The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-07-21
BLOODHOUNDs As DETECTIVEs=
Question Being Agitated by English
Canine PAPERS
From the Pail Mall Gazette.

From the Pail Mall Gazette.
The question whether bloodhounds could
not be utilized in this country to aid in
the discovery Of criminals has again hem
raised I'm one of the canine journals. II is
suggested by gentleman ia the Alidlan1s
that bloodhound climb might we'll ba
started. the object of which would be =,
TO assist in the work of bringing burglars
and murderers to Justice. The last occa-
sion on which a systematic attempt was
made in this country to put the blood.
hound to his old traditional use was in
1889. when the then chief commissioner OF
police in London encouraged, and was
himself personally present at some trials
with couple of dogs belonging to the
well-known breeder. Mr.. Brough.
st. James park was the spot selected
for these trials, and both animals showed
themselves decidedly skillful in trackir.,
and following up the human footstep.
Once in the crowded streets, however.
the hounds seemed to lose their cunning.
and there exists, indeed, no reliable rec.
ord Of criminals being successfully hunt
ted down by the aid of these canine de.
tectVes In the case of crowded cities and
thoroughfares Even If the scent Were a
hot one, II is more than doubtful whether
the cleverest and best-trained bloodhOunds
would follow it very far where it had
been crossed and recrossed by many other
strange feet. Thus the idea OF the blood
hound being used for the discovery OF
criminals, so far as populous centers and
large towns are concerned, may be re-
garded. after the failure in the case Of
the Whtechapel murders. as an exploded
one. The case, however, may De differ
ent in regard to country districts, where
il is at least conceivable that the hound
might now and again be turned TO some
good service. Many of the old stories re-
speeding the successful hunting OF the
Mosstroopers by blood or sleuth hounds
rest on a rather slender historical basis
though the frequency with which tho mama
ofst dog occurs in some of the records
of those days shows that its detectiYa
qualities were highly estimated.
In later times the Cuban bloodhound Of
a far more savage breed than our own,
was unquestionably used as man-hunter;
while only a few years ago Capt. Powell
gave a good deal of information respecting
the dogs used at the present time for
tracking convicts who escape from prisons
in Florida. Bloodhounds were first resort
ed to for this purpose. but 1t appears that
latterly an animal more like our fOxhound
has been adopted. These animals like the
English bloodhound, are not inclined when
they have discovered their man to attack
him, but rather prefer TO keep at a res
pectful distance after he has been fairly
Half dozen years or so ago some ex-
ceedingly interesting trials were held at
Alexander Palace, in which several of the
most noted bloodhounds of the day took
part a clean boot" as well as a CREASED
one, was hunted, the length of the course
being about 800 yards A keeper was dis
patched with a good start, and though
some of the hounds failed almost entirely,
others delighted the spectators by the un-
erring accuracy with which they followed
the clean boot over considerable por-
iton of the course. One dog leaped the
'railings which the hunted man had climb
ed, and ran under others which he had
slipped through All, however, were mora
or less at fault when they came too near
the crowd, sure sign that only in lonely
and sparsely populated districts. or at
hours when few people are about can the
bloodhound be really relied on as sue
cessful man-hunter.