The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-08-12
NEW REVELATIONS ABOUT IRELAND.
Statements by n Member of the Irish Consta-
hul

In the lastnumber of I3BSJeYS MdgdyjBe,
member of the Royal Irish Constabuary
comes to the defense of his fellows in the
force against unfounded aspersions. He
says:-''I do not think we have had justice
done us by the London press or the houses OF
| Parliament. II has been admitted that we
fought well in the Fenian business, and laid
our plans with ability, but maintain that we
have also all but banished crime in Ireland.
Take the aggregate of offenses against pro-
perty in England and Ireland, and there IS no
comparison, even reckoning the difference IN
population
From this the transition is easy to n review
of the present condition of Ireland; and from
this part of the writer's interesting paper we
| take few passages which confirm the state
ments made by Mr.. Trench in his book on
the Realities of Irish Life
MURDER.
Il remember n case some years since, where
one of the actual murderers and the farmer
who gave them instructions were convicted
and hanged. The approver gave an account
of the previous conversation between the
men, who had come from distance and this
farmer The latter expressed the greatest
regret at the necessity for putting away a
good and charitable person. but, said he,
what would become of the country if such
things as these are allowedY The things
alluded to were serving notices to quit upon
some small tenants The farmer himself
held by lease, and was under obligation to
the murdered person, as he proved in his
defense, and he no doubt only carried out
instructions which he greatly regretted.
People who have obeyed the orders of the
society are secreted, either by completely or
from fear, and passed through bogs and over
mountains into fshing-smacks or coasters,
eventually reaching America. If they escape
the first alarm and pursuit, they are seldom
caught and in more than one instance have
been convinced that the murderer has himself
been made away with and buried, lest he
should be captured and betray his accomplices
or the secrets of the society
1T is very difficult to stop these agrarian
murders; but as we have put an end to the
illicit stills once so rife all over Ireland,
think we could break up the Ribbon-men by
| altering certain arrangements.
DETECTIVES.
Il have mentioned that the barracks should
be well placed for observation. 1 have now
to say a little about detectives. You must
| know we have curious ideas about them; they
! are police Just like ourselves, walk in fune-
rails, etc. and are as well known in Dublin rs
the post-office clock. When they go else
| where they are speedily betrayed by manner,
| bearing, and conversation to the people they
! 90 amongst, even if a full description of
them has not already arrived. Now, my idea
! of a detective is that he should not be
drilled policeman but simply man to find
out a crime, and only in rare cases, and when
it could not be otherwise managed, should he
make a capture OF be required to give evil
dence. Unless most expert at DISCUSSES,
every time he appears in a witness-boX his
value is lessened. A tine, boll-lool1ing fellow,
good-tempered but firm, active and intell
gent, may yet be- from temperament, very
bad detective. \ mean, ordinary looking,
cunning man, apt and smooth, would not do
for our constabulary force, but might prove a
real Vidocq for circumventing an assassin.
INTORNIERs.
''There is also no doubt that sufficient use
is not made of informers. In most cases an in
former is to be found. But he will not go on
to the table to bear witness in court. He does
not like the bullying in cross examination,
the contempt with which all treat him. but he
breads still more the vengeance after the
trial. Now the English law, in the first place,
gives too little latitude to us in questioning
suspected persons (and everybody III an agra
rian murder is open to suspicion); and then it
places restrictions upon our keeping in Gus
tody those likely to be guilty. / do not say
that the law is wrong; l only remind you
that every man, woman, and child within
miles will endeavOr to mislead the ''poliss' if
| possible and if the law is bound by certain
rules of fair play, the actual criminal has great
odds in his favor. You must take every ad-
vantage of detectives and informers; and you
must assess the district in heavy damages as
well, if the criminal is not discovered. Re-
member, it is only within a limited district
that these undiscovered outrages exist. How
ever we'll the cOnstabulary may trace the per-
petratOrs of the crime, their eXertions will not
! secure a conviction, unless the case is tho
roughly we'll got up, and the condemnatory
evidence properly placed before jury In
my experience [ have seen guilty parties ac-
quilted dozens of times owing to the slovenly
way in which the evidence has been put
together and the want Of care in sitting and
comparing it.
ILLUSTRATIONS.
Gone instance occurs to me now Two
people who claimed some interest in a farm
were murdered suspicion fell upon the man
who had the most apparent reason to get rid
of this claim. The three lived together; and
through the supposed murderer left the house
a short time before dusk, and did not return
for several hours, when he gave the alarm, it
was proved that the crime must have been
committed Just about the time he went away
In various ways important links in the chain
of evidence were omitted, but one of the
strongest proofs on which the prosecution re-
lied was the fact of the door of a certain out
house being locked, and weapon, similar to
the one with which the murder must have
been committed, and recently cleansed, being
louhd thereln. 1t was most improbable that
the prisoner would have locked this
door and taken away the key if he had left
any one alive to work about the farm. even if
the jury did not believe the weapon found
therein had bpaO tho fatal oro mi, =