Iuka reporter. (Iuka, Miss.) 1888-1894, 1888-06-07
THE pINKERTON TROOPS.
A Well Equipped Little Army Al
ways Ready for Private Hire.

about public demonStratlOn VI M Ah'cA
esting fact, viz, that there is III America
private business concern capaple o.
suddenly bringing into action anywhere
in the land, at the bidding OF lndlvldaS
ais or corporations rich enough to pay
for their service, large bodies OF men
armed, equipped, and drilled for effect
i've military service. Thus far nothing
has occurred that has seemed to require
She development of such q force IN
greater numbers, at any one point, than
500 men, but the system by which they
are put into the field is perfected TO
such an extent that there is hardly .
question of the ability to muster 5,Wu
with almost equal promptitude. The
concern controlling this military strength
is Pinkerton's National Detective
Agency, the headquarters of which are
in Chicago, with branches in New York,
Boston, Philadelphia. st. Paul, and
Denver. While there is q nominal d.
viding line between the detective service
and the field of duty of the preventive
patrol, or military branch, in point OF
fact they work together, and are 80 far
interchangeable that the latter is differed
from the former, when called into requl-
SlblOl, anu lIlhb HIGH 20
culiar talent therefor may be promoted
from the patrol, which is an emergency
employment to the permanency OF the
regular detective force. AS to the sys-
tenn of organization and direction of the
Pinkerton army, Mr.. III. G. Julian, who
is one of Mr.. Robert Pinkerton's princi-
pal aids in this city, says:
Telling you how we can here bring
into almost immediate service a body OF
say $50 men, or more if required, will
give you sufficiently comprehensive
idea of our arrangements in the five other
cities in which our branches are now
established, the system in all being about
the same. In the first place we have as
our regular detective force body of
thoroughly trained mon, many of them
brought up from youth in this employ
ment, men whom we know to be cool,
resolute, courageous, faithful and re-
sourceful. From these, when the occa-
eion arises, we officer our companies OF
men enlisted for special duty. But we
have also among those men good many
who are employed by us pretty
much all the time, at least during the
spring, summer, and autumn, and
who, consequently, are well trained and
and known to us as in every way per-
fectly trustworthy. For instance, we
supply by contract every summer from
twenty five to thirty men for the protec-
ton of the public and the preservation
of order ut Glen Island, and as many
more at Manhattan Beach; for the spring,
summer, and fall racing seasons we sup
ply sixty or seventy men to the Coney
Island Jockey Club and about like
number to the Brooklyn Jockey Club,
and then we have smaller detachments
ON special service, such as the guarding
of Vanderbilt's tomb, or temporary
protection of stores of heavy import
ers of silks when they have unusually
large stocks of valuable goods on
hand. Taking all in all, there are prob
ably 200 men thus employed by us-in
work apart from the detective service
pretty much all the year, and of these
we can demand the services of at least
$50 at very few hours notice, even out
of their ordinary seasons of employ
ment, since we keep all their addresses
and they understand that they are liable
to be called upon for duty at any mo-
ment. Those men will serve as the nu-
cleus of as large a force as may be de-
manded. Then we have on record
list of several hundred picked men from
among the thousands who have applied
to us for employment, all of whom have
come to us well recommended, and
whose character, record, and associations
we have had thoroughly Investigated by
our own detectives. They also are sup
posed to be ready to serve upon call at
any moment, and, in point of fact, ut
least three or four hundred of them
would respond Immediately. In sum-
mer we, of course, could not spare SO
many of our regular men for an eXtraor-
binary service, but we would still have
enough to serve as a nucleus, especially
since we are so careful in our selection
of the listed volunteers, among whom
we always, by the way, give the prefer
ence to men who have honorable dis
charges from the army, equal qualitica-
ton otherwise being understood.
81 cannot say how many men we
could furnish upon occasion, since the
limit of our capacity has never been
tested. When the recent strike out at
Chicago threatened the property of the
Pennsylvania Railroad Company there
we were suddenly called upon to furnish
$50 men in addition to those we had
already sent out on account of Ihe c.,
B. & @. strike. In just two days we
had organized, armed, and equipped the
required complement, and sent them
away. Could we have sent morea Oh,
yes; but these We're enough, all that were
wanted. One-half of those we sent out
We're our own regulars, thoroughly
familiar with their duties under our sys-
tenn, and capable of quickly instructing
and guiding the others.
"The largest number the Pinkerton
agencies have ever had to furnish for
emergency service at any one point was
500. That was on the occasion of the
stock yards strike in Chicago in 1886.
In 1887, from January until March,, we
had to keep 30 men on duty at the coal
yards of Hoboben and Bergen Point. 1t
costs something to employ large force
of Pinkerton men, the charge for them
being IS "a day each in addition to food
and quarters. The pay of a regular de-
tective is rs day.
"The armament of our men consists Of
Winchester repeating rifles and navy re-
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