7 \ SOCIAL SCIENTIST sketches appear the pen protraits of a galaxy of 150 rogues from all over the world and their clans and gangs Am©ng them ^are colourful and depressing figures of immense variety, tragic and comic characters, heroes and villains Salvatore Gmliano of Italy, Lampiao of Brazil, Giorgos Volanis of Greece^ Gajaraj of India, Billy the Kid of USA, Froilan Alama of Peru and Darcy Dugan of Australia. For a book of 156 pages including indices and appendix and illustrations Bandits is a remarkable feat of precision, brevity and sweep. ' A look at the titles of chapters gives us a glimpse into the depth of treatment and the sweep of coverage: 1 What is Social Banditrv ? 2 Who Becomes a Bandit ? 3 The Noble Robber 4 The Avengers 5 Haiduks 6 The Economics and Politics of Banditry 7 Bandits and Revolntipn^ 8-3The Expropriators 9 The Bandit as a Svmbol. And finally ain'Appendix: Women and Banditry. Hob^bawm steers clear of both pitfall^—^-the^uhdue adulation m khe traditional popular ballads and downright condemnation from ethical standpoints. The merit of H^bsbawm's study is thai uY3pite of the ideological conviction of the author, he does not attempt fo fit in f^cts to p^ebow^fved theoiies. His conclusions and evaluations flow naturally and log^fflv from the wealth of data he has marshalled from an bver tbcr world Un^a, numbel of languages. rq n^ h ^L^ Ho^^wms Bandits, which in a wa^ is the continuation of InSa^u" .mems. and'findmMS inius Mevious wat^PrbniUve ^eoels is of {tiltftense help FT/"! i 7 "* ^KT'jn . il .0.%!^ ^L^ 'N11-Wl * )H^t\ C /1< i ^ \i f . , t^^s^d^i^ rof Iw^^-.^l^o^- Tndla T ^ a home Of jpe^enmal fhand,itr¥&pm (heume o?"tne Emperor J^l^l-ud-rfin ithiIJi fAt) l?9b-96). Z^-udr^inJ^arani has recorded thatjalal-'ud-din's admihi^tration captured ^bput 1000 thugs during his w^ Although It is po'ssiblfeto tAce the ongm$ of •the Indian baadits to several ceja1{iite^6^^ it 1^ hSw g&rferally ^dnutted th^t the^ phenomenon0 or^ari^i^y1 ^obk '8vt a^i eiltifet^3 new ^h^r^t^^nd ^imension.^ teritis^ jllistori^nAs and ^ffmi^istrators of whom Lord Hastings Is credited wTtn^ exteWnhatin^^'tne' Find a ^ ^3'Lord Bentic^ ^vho established 3, "Thag^ and Dacoity D^pkYlfet^it^ 'm ?3^ with Ae fawou^ WH Sleeman as'its^lea^woulrf^^^^ banditFy w^s a^ cndemlo feature o^fndf^sqcie^^^ ^%^fenTr8m ^firfe immemorial. Sleeman claimed that ^ean|( hi^s^meirB^A^atty ext^rnltA&l'iig the thugs had dpne away with ^au'enorjxiou^'eyH wni^h Had^ n5r 'cefirttXnes opnres&ed people and from which it was long su^pos^d th^€ W^nuinari !•r * - , i ,^ r " f s ^ . ^^fJ-lS^^ - / ^ iA->^LT efforts could relieve them. 2 _ » , . r,h €Ji id n j Though we need not^dpny th^^ish^a,ca?ta^ peasure pf success W wrbi^g certain classes o{ ^^p^^rt^n/^eas^with their ^Bl^c^^ ^^li^d bureaucracy and .police sy^p, th^ fa^t r^am^that^ndi^^^ -^^ since disapg^cd frqm^e X^n^e^Ey^ffa^ i^i the late forties, ^ i^egratteli^^ W^Y&q^^^^j^^^fCT^^oP^?^^ 'paflities in the fifties and VinoN^SfeW^^r^p^S^Wl, cajxipa^gns^ ^^the