The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1882-09-10
The Indifferent Police.

Mr.. SELDEN the father OF the little girl
who was recently stolen bya strange woman,
has poor opinion of the zeal of the police
OF New York and Brooklyn.
When policeman imagines that his dig
nifty has not been sufficiently regarded by a
defenceless person, and especially when he
is drunk, he is apt TO be very enterprising In
the use of his club. He is remarkably sensi-
tive about the respect due him, and seems to
take great satisfaction in impressing his i'm
portance on the weak by belaboring poor
wretch who falls into his hands and in dis
playing his physical power to quiet citizens
whose movements give him annoyance.
But Mr.. SELDEN says that it is not so easy
to wake up the police to a lively interest in
matters which do not specially concern them
selves. That official indifference has been
before and often observed. The anxiety Of
the parties concerned about unravelling a
case is rarely communicated to the police.
They are likely to be Indifferent, as they
were inclined to be about the loss and recov-
cry of Mr.. SELDEN's little girl.
Here is the opinion he formed during his
anxious search for the child:
But desire 1t to be known to all that had Mr.
CLYDE my assistance with his large influential
acquaintance, should not be writing to you as
fully believe the child would have been lost forever
COP help every poor man who has to depend upon the
assistance of the police Of these cities to
his child when lost they cannot be moved made
interested unless the Mayor and a their superiors
interested and Keep at them all the time"
The loss of this child Interested and alarm
ed every parent in the country. Thousands
of people would have been glad to render
Nv, N tb,ir n
recover the little girl, for what happened to
her might also happen to anybodys child.
His calamity appealed to the dearest afec-
tons of men and women, and he had sympa-
thy in his suffering from every maternal and
paterna heart. People bore his case In mind
when they walked through the streets, and
they looked out to see il they could not dis
cover the child. The feeling was as instinc-
tive "a that To rescue a drowning man; and
because such sorrow might bcfall other house.
holds, the sympathy was all the more active.
1t was to this sympathetic assistance and
to this volunteer watchfulness that the re-
covery OF Mr.. SELDEN's little girl was due.
The police were not in the way of finding her,
and, as the father says. they We're disposed to
take only u lukewarm interest in the search.
| If the Indifference Of the police displays
itself even in such case how is it in hun
dreds OF other cases, where there is less to
stir them, and where influences far less
strong are brought to bear on them and
their superors
..Iorc zeal in the performance of their
regular duties and not 50 much zeal in
| the use of their clubs-that seems to be
what our police need. They like to break
heads more than they do to render them
seles accommodating tn the people who pay
| for their support; and therefore they are
more unpopular with reputable citizens
more distru5ted By them, than ever before
Filling the prisoners dock at a police court
with crowd of bloody wretches, eyes black
ened and heads bandaged, is not tho mos
important work we require from policemen