoons and the »old watch bequeathed to von bv vour

uncle, yon are at liberty to follow hie and do all yon can by eloi|uent per„ua sion. or threats, miti'l the police arriv< Vou ean also lay hand- o;i him. Tin vou mii-t not use ally violence, provide he refrains from attacking you. Anil if you offer to let him go sent free i li- hands over the "swag" without an; more trouble you will be cninpouudhi'. a felony, which is a verv serious offence Al one time Bill Sikes possessed tin i|iicer privilege of insisting on liein; li i!!,'cil if he "wished. In 18:24, however, this privilege win iilu.ii.he.l bv Act ot I'arlianieiit. »». iheilecforlb the law could dispose of ; •'chin under ,cntcncc of death as if savin. Kven nowadavs. however. Hill Sikc retain- -oine privileges utter beiie.' lab bv *h- 1 1-. If he ha- no nionev „f his own whe' he is brought t„ trial, and his relation' and friend- decline to help him. he ha' tin' right to u,k the judge to assign hi« « i-miii-el. The taxpayer has to veiin burse tlii:- legal gentleman for hi- e.v ertions. so (hat it is (piile possible thai an unfortunate householder, after hein; burgled, has himself to contribute to wards the cost of defending the bur •rlar. I Tn the old days if the gentle liil Sikes war, sentenced to the " cat : ' h> an unsympathetic judge there was noth ing for him to <lo but grill a;id bear it; but now, if a burglar is sentenced to 1» Hogged, he has. under thu new Act which established a Court of Criminal Appeal the right to appeal against the Hoggin" part of his sentence, and the lashes will not be administered until his appeal fails. ■When he linallv gets into his lonelv cell, Bill Sikes is still far from being robbed of all his privileges. If a warder ill-treats him he lias a right to appeal to the governor. If the governor does not do him jusLice hi-can put his grievances before the visiting justices, who visit, all convict prisons at regular intervals. Finally, if he lies to spend his time in literary efforts, he is entitled to forivard pel it ion--direct to the Home Office .nnsk that his sentence imiv be reduced ir something to that effect. Of course, ivhat the Home Office does with his pi'liiou is ijuitc, another matter. "*