Footpad

A footpad is an archaic term for a robber or thief specialising in pedestrian victims. The term was used widely from the 16th century until the 19th century, but gradually fell out of common use. A footpad was considered a low criminal, as opposed to the mounted highwayman who in certain cases might gain fame as well as notoriety. Footpads operated during the Elizabethan era and until the beginning of the 19th century.

Etymology

According to the American Heritage Dictionary, the origin of the term is not entirely clear, but it may be a concatenation of foot and the word pad, related to path. This would indicate a robber who is on foot, as opposed to his equestrian counterpart.

Robbing

Footpads always operated on foot and robbed people by first putting them in fear. Social and economic conditions, the impossibility of buying a horse, and their precarious state led them to commit robberies in the streets. Their actions were accompanied by brutality, through which it was possible to gain time and take the lead in case of reaction from the victim. Criminals found more safe and advantageous moving in darkness so as to put the victim in fear, escape and diminish the possibilities to be recognised by witnesses. Violence was perpetrated as a means to ensure a rapid escape from the crime scene. This was the reason why a footpad assault was accompanied by threats, violence, and in the worst case by murder.

Mugger crocodile

The mugger crocodile (Crocodylus palustris = "crocodile of the marsh"), also called the Indian, Indus, Persian, marsh crocodile or simply mugger, is found throughout the Indian subcontinent and the surrounding countries, like Pakistan where the Sindhu crocodile is the national reptile of Pakistan. It is one of the three crocodilians found in India, the others being the gharial and the saltwater crocodile. It is a medium-sized crocodile that mostly inhabits freshwater lakes, ponds, sluggish rivers, swamps and marshes. Males of the species are said to grow up to 4–5 m (13–16 ft) in length. As with other crocodilians, females are smaller. The mugger crocodile has the broadest snout of any extant crocodile, giving it an alligator-like appearance. It is a more heavily armored species with enlarged scutes around the neck. Adults are dark grey or brown, while hatchlings are tan colored.

The mugger crocodile is a skilled predator that preys on a variety of species. Like other crocodilians they are ambush hunters and wait for their prey to come close. They wait camouflaged in the murky waters to launch the attack in the suitable moment. They mostly prey on fish, reptiles, birds and mammals. Reproduction takes place in winter months. Females lay eggs in nests that are holes dug in the sand. Temperature during incubation is the determinant of sex in the young. The mugger crocodile possesses the size to be a serious threat to humans but are not as aggressive as some other species, such as the sympatric saltwater crocodiles. They are also observed to usually avoid areas with saltwater crocodiles. Muggers are fairly social species and tolerate their conspecifics during basking and feeding.