Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1898-09-11
PARIS POLICE SPIES.
TAEYKEE9 TAB ON EVERY STRANGER
IN THE FRENCH CAPITAL.

Where and How Tou Go. Who You Meet
and Even What You Say Are All Re-
corded at Police Headquartcrs--H How the
"Mouchard" Works.
More curious than all its strange cali
lngS ana its strange customs is the police
system in Paris. Every hotel mus, keep i.
register of all foreigners and hand it over
daily to the special officers who are sent
around to collect them. In the case of tho
English OF American citizen little interest
is taken unless their expenditure is no
ticcslbly extravagunt, and then "a friendly
interest is taken i'll them and their de-
scription sent to Scotland Yard.
1t is almost impossible To conceive the
thoroughness Of the French police spy Sys-
tom. You never know who is /, moucl,;trd
in Franco Tho S;li;cr who serves you
the man who shaves you, the cochcr who
drives you, are ms likely rs not to be in the
police pay. They know everything. and
they know everybody. Here is an instance
that occurred to ~ friend of mine only tho
other day. he rccci ycd fem the prefecture
an order to appear on tho following day.
So far rs he knew, he had dono nothing
particularly out of the way, and even if he
had he had done it unintcntionully. The
magistrate invited him into his private
room and put him mt his ease at once by
explaining that the affair did not concern
him personally, but he wanted some in
formation Oh two or three of the English
colony with whom he was Hssocintcd The
answers were perfectly satisfactory. ANA in
leaving he turned to the magistrate and
said laughingly, Nov, why don't you
ask me something about ,nys,.lf.'' But
know all about you. - he replied. "Would
yon like TO know what you did on any
particular day within the last three
1nonths:' ...
My friend replied at random: Take
Inst Friday week. I haven't tho rcmotcst
knowledge us to what happened
THO magistrate turned over his doss;cr
md replied: you got homo at half past .
IN n cab that you had taken at the Made
line. You rode out on your bicycle nj half
past9. You lunchcd ut the Cafr dc 't.SIcr-
ancc." And Sc on throughout the day he
recounted everything that had passed
There WAS no reason to hnvc made the in
quiry, rs there WAS not the slightest mark
on his dossicr, but it suited the police to
know just how he passed his time "
A casscrole--tllat is to say, I, mouchard
who huS by sonic indiscr.tion let his con
ncction with tho police Income known and
is accordingly v:lluc!css once told mo II
lot about the working of the system.
had pointed out to him that it stcnnr, to
mo thoroughly impossible that l could
have my footsteps loggcd during u whole
day without becoming aware of thr ficr
Ho answered: Naturally This, for in
stance, is how l should have acted ii / had
wanted to find out all about yosr move
mcnts. When you left this cafc, should
have followed you until such time us |
knew you had noticed TINT I was at your
heels Then I.sho,llu have passed tho
signal" ITO whom:" suggested. i'Ilnvc
you ever noticed - he said, that around
all tho big cafcs there are ,ncn Offering
novels out Of date, but who are always
scanning closely tho faces OF those ON the
tcrrasscs? Well, I should have passed tho
signal on to one of those men. He would
have followed you i'll y cab, If necessary,
and on seeing you enter ~ cafe would have
followed on tho prGtonSc Of selling wares
and handed you on 10 ;.nutl,eruf the hand
And SO it would have gone on
After all. arc the French police wrong?
Tho foreigner comes here and inscrihrs his
nnmc ut the prefecture Of police. Wo arc
not like you III England We have only
We 10 not encourage tho our Of works of
the world to come here. Neither do yo
want to har,>or criminals Accordingly
the police trace tho man, and if they find
chat he is lonorably earning his existence
!ie is left in l,chcc, but if there is II siluw
If suspicion against him his tlussirr gets
heavier every day, and one morning ho
nds that he has As hours in which to quit
shc country. 1t is owing To this system
rhnt tho police find it comparatively easy
20 arrest criminals. III. vilcst class of
'u1li;in and the painted women you meet
II the night cafes all useful, the WON
IN especially Your own servant may be
spying on you Your concierge certainly
is"
a ftr mi ,tr Nm, !
20 me in IL senlwhispcr Watch that GEN
lcnan inyiront with tho ribbon OF tho I.c
zion of Honor in his bllttunholc" look
I'd at him, but noticed nothing particular,
kept that he seemed! very intent in his
newspaper ''Th;,t's Il mo,,ch;r,l, ~ ho
ontinucd. I'm prepared TO bet hu has
learl every word that hs pissed. IT. you
lad eyed him as closely rs have, you
would have noticed thaG he has been look
ng at the same r;:Graph for over an
our" The man paid for his drink and
vent out. Next morning l suppose his
feport WAS sent in.
Tho ruscs of these men in finding out
"crsons who are wanted have no limit
'nly the other day til" English police had
ent over the description Of !. man they
:ould like to put i'll the dock A. ho
poke French without the slightest accent,
nd rs it was certain that he would be
disguised out of all rccosnitol,, the task
vas difficult one. One afternoon two OF
:iese detectives noticed Well dressed
: ian and suspected him. One Of them took
It his overconc and HING il up side by
de with his. A few minutes later they
OF UP to leave. nid the wrong coat was
ut on In the most fluent and polite
rcnch the suspected man pointed out he
:ror. The Inouchurd took it Off and
Okcl at the name of the maker and saw
nat it was n London firm. They had
,una their man.--ToGny.