The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-04-08
WOMEN MAKE POOR DETECTIVES.
It Is Almost Solely in Divorces Cases
That They Are Successful

IL Is Amos solely IN divorce Cases
That They Are Successful.
From the San Francisco Chronicle,
"Women are not useful in our business, -
said well-known oity detective TO a
Chronicle reporter. "Our line Of work Is
mainly that of detecting crime and hunting
criminals, and in these women could make
little or no Roadway. There are many
places where a woman cannot go without
exciting Suspicion, and as criminals are
usually on the alert, they would at once
have the advantage. But a man can 20
anywhere unobserved, and even if he
is a well-known' detective He could
be SO disguised so as to attract no
attention to himself even in the
most noted criminal resorts, but a woman
could not visit these places. Besides, it
would be personally unsafe and she would
be subjected TO many inconveniences and
insults We have no use for them In our
department. A woman could be of servi3e
as detective by boarding or rooming at
house and keeping track OF man or woman
who was suspected Of of crime. But then
we accomplish the same thing by having
our men shadow them from the outside
So there is no advantage whatever In en-
ploying a woman as a detective. On the
contrary, there is no use for them on the
regular force" concluded the experienced
officer.
my experience with female detectives is
that they are failure" said another de-
tective rather emphatieally. I'm tho first
place they are not as persevering as men
unless they are actuated by motives Of re-
venge or jealousy, aud in those cases a
woman will persevere until she drops dead
in order to accomplish her object She will
do more for revenge than she will for love.
AS a general thing women are untrust-
worthy-that is, those engaged In this line
ct work. They are led by their passions.
prejudices and sympathies, and look at a
case as they want il to be, not as il is They
work on q case from intuition and not from
settled plans Of reasoning based on facts BE-
fore them. They are good at entrapping
men, but invariably wind up with an awful
bluuder which betrays them.
woman loves the mysterious" said the
learned Hawkshaw. branching off into
mysticism, land she is so elated at her Sc
cret power that she IS unable to keep it
secret, and everybody soon knows that she
is detective. There is a fascination about
crime-it exercises a strange influence over
some people-and from the study Of crime
and criminals and their natural associations
many persons unwittingly drift into GRIM
inal life, especially women, who are led
astray by the mysterious. or heroic as it
is called. Why is it that woman sympa-
thizes with a red-handed murderer sends
him bouquets, and even intercedes for him
at the foot Of the GALLOWAY
The reporter did not know.
"Neither does the woman" continued the
morallzing detective. THE woman forgets
the victim who was murdered, and seeks to
alleviate the pain of the felon by her mis-
placed sympathies. The detective bust
ness, however, is one that l should not
advise women to adopt. There are fire.
Quent temptations that q woman Is less
liable to withstand than man. For in
stance, female criminal would use all the
articles common tos her sex, and 80 ply
upon the female detectives feelings as TO be
permitted to escape. Or, take some
handsome. dashinR young man just
poisoning out as blgamist or forger. He
would coon appear to her as hero much
maligned and falsely accused. And again,
woman, knowing her practical immunity
from punishment, would he more lenient in
such cases than a man would. If cornered
a woman cries, aud the judge or jury would
acquit her of criminal negligence. But the
man might cry his eyes out and the law
would hold him responsible for the escape
Of the criminal"
"Are women success es detectives in
stores or on street carss" asked the reporter
"No, they are detriment," replied the
reader Of human nature.