murder on such slight basis when the actual crime had not been
observed.

At the present time in India the papers taken in the civil-service
examinations must be certified to by the thumb-print of the competitor
and wills must likewise be sealed in the same way, and all checks and
drafts must be certified by a thumb-print in addition to a signature.

In India, also deeds of transfer, and records of sale of land in
connection with illiterate natives are executed by the impression of a
thumb-mark instead of an "X, his mark"; and recently this very
superior system of signature has been applied to all kinds of
transactions with the natives, such as post-office savings banks,
pension certificates, mortgages, etc.

The success the plan met with in India led to its trial and speedy
adoption by the French and English police. In Paris it is used as an
adjunct to the measurement system of M. Bertillon, but at Scotland
Yard the Bertillon system has been entirely done away with and full
reliance is had on the prints. M. Bertillon claims to have 500,000
prints in his collection, although this is said by the authorities
to be an exaggeration, and Inspector McNaughton of the convict
supervision office has at least 100,000 criminals' hands catalogued
in his office.

Finger marks do not change in any way through life, and any injury
only temporarily affects the pattern. The pattern becomes larger as
the youth develops into a man, but the arrangement of the lines
remains absolutely the same.