The sun., 1901-08-11
"NO RECORD" or PARKHURST TIP.
Conversational Phone Messages MOI
REGISTERED at Police Headquarters.

COntefS0UOn1I
Registered at Police Headquarters.
The men who were on duty in the Police
Headquarters' telegraph Office when the
bogus poolroom tips went out on Friday
were Sergeants Hynes and Mangin and
Operators James Campbell. Frank Murphy.
John Dunn and J. Mcmahon. There are
thirteen operators In the bureau. One OF
them Is Patrick II. Devery, who Is said to be
a brother -in-law to Deputy Commissioner
Devery.
Supt. Brennan Of the telegraph bureau
would not talk yesterday Of the accusations
made by tho Psrkhurst society. but he
was willing to explain the workings OF the
bureau. From 8 A. N. to Q P. NJ. there
are seven operators on duty, six Of whom
are at the switchboard and the others
engaged in entering in q blotter the messages
that must be recorded. These are really
only the official messag ges, such a. alarms
transmitted to precincts or messages that
may be received from the precincts.
From Supt. Brennans explanation there
Is nothing TO prevent anybody outside OF the
police from talking conversationally to
whom he pleases at Police Headquarters
or in the prec incts, provided the operator
thinks that 1t is on business connected with
the Police Department. In the police book
of rules there is only one section that bears
on the subject Of outsiders telephoning
over the police wires and that Is not spe-
ci fic. 1t Is section + OF Rule SO and says
The officers in charge OF the telegraph and
| telephone instr truments at the station houses
| and operators at the telegraph bureau are
for hidden TO allow any unauthorized person
hitting messages; to interrupt or intercept
messages passing over the police lines, or
allow others to do 80: or 10 permit the lines
| 10 be used for unnecessary conversation
This section also says that the operators
are required TO be as concise and respect
| ful as possible in answering all messages.
Supt Brennan says that about 1000
| messages are transmitted over the police
wires every day. or these 400 are classed
| as recorded messages|and the remainder
| are called conversational messages.
| These may be conversations between the
| heads Of departments, or when somebody
| calls from a telephone outside OF Police
Headquarters and talks over the police
| wires.
| Some years ago. said Supt. Brennan,
| 1T was ordered that nobody should be al
| lowed 10 call UP from outside telephones
| and talk over the police wires except police
| officials. This was stringently enforced.
| but 80 many complaints were made that IL
| had TO be abandoned. Ii all lies now within
the discretion Of the operator. He asks
| the name OF the person and the telephone
number from where he Ia calling
and makes a note OF 1t. But there Is no
record kept Of it. II you should call up
and say: 1 want TO talk 10 Capt. Jones,
Capt. Jones would be told that you wanted
to talk TO him and il he said It was all right
you would be allowed to do So Once the
operator makes the connection II would be-
ridiculous to think that he could listen
on the wire to find out the nature OF the
conversation, for he has too much other
work to do.
ITO the Society for the Prevention Of
Crime and other societies unusual liberties
In using the police wires are allowed. Frank
Moss or anybody who said he was Frank
Moss or represented the Parkhurst Society
would be allowed TO talk TO any precinct,
1t wouldn't create any suspicion II he asked
to talk to a dozen precincts one after the
other"
All the operators questioned yesterday
said that they couldn't remember any
message from Whitney OF purporting TO
come from Whitney on Friday. They
said that they had never heard Of Whitney
before they read mis- name in the papers
yesterday.