The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-10-11
CATCHING CRIMINALS.
What "A CIew Is and How a Detective
Follows II Up.
From the Pittsburg Dispatch.

From the Pittsburg Dispatch
New York, Sept. 2S.-"Have you seen
that stiff they found in the North river
tonight? No clew as to how it got there.
Too late to know for certain
whether wounds on the body were
received before or after death. one
excellent medical opinion says be-
fore. Steward of ship in which gentleman
came home has fully identified the man.
He had probably been up to some little
lark which he thought harmless, but
which proved fatal Anybody might have
done it. Burglary or pocket picking has
to be learned, but not so with murder
Anybody can do that"
The speaker was Bob Pinkerton, the
head of the famous Pinkerton Detective
Agency, founded by his father, the late
Allen Pinkerton. A man of strong indi-
Viduahty, of great natural shrewdness of
wonderful knowledge Of human nature,
and, probably, take him altogether as
Keen, subtle and astute a man as ever
liver.
80 you want to know something about
the detective business" he said in answer
to a question from me. You are, Of
course, familiar with the detective of the
stage and the dime novel. He is always a
nattily dressed fellow, with mutton chop
whiskers, unless he Is that popular myth
a boy detective" who, by the aid of wigs
and false boards assumes all sorts of dis
guises, which he suddenly throws Off to
disclose his real Identity at the most I'M
expected moments.
why, Boucicault, in one of his plays,
represents a detective who is quite a
young man, making up as an elderly gen
tleman of 60 odd years. and going about
conversing In broad daylight with people
who know him well, without being recog-
nized. In many other plays, as we'll as
novels, detectives are made to do similar
things.
impossibilty of such exploits. The cum
ningest hair-worker cannot make a wig or
beard that cannot be readily detected as
such by q keen observer In a bright Tight
and every actor well knows that the
Zines" or wrinkles which he paints on his
face to simulate old age, can always be
detected as unreal, even across the foot
lights. which cast a deceptive glare over
everything, by spectators sitting near the
stage.
done in the detective line it must have
been done a great many years ago when
crooks were not nearly so sharp as they
are at present. Nowadays superintendents
of police and detectives throughout the
country have all the professional crooks
down too fine to need any such dime novel
Disgusting. Suppose a job has been done.
/ It's a certain kind of a job. The police
and the detectives of the city I'm which II
has been done know every crook who
is on that lay.
lay or line. He is a sneak thief or badger
| thief, or burglar or a pickpocket, or a
| highway robber, or something else in the
| lawyers, merchants, doctors or clergy
men. Nearly all these lays have many
subdivisions. Thus, burglars are known
/ as first, second or third-story workers,
according to the part Of the house In
/ which they are accustomed to commit
/ their depredations. A first story seldom
or never robs anywhere in a house except
/ in the first story. while second and third
story workers do their stealing one or two
stories higher respectively. Sneak thieves
| are of many different kinds such as hall
/ sneaks, hotel Sneaks, bank sneaks, etc.
| Every professional crook sticks closely to
| his own particular branch of whatever
/ lay he adopts
We'll If a job has been done neatly
| the police or the detectives know Il Is the
/ work of an old hand. Then they look up
/ all the crooks on that lay and find our
| where they are now, and where they were
/ and what they were up to when the ion
was done. Pretty soon they find out who
wasn't any place else. and wasn't doing
anything else at that time Then thew
! gradually trace the job TO him by a train
/ of circumstances, beginning several DAYS
| before 1t was done. When they get him