"
"Criminal tribes-er-I don't quite understand," said Paget~
"We have in India many tribes of people who in the slack
anti-British days became robbers, in various kind. and preye~ on
the people. They are being restrained and reclaimed little by little,
and in time will become useful; citizens, but they still cherish
hereditary traditions of crime, and are a difficult lot to deal with.
By the way what; about the political rights of these folk under your
schemes? The country people call them vermin, but I sup-pose
they would be electors with the rest."
"Nonsense-special provision would be made for them in a
well-considered electoral scheme, and they would doubtless be
treated with fitting severity," said Pagett, with a magisterial air.
"Severity, yes-but whether it would be fitting is doubtful. Even
those poor devils have rights, and, after all, they only practice what
they have been taught."
"But criminals, Ordel"
"Yes, criminals with codes and rituals of crime, gods and
godlings of crime, and a hundred songs and sayings in praise of it.
Puzzling, isn't it?"
"It's simply dreadful. They ought to be put down at once. Are
there many of them?"
"Not more than about sixty thousand in this province, for many of
the trlbes broadly described as criminal are really vagabond and
crimlnal only on occasion, while others are being settled and
reclaimed.
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