sentences:  This latter punishment was also given to perpetrators of incest, homicide and poisoning, showing the severity with which horse theft was viewed by the judiciary.For the rural English county of Berkshire in the 18th century, horse theft was considered a major property crime, along with stealing from dwellings or warehouses, sheep theft, highway robbery and other major thefts.In 19th-century Russia, horse theft made up approximately 16 percent of thefts of peasant property; however, there were no reported thefts of horses from estate property.