After having called attention to the fact that the average wage of the Italian workman is lower than in other industrial countries, the author gives the following results of his researches: the influence of the fluctuation of wages upon crime in general is less than, and almost always subordinated to, that of the fluctuation of food-prices. However, it must not be forgotten here that wages do not always represent exactly the condition of the majority of the proletariat. With some few exceptions, all crimes against property decrease when wages rise (in combination with the price of grain). This influence is not noted in commercial crimes and counterfeiting. Crimes against persons increase a little when wages rise; but when this rise coincides with a low price of wine, they increase considerably.
The influence of strikes is exclusively limited to the crime of rebellion.
From the investigation into criminality and commercial occurrences we learn that fraudulent bankruptcy, and also forgery in great measure, are almost entirely independent of economic occurrences; and the fluctuations of the number of commercial crimes, in so far as they are not influenced by other economic facts, are explained in great part by commercial occurrences. [[143]]
Financial occurrences (credit and deposits) do not make themselves felt in criminality in general, but in crimes against property and commercial crimes.
The author concludes finally from the increase shown by private fortunes and the rise in wages, that there is a correlation of these phenomena with a decrease of certain serious forms of crime.
The results of the study are summarized in the following table:
| CRIMES. | Subject to the Influence of Economic Occurrences and varying with Them. | Inversely. | Much. |  | a. | Thefts of all kinds. | |||
| b. | Embezzlement, cheating, and other frauds. | ||||||||
| c. | Crimes against property (coming before the magistrate).[48] | ||||||||
| d. | Commercial crimes.[49] | ||||||||
| Moderately. |  | e. | Blackmail, extortion, and robbery. | ||||||
| f. | Crimes against the order of the family. | ||||||||
| g. | Crimes against persons (coming before the magistrate). | ||||||||
| Little. | | h. | Crimes against the public order. | ||||||
| i. | Crimes against the public administration.[50] | ||||||||
| j. | Forgery and counterfeiting. | ||||||||
| Crimes over which the Influence of Alcohol is Predominant. | | I. | Assault and extortion (with homicide). | ||||||
| Directly. | | II. | Rebellion, and violence to the public authorities. | ||||||
| III. | Homicide of every kind. | ||||||||
| IV. | Assaults and intentional injuries. | ||||||||
| — | Sexual crimes. | ||||||||
| Outside of the Influence of Economic Occurrences. |  | Hardly at All. |  | k. | Attacks upon the safety of the state. | ||||
| l. | Perjury, etc. | ||||||||
| Not at All. | | m. | Fraudulent bankruptcy. | ||||||
| n. | Insults, and defamation of character. | ||||||||
| o. | Crimes against religion. | ||||||||
| p. | Arson and malicious mischief. | ||||||||
According to the author it follows from his investigation, that the economic factors fill a very important place in the etiology of crime, but that all crime is not to be explained by that means. He is of the opinion that if we are to combat crime effectively we must make use of the “penal substitutes” recommended by Professor Ferri.
The author treats the influence of economic occurrences upon criminality in Great Britain and Ireland in the same way. Here are his results: [[144]]