The San Francisco call., 1898-06-24

done. Nephew Wolfe, who had been pro- noted to the rank of sergeant with an in- crease of $25 a month salary, could not be displaced. and some one had to assist him in holding his position and his salary. Detective Ben Bohen, one of the clever est men ever in the department. had been elevated to the office of Captain Of De tectives when Captain Lees went to the front to attempt to occupy in decidedly unsatisfactory way the office vacated by the retirement of Chief Crowley. Chief Lees soon found that Nephew Wolfe would have to abdicate the throne in the City Prison unless given assistance. He was in worse position than the Span ish fleet. The Spanish fleet is bottled up, while Wolfe is in danger of blowing out of the soft billet he now holds in the City Prison.
 Chief Lees is a great thinker and he rested for day or two from the work of preparing explanations to be given the public, why the thugs, burglars and sand bag artists who have been doing thriv- ing business since he has been at the head of the Police Department have not been caught. He thought of how success the scandal that attended the vacation : and retirement of Captain Robertson and the subsequent promotion Of Nephew Wolfe. He finally hit upon plan. It was with rank of captain the said assistant to look after the general management of the City Prison and allow Nephew Wolfe to hold on to his soft position and large and unearned salary.
 Detective Seymour was selected to hold the nominal position of Assistant Chief and do the work of prison management. No one has ever questioned the ability or integrity of either Bohen or Seymour. They are both competent men and any duty ever intrusted to them has been suc- cessfully carried out.
 The pertinent question Is why there should be an Assistant Chief of Detec- tives unless his duties are simply to look after Nephew Wolfe. No one would dis hn If niy1f- ing, for the present, an Assistant Chief of Police, with full power to act in lieu of the present senile occupant of that important office.
 An Assistant Chief of Police with vest ed powers, as suggested, Is absolutely necessary. There is no need of an As sistant Chief of Detectives. It was an office that was sorely needed when I'm Wealthy Lees presided over the detective branch of the department.
 Had Detective Seymour or Detective Bob Hogan who knew. so much more than the then Captain of Detectives Lees that he had to be relegated to the Dis trict Attorneys office to do clerical work in order that he might drop from the view of the public, who appreciated ms clever work. been chosen Assistant Chief of Detectives some years ago, the tax payers would have applauded.
 With an Assistant Captain of Detec- lives who could do detective work 1t would have been known long before this who it was that murdered Eugene Ware in inc St. Nicholas pharmacy. Durrant has been hanged for the butchery of Min nie Williams and Blanche Lamont in the Emmanuel Baptist Church. but no one be- Iieves him the slayer of Eugene Ware.
 With an assistant Captain of Detectives when Chief Lees presided over the des- tinies of the detective department, the mystery of the Harrington murder would undoubtedly have been solved. Then again if there had been an assistant Captain of Detectives when Blanther committed his foul crime he would have been arrested before he got over the State line and thus prevented adding suicide to his other crime. With an assistant Cap tain of Detectives when Isaac Hoffman was found dying on the floor of his office on Battery street the police would have looked for proof that was not alone in- tended to sustain the Lees theory of sui eide Some years ago, the department was sadly In need of an assistant Captain of Detectives. That time has passed. however. Captain Bohen is fully able to look after the affairs of the department and the time of Assistant Captain of De- tectives Seymour should not be taken up in the work of assisting Nephew Wolfe to manage the City Prison.
 With either Hogan, Seymour or Bohen at the head of the Detective Department even in the capacity of assistant, with power to direct. something might have been found out concerning the footing or the Property Clerks office and the carry ing off of most of the .tevidence'' against the Eastern safe crackers, Randall Hintz and Thomas. who so successfully operated here when they followed in the wake of the Knights Templar conclave- Eight