The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1898-06-25
Our Olin.
Police Surveillance in Paris.
From To-day.

From To-day
More curious than all it's strange callings
and Its strange customs is the police sys-
tenn IN Paris. When an Englishman gets
to his hotel, he remarks, probably, to his
wife, "Well, now, Martha, we can do as
We like No worry about what Mrs. Brown
would say if we had met her at Brighton.
Here we are free, and nobody knows who
we are or cares who we are. But before
he has time to dress for dinner the police
know that he is in Paris, and his name is
inscribed at the Prefecture Every hotel
must keep register of all foreigners, and
hand it over daily to the special officers
who are sent around to collect them. In
the case of the English or American citi-
zen little interest is taken, unless their ex-
penditure is noticeably extravagant, and
then friendly interest is taken in them,
and their description sent to Scotland Yard.
1t is almost impossible to conceive the
thoroughness of the French police spy
system. You never know who is mou-
chard in France. The waiter who serves
you, the man who shaves you, the cocher
who drives you, are as like as not to be in
the police pay. They know everything,
and they know everybody. Here is an in
stance that occurred to friend of mine
only the other day. He received from the
Prefecture an order to appear on the fol-
lowing day. So far as he knew he had
done nothing particularly out of the way,
and even if he had he had done it uninten-
tionally. The magistrate invited him into
his private room, and put him at his ease
at once by explaining that the affair did
not concern him personally, but he wanted
some information on two or three Of the
English colony with whom he was asso-
ciated The answers were perfectly salts
factory, and, in leaving, he turned to the
magistrate and said, laughingly, "Now,
why didn't you ask me something about
myself?' "But | know all about you,
he replied. ''Would you like to know what
you did on any particular day within the
last three months?" My friend replied at
random ''Take last Friday week |
haven't the remotest knowledge as to
what happened" The magistrate turned
over his dossier, and replied You got
home at half past 2 in cab that you had
taken at the Madeline You rode out on
your bicycle at half-pas 9. You lunched
at the Cafe de L Esperance, and 50 on,
throughout the day he recounted every
thing that had passed. There was no rea
son to have made the inquiry, as there was
not the slightest mark on his dossier, but
it suited the police to know just how he
passed his time.
A casserole-that is to say, Il mouchard
who has, by some indiscretion, let his con-
nection with the police become known, and
is accordingly valueless-once told me a
lot about the working Of the system. |
had pointed out to him that it seemed to
me thoroughly impossible that | could
have my footsteps dogged during whole
day without becoming aware of the fact.
He answered Naturally This, for in
stance, is how | should have acted if | had
wanted to find out all about your move
ments. When you left this cafe, | should
have followed you until such time that [
knew you had noticed that | was at your
heels Then [ should have passed the sig
nal > ''To whom?' | suggested. "Have
you ever noticed he said, "that around
all the big cafes there are men offering
novels out of date, but who are always
scanning closely the faces Of those on the
terraces? Well, | should have passed the
signal on to one of those men. He would
have followed you in a cab, if necessary,
and, on seeing you enter cafe, would
have followed, on the pretence of selling
wares, and handed you on to another of
the band And so it would have gone on
After all, are the French police wrong ?
The foreigner comes here and inscribes his
name at the Prefecture of Police. We are
not like you in England. We have only
just enough money for our own poor, and
we do not encourage the out-of- works of
the world to come here. Neither do we
want to harbor criminals. Accordingly,
the police trace the man, and if they find
that he is honestly earning his existence
he is left in peace; but if there is a shadow
of suspicion against him, his dossier gets
heavier every day, and one morning he
finds that he has forty eight hours in
which to quit the country. 1t is owing to
this system that the police find it compar-
atively easy to arrest criminals. The vii
est class of rufian, and the painted women
you meet in the nj ght cafes, are all useful
the women especially. Your own SER
want may be spying on you. Your con-
cierge certainly is He hesitated for a
minute, and then said to me, in semi
whisper, 'Watch that gentleman in front
with the ribbon of Legion of Honor in his
buttonhole - Hooked at him, but noticed
nothing particular, except that he seemed
very intent in his newspaper. ''That's a
mouchard, he continued. II IN prepared
to bet he has heard every word that has
passed If you had eyed him as closely as
[ have, you would have noticed that he
has been looking at the same paragraph
for over an hour The man paid for his
drink and went out. Next morning, sup
pose, his report was sent in. The ruses of
these men in finding out persons who are
wanted have no limit. Only the other
day the English police had sent over the
description of man they would like to
put in the dock. As he spoke French with
out the slightest accent, and as it was GER
tain that he would be disguised out of all
recognition, the task was difficult one.
One afternoon two Of these detectives no.
ticed well dressed man, and suspected
him. One of them took off his overcoat
and hung it up side by side with his. A
few minutes later they got up to leave,
and the wrong coat was put on. In the
most fluent and polite French the suspect
ed man pointed out the error. The mou-