Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1884-10-24

first, but so soon az II became khown
she French police had telegraphed to
every seaport in France and had set
themselves to work in Paris to find out
the culprits. They were successful and
managed to lay their hands upon the
three men who had carried out the rob-
berry. But this had been done in a
manner which the company 1 was
amongst that evening stigmatlzed rs
"sneaking" and .:cowardiye."
I'm England" said n of those
present. ''the police are hard upon .
fellow when they catch him. But whom
they are trying to find the men they
want they are fair and above board.
They have no dirty spies. They act
honorable. You can always tell pretty
we'll when a plain clothes officer is af-
ter you. But the French have a low,
sneaSing way of going to work. You
never know but what the landlord of
the hotel, or the waiter, or the porter,
or the shopman who brings you a par
eel may not be a detective in disguise.
No. Give me Old England to do bust
ness in! Everybody here, even the 20
lice, is on the square,"
"1es," said one of the party, who
talked a good deal about Paris. and
seemed, from what he said, to have
''done business" in that city to some
extent, land that's not the worst of it.
Why, | have known these French po-
lice employ women to spot down a fell
low: There was two years ago a big
affair in the Champs-Elysee. The
chief hand in it was a New Yorker
called johnson. He would have got
clean away with everything had it not
been for a female with whom he asso-
ciated. He was caught, and got what
they call travaux forces for ten years.
He " could find out who it was that
peached on him. But one of his French
pals discovered. after he was taken,
that this woman had been all along in:
the pay of the police, receiving money
from them as we'll as from johnson.
Do you call that fair play?" he asked.
Indignantly, to which a universal cry
of '.Shame! shame!!'' was set up in
reply.
There was one thing which struck me
very forcibly throughout the evening l
spent in what Frenchmen would call
this eccentric company, and that was
how none of those present ever once
compromised themselves by talking of
any future "business." At any rate,
such matters were never made q SUBJ
iect of general conversation. For some
time after I first joined the party I no.
ticed that some one or other of them
would go and talk to another individu-
al in a low tone of voice, but those who
thus spoke to one another evidently
took great care that what they said
should not be heard.
In England we set great value upon
the publicity given bv the press to eve
rything that takes place. The company
in which 1 found myself on this memo
BILE evening-or at any rate those with
whom I spoke on the subject-praised
this national popularity as much as, or
even more than. most OF us do. They
said that the newspaper reports, about
"plants" and the manner in which rob-
berries are carried out are, as a rule,
the most utter rubbish; and that the
daily accounts of what the police had
not done in any particular case
were of the utmost service to them and
virtually kept them informed OF what
t their enemies, the guardians of society,
{ were doing. The more publicity giver
to all cases in which they We're con
cerned the better prepared were they
to avoid places and persons that might
: be dangerous to their safety from arrest
and other troubles. Several of the pal.
, ty expressed themselves very earnestly
: to the effect that the English newspa.
pers would always be allowed to pub.
, fish the fullest details of what the pc.
lice knew IN cases of robbery. On the
other hand, they abused the French
Government in no measured terms fol
not allowing similar intelli gence to be
made public, one of the company ask
ing in a very sarcastic tone and man
ner whether that vas republican liberty
which put a stop to the press, telling
| people facts which had really hap
. pened. From what was said on this
!. Subject it would seem that the gentle
, men who follow the profession Of those
| among whom l found myself that night
|: look upon publicity in all police inqui'
ries as of the greatest use to them.
In the course of the evening l got
nv friend who had brought me to the
, place to ask one of the party in a sort
of otf-hand manner whether he and his
. friends were not afraid OF a detective
: officer coming amongst them and Civ
ing information to the authorities of all
, he saw and heard. The question was
purposely put in a rather loud tone OF
!. voice and at q moment when there was
, a lull in the general conversation, sc
, that others might hear it. For an.
: swer there was returned q general
laugh, and then a hurley, somewhat
elderly man-who, if I may judge
, from his talk, must have had consider.
| able experience in the profession
spoke up.
, "Detectives" said he. "'We DOM
fear no detectives here in London. We
! know them all in their plain clothes
: Just as well as if they wore uniform
, They acts on the square with us. They
don't go a-making OF themselves up te
be what they amt. They don't tell u
e what they are; but we know 'em we'll
just let any with eyes in his heae
G go a%-loatiing round the police courts
/ for a minute or two, and he'll Know
+ every detective in London" After
Q short pause this individual, who wa!
a sort of oracle amongst his fellows
D continued: ''There's one thing I'll say
f for the pla~in-clothes officers, you can