Kansas City daily journal., 1897-01-04
Criticism of Officials.

| lauon, and nothing done to suppress the
fiagrant violation of law such as have just
| referred to?
| Criticism of officials.
81 will mention another cause which has
not little TO do with the increase of crime
! in our city. There has swept through our
| community a spirit of ridicule for our po-
! lice officers which has boded no good for
our city. l care not to enter into the dis
| cussion as to the fitness or unfitness of GER
| tain men for executive position. l only
make bold to say that the effective work
done by our new chief of police during the
past few days has not been such as the
readers of some of our city papers might
have been led TO expect. The only crime
laid at his door is inexperience, and every
day lessons the force of that charge.
''One thing is sure. While incompetent
or unwilling servants may be stirred to
more efficient service by cutting criticism,
souCh Il course will surely have tendency
10 increase the boldness of the criminal.
THE toughs, who read the papers, and
they generally do, very carefully, would be
led 20 conclude, when reading Kansas City
papers, while in other cities. that this town
afforded the easiest jobs in the country.
They might well conclude that the softest
lot of police officers in America We're sleep
ing at their posts in Kansas City, and that
any booby could rob the town blind with
out any fear of police interference. This
the robbers paradise, because of the in
competency of our police. venture to say
our police force is as efficient as that of
any other city of its size. and it is as ef-
fective as that of st. Louis, whose police
force has been more thoroughly incom-
petent to cope with crime in that place
than our force has been able 10 cope with
the thugs in our city.
We encourage q bad man in his pur-
pose to commit a crime when we give him
TO think that he is in no danger of capture.
Has not the widespread criticism of our
police force had something to do with the
increase of crime in our city? For one. I
am inclined to believe it has; and 1 make
bold to say that we can strengthen the
hands of our police executive more by dis
eliminating praise and encouragement than
by wholesale and partisan criticism.
1T is not a characteristic of unsanctitied
human nature to seek with great energy
TO do what ones enemy IS constantly
proddlng him to do. Our chief of police
and all those associated with him can be
made far more efficient in their services
as protectors of the public by speaking
words of encoura cement than by the man
Hesitation of a spirit that goes out of its
way TO find fault. Jokes. at the expense
of a policeman, are always rewarded with
apPreciative laughter. / do not count my
self guiltleSS in this regard. and l, with
all others who cast any reflections upon
the hdelity and efficiency OF our PUBIC
protectors, may be morally responsible for
the recent epidemic of fearless outlawry
which has been stamped out none too soon.
Should Control Our Own Police Affairs
'I do not fail to see what may truly be
regarded as another cause for much law
violation in our city. The important work
of police supervision ought to have no
more vital connection with party politics
and a political machine than the public
schools. The most vicious feature of our
police system is that man who lives in Il
little dead town down the river is given the
power to coptrol absolutely the police af-
fairs of the great city of whose needs and
conditions he IS utterly ignorant. Where
in reason or common sense is to be found
an excuse for the present law, which takes
our Cwn local police government out of the
hands of our own citizenship and places it
in the hands of the political servants of a
nonresident of the city, with none too
much coveted reputation as a governor?
When our city shall get her rights and be
in possession of the power to regulate her
own police force. and our people have
learned the importance of respecting the
officers of the law in their laudable enter
prise to maintain order, we will have fewer
footpads and burglars and a purer and
healthier civic life"