A thorough examination of the causes of this perversion would be ill placed in the midst of our investigation of the social etiology of crime, for they are principally of a pathological nature. However prostitution should be mentioned as contributing more to sexual demoralization than any other cause. As Dr. Després says in his work “La prostitution en France”, “Physicians think that rape[499] is an aberration of the genetic faculty and that this crime is more often the result of satiety than of deprivation of the natural exercise of the genital functions.”[500]
Dr. Ladame expresses himself thus. “All the causes which divert the genetic faculty from its natural end may lead to crime, and among these causes prostitution plays, without doubt, the principal part.”[501]
It is plainly difficult to show by figures the degree of importance of [[624]]prostitution in the etiology of sexual crimes. The Swiss statistics, which try, though very imperfectly, to record the causes of crimes, say that 5.3% of the sexual crimes are caused by prostitution.[502] It is unnecessary to say that this figure is too low.
We may add in conclusion that it is almost always upon the children of the poor that these crimes are committed. The children of well-to-do parents are so well guarded that crimes against them are the rare exceptions.[503] [[625]]
CHAPTER IV.
CRIMES FROM VENGEANCE AND OTHER MOTIVES.
Besides economic, sexual, and political criminality, there is still a fourth category of crimes, the motives of which are quite diverse. We shall treat, A. Crimes from vengeance, and B. Infanticide. The first group is important both quantitatively and qualitatively; the second, especially, qualitatively. The crimes committed from other motives are either very rare, or very insignificant, or may be explained by the same causes as those included under A, and hence may be passed over in silence.[504]
A. Crimes Committed from Vengeance.
In a sociological work like ours we need not consider the psychology of vengeance.[505] For our subject it is sufficient to show that the feeling is innate in everyone, although in different degrees. As soon as one person injures another, whether bodily, or in his interests, or his honor, the desire to retaliate in one way or another immediately appears. If this desire transforms itself into act, this act calls forth a stronger reaction on the part of the opposing party, etc. It is this that is called the instinct of vengeance.[506] [[626]]