"The [second stage in the evolution of laws, that is, the] second step toward law and civilization in the treatment of crime was the substitution of damages for revenge. Very often the chief, to maintain internal harmony, used his power or influence to have the revengeful family content itself with gold or goods instead of blood. Soon a regular tariff arose, determining how much must be paid for an eye, a tooth, an arm, or a life; Hammurabi [sixth king of the First Babylonian dynasty of the Amorite tribe, reigning c.1792-1750 BC] legislated extensively in such terms. The Abyssinians were so meticulous in this regard that when a boy fell from a tree upon his companion and killed him, the judge decided that the bereaved mother should send another of her sons into the tree to fall upon the culprit's neck. The penalties assessed in cases of composition might vary with the sex, age and rank of the offender and the injured; among the Fijans, for example, petty larceny by a common man was considered a more heinous crime than murder by a chief. Throughout the history of law the magnitude of the crime has been lessened by the magnitude of the criminal. [...]"
Will Durant, Story of Civilization, Vol.1: Our Oriental Heritage, Ch.3, Pt.III, 1935 (bold added)
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