Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1895-05-31
TOM BYRNES' CAREER
THE CELEBRATED Ex-CHTEF OF
POLICE or NEW York.
Ills Arbitrary Powcrs-He Assccis-
ted with Criminsls--some OF HIS
uc,hods OF Making Them Confess
lis understanding with Them.


sketch OF Thomas Byrnes, the CHER OF
Police Of that city, who has just been re-
tired on a pension:
Thomas Byrnes was born in this city
June Is. 1882 He learned the trade o.
SaS-fifinS. aud worked at Il until ne
went TO the war. in 1851. with Ellsworth
Zot,aves. He .osned the police force on
December 10, 1866: was made roundsmah
October %. 1868: sergeant. November -
1850; captain. July /, 1870; inspector. Aprh
q. 1880; chief inspector, April is, 1888. ana
superintendent. April u, 1892. He did MS
nrst duty In tho Fifteenth Precinct, and
he was in command OF that precinct. with
its headquarters in Mercer street. when
he ala the piece Of work which took MN
finally into the Detective Bureau anu
later into fame and power. This was the
capture OF the Manhattan Savings Bank
robbers and the recovery OF the stolen
bonds. Byrnes was soon afterward set
10 reorEanize the Detective Bureau.
Within six weeks he was appointed In
Spector. and began TO discipline the force
and to re-enforce his hold on the place
and its opportunities at once.
One Of the first orders he put forth was
one prohibiting any man In his depart
ment from opening his mouth about po-
lice business. Thereafter every story
OF crime and crime detected which came
from the Detective Bureau was told by
Byrnes himself. From the moment he
stepped into power he made II his busi-
ness to teach criminals that certain kinds
Of crimes must not be committed here.
Highway robbery. bank burglaries. or
important burglaries OF any kind, syste-
matte forgeries. counterfeiting. and lot
Of other crimes were prohibited, and. to
the credit Of ahe system which Mr.
Byrnes created to suppress them. have
never been allowed TO gain foothold
In this city since be has been in power
In the Police Department. The old force
Of detectives which he found in the bu-
reau he got rid OF almost to man. He
took new men from the ranks and taught
them his method, and each man became
an efficient part Of the machine.
II any one supposes that Mr.. Byrnes's
methods of discovering the authors or
crime were like those of a Sherlock
Holmes he is much mistaken. Mr.. Byrnes
IS a man Of force, and not finesse. His
business was TO check the actions OF GER
tain thieves and other criminals. To do
this he made II his business to know
criminals. In the early eighties. when
career, and led a legislative committee
TO this city TO investigate the Police De-
partment. Mr.. Byrnes was a witness be-
fore them. He surprised the committee
men by saying that he spent two hours
day in the company Of thieves.
I'm in their company now" he said
looking around the chamber. IF you lost
your watch you would not expect me TO
90 10 some eminent divine to get IT,
.ftt to
thieves"
lie did not go out in the streets 70 talk
20 thieves, nor did he have them calling
upon him as honored guests. he eX-
planned, but it was in interviewing
thieves when they were brought In 20
MIN as suspects that he spent the twelfth
part of each day
ARBITRARY POWERS.
Armed with a power under the law 10
make arbitrary arrests, to lock men, or
women. either. in the cells under the
marble headquarters building and TO keep
them there close prisoners for twenty
four hours, not even admitting their
presence there. or permitting a relative
or friend 10 approach them, he was able
to get almost any information out OF
criminal caught in his net that he wanted
against an associate, or even against
themselves.
BNrncH nlmSelf IS aulnOTlly lot tHc
manner In which he forced confession
from the man Unger. who murdered his
friend and afterward cut and sawed up
The body.
Il was criticised for what ] did in this
case" ne said. afterward, but | was pre-
pared to defend my actions, Unger was
big. stolld. heavy jawed fellow-as stub
born and reticent as any man ever saw.
could get nothing out OF him, and
10 oh 10 mn a
impression upon him. SO / got the blood
stained lounge upon which he had cut
no his friend, the knife, the saw, and
The hammer, with which he killed him,
and put all Of these things In the little
narrow cell with him. Well, in thirty
minutes he vas trying to break out OF
his cell. TO get away from these things.
He was well ready to confess"
Byrnes treated the thieves brought be-
fore him with the utmost contempt he
spoke OF them as If they were the dirt or
the streets He spoke of them as con
tggious diseases on the highway"
81 never let them feel as If they were
as big as a double ace" he has said.
when they come to me whining about
their intention to lead honorable lives, /
say: None Of that here. You are thief,
and you and know II. Steal all you can
and get away with Ii II you can, but
If YOU try 1t in New York I'll land you
where you belong" II It happened that
thief Of any note came 10 town, and
did not report to- him, he would send for
him, ask him how ne dared to come here,
and what he meant TO do here, and con-
front him with his record.
I'D make him feel that he did not
amount TO as much as a fly buzzing at
the window" the late Chief has said.
lie kept corps of stool-pigeons con-
in nj n 1pDart-
ment TO make the acquaintance Of and
to betray thieves and the thieves them
selves were pensioners of his.
There never was thief broke. SAID
Byrnes, "and came 10 me but what
gave him money. Not a week passes out
one asks me for money. and gets IL, ana
always get my moneys worth back ten
fold"
II was TO keep track Of all the different
kinds OF professional criminals who infest
this city and its neghborhood that
Byrnes organized his force. One lot oil
men looked after one class OF CRIMINALS
ana other lots of the other sorts each
lot OF detectives having It's specially IN
crime and criminals. Between Byrnes
and his men and the thieves mere gre"
I'D a feeling not unlike friendship.
KNOW THEIR BUSINESS.
..rhev know what their business is and
they know what my business is,' said
Rvrnes. 'sThey speak of me with term
Of endearment which would not look well
m print. but they usually add that am
square with them 'Byrnes wants TO
Eend everybody TO JAIL they say, but
as long as we don't steal in New York
ne don't bother us, and he don't take
what we've got except by process of law
don't modest them unless l want them
ar somebody else wants me to get them
Otherwise. II they keep out OF the way,
i've no cause TO trouble them beyond
keeping an eye on them from day TO day.
A professional thief had few rights
lest in Mr.. Byrness eye. IL was upon
this principle that he acted upon each
pf the occasions OF great gatherings in
mis- city since the funeral-day OF General
Grant. Upon each occasion he issued a
proclamation warning criminals that II
they were seen upon the streets on any
3r these days they would be summarily
arrested and kept locked up until the
show was over. II magistrates discharged
the prisoners after he had kept them the
lime allowed by law before arraignment,
which is anything less than twenty-four
hours, he threatened 10 rearrest the men
At once on the side walk outside the court
houses.