The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-10-29
SIGNAL SYSTEM.
It Might Do Away
With sergeants
Of Police.
AN UNNECESSARY EXPENSE.
Members of the City
Council Express Them
selves.

There are at least two members Of
the Worcester city government who do
not see the necessity Of keeping five
sergeants in the police department with
the new and supposedly improved sig
nal system which has been inaugu-
rated into this city at a cost of $4,000
They claim that there is not the slight
est need of sergeants if the system
does all it is claimed it will do, and
before the. system was in the police
committee should have carefully con-
sidered the question as to whether a
police sergeant or a new police signal
system was the best thing to have in
the city.
1t should have either been police
sergeants or a thoroughly up to date
police signal system, and now that the
system has been put in, the police ser
geants should go, is argued
One OF them, in talking to a Spy man
yesterday, said that the city was go
ing to an unnecessary expense in keep
ing five sergeants, and by dispensing
with their services five more patrolmen
could be secured, and at the same time
the city would save $500 yearly. By
patrolman could be appointed.
THE NEED OF PATROLMEN
said the member of the city govern
ment, is obvious, and as there is a first
class system in operation, patrolmen
will do their duty with even more
alaority than ever. In Lowell and
Chelsea, where the system has been
put In, the sergeants were abolished
and the police department did not suf-
fer by their loss.
On the other hand, it is claimed that
the new system can be beaten by the
men if they chose to do so. One man
could ring in for three or four calls at
the same signal box if all calls were
turned in there, providing a sergeant
was not on duty. This is put down by
the argument that the telephone con-
nection with each box would instill fear
into the minds of the patrolmen, and
they would be afraid to risk a chance.
With the telephone in each box, the
officers are apt to be called up at the
central office at any time, and not be-
ing there and the duty call come in on
the tape would Immediately show to
the officer in charge of the central sta
tom that the man was not doing his
duty, which in itself would do as much
as a sergeant could towards. convicting
a man of not doing his duty.
When sergeants were originally ap-
pointed in this city,it was for the pur-
pose of keeping the men in line, when
on duty, and from the time sergeants
were appointed there is no doubt but
what more police duty was done than
before.
WHEN. THE NEW SYSTEM WAS
PUT IN
one of the arguments used by the MAX
ers was that it would do away with
sergeants, and the men would do twice
as much police duty as they ever did
before, With the order to ring in duty
calls every. half hour or hour, the men
are obliged to keep going, and one SER
geant no matter how clever he might
be, cannot keep an eye on thirty or
forty men even if he was equipped with
an automobile.
As an example of the work men can
do without a sergeant over them the
official called attention to the day force
at station 2, where they go out and are
kept tabs on by the system in station
l. They all have proved themselves to
be good men and the district is as free
from Objectionable people as is the ter
rftory Travelled by station 1 policemen.
At the present time the system is a
costly affair to the city, as the sergeants
leave their men on the street and re-
port to the office every evening, and
spend two or three hours copying off the
duty calls on the time sheet.
e AT first it was stated that a clerk
would be hired to do the work. but the
clerk did not materialize and instead
the sergeants who are paid $1100 year
are brought in off the streets and put to
workscopying off duty calls when clerk
could be secured to do the work at one
half the money or even less than the
sergeants get.
All in all, the official thought the
SYSTEM WAS A GOLD BRICK
from top to bottom if it was continued
to be run as it is at the present time
with three sergeants putting in about
could be done practically for one-third
the salary of one of them.
In other cities it has been found from
long and careful study of the results of
the old red globe system that if it was
kept in repair. it would be far more adj
vantageous than the new one.
With police sergeants on the outside
and the old system, everything seemed
to go along well. The men had no duty
calls to ring in, and all the time they
were out could be spent in doing police
duty and not figuring on the time they
would have to ring in the next duty call.
THE OLD SYSTEM
equipped with a red globe served as well
in comparison as a fire alarm does for
a. fireman. When an officer was wanted
and the red globe thrown every person
~zho knew the officer on the beat would
generally tell him about it and four
times out of five he would be on deck
in 15.minutes.
with the present system it is impos-
sible to get a man until he comes to the
boxito ring in his duty call. Some OF the
officers ring in but once an hour, wnlle
others ring in every half-hour so that
the officer in the central station will
have to putin oftentimes at least half
hour before he is able to get his man.