gin of this slang. No doubt it was one of the chief
causes, but does not explain the continued use of a jargon which is too
well known now to serve this purpose; moreover, it is employed in poems,
the object of which is to invite public attention, not to avoid it, and
by criminals in their homes where there is no need for secrecy.

_Pictography._ One of the strangest characteristics of criminals is the
tendency to express their ideas pictorially. While in prison, Troppmann
painted the scene of his misdeed, for the purpose of showing that it had
been committed by others. We have already mentioned the rude
illustrations engraved by the murderer Cavaglia on his pitcher,
representing his crime, imprisonment, and suicide. Books, crockery,
guns, all the utensils criminals have in constant use, serve as a canvas
on which to portray their exploits.

From pictography it is but an easy step to hieroglyphics like those used
by ancient peoples. The hieroglyphics of criminals are closely allied to
their slang, of which in fact they are only a pictorial representation,
and, although largely inspired by the necessity for secrecy, show, in
addition, evident atavistic tendencies.

=FIG. 10
Drawings in Script.
Discovered by De Blasio=

De Blasio has explained the meaning of the hieroglyphics used by the
"camorristi" (members of the _camorra_ at Naples), especially when they
are in prison. For instance, to indicate the President of the Tribunal,
they use a crown with three points; to indicate a judge, the judge's cap
(see Fig. 10). The following is a list of some of the hieroglyphics
mentioned by De Blasio:

_Police Inspector_--a hat like those worn by the Italian soldiers who
are called Alpini (a helmet with flat top and an upright feather on the
left side).

_Public Prosecutor_--an open-mouthed viper (see Fig. 10).

_Carabineer_--a bugle.

_Theft_--a skull and cross-bones.

_Commissary of the Police_--a dwarf with the three-cornered hat worn by
the _carabinieri_.

_Arts and Industries of the Criminal._ Although habitual criminals show
a strong aversion to any kind of useful labour, in prison and at large,
they, nevertheless, apply themselves with great diligence to certain
tasks, sometimes of an illegal nature, such as the manufacture of
implements to aid them in escaping, sometimes merely artistic, such as
modelling, with breadcrumbs, brickdust, or soap, the figures of persons.
Sometimes they make baskets, machi