The Washington times., 1901-07-21
Woes OF ADESK SERGEANT.
A Police Official Whose Duties Are
of a Varied Nature.
His Life Made Miserable by Com
plants, Abuse, and the Tact and
Judgment Required While mt His
POst-Saturdny Night Observances.

when will our work cease" was the
! remark dropped by old and expert
/ enced desk sergeant in one of the down.
! town police stations one night last week.
! To the average citizen who is arrested
and presented at the brass railing in the
| various police station for committing a
| misdemeanor the grey-headed man at the
! desk, as a rule, who occupies a large
cushion-seated chair behind the rail, re-
sembles somewhat the cartoons published
in daily newspapers of some imperial po-
/ tentate. In other words, from the un-
fortunate individual charged with drunk
enness to the stylishly dressed young man
charged with larceny from the person.
the position of desk sergeant is looked
upon as one of ease and power. But such
is not the case.
A "stationkeeper, or rather. as he is
known now owing to the recent act of
Congress, desk sergeant, sees many
phases of life during the course of a
| night. His duties are supposed to be
those of a clerical nature, and he would
be an exceedingly happy individual were
, they confined to that, for during his hours
at his post he is called upon to perform
numerous acts which are truly not in his
line of duty. Again, he is in reality the
fgurehead of the Metropolitan Police
Force who receives all the abuse of the
irate prisoners listens sympathetically to
appeals for charity from the poverty
stricken, and is the lone man to whom
hundreds daily make complaint or ask
for help.
The first question citizen who has
never spent a night in the station mot as
n guest but as a friend behind the raiD
would ask is as to what kind of n man 1t
is who could hold down such position
Should that citizen be addressing one who
has witnessed the desk sergeant perform
his various duties, he would say that the
place required an elderly. cool-headed
man of nerve when needed, and man
who is able to discern the unworthy from
the worthy.
In other words, desk sergeant hears i'll
one night more stories of the troubles OF
unfortunate people than it would require
to fill a large-sized volume. Prisoners
often think the dignified old man behind
the rail is hard-hearted If he refuses TO
take less than they have in the wallet
for collateral. The desk sergeant Is the
target for the epithets that escape the lips
of old and hardened prisoners. Yet he
takes their abuse good-naturedly, never
once losing his temper. for that would do
good.
To look on the other side of the desk
sergeant's life, that individual witnesses
many amusing incidents that give spice
to the position and render it of a varying
nature not dulled by monOtoay. The only
attractive part Of being employed in po-
lice station is the opportunity afforded 10
study human nature. 1t is especially In
teresting to watch the different faces as
they are brought in or turned out of the
station
a Times reporter on a busy Saturday
dropped into one of the downtown sta
tions, and seating himself in big easy
chair began to take notes of the differ
ent species of human nature as they were
brought in. He had not been there more
than a cOuule of minutes when ragged,
dirty, unkept looking individual, dwarfed
in stature, entered. and clasping grimy
hand upon the shining rail feebly enquir-
ed If he might sleep there for the night,
following his appeal with a thirty minute
discourse upon the events which wrecked
his life and made him what he was-a
hobo" Then with an experienced eye.
noting the sharp eye of the desk sergeant
directed upon him, ne said feebly:
Say, searg, / AMT eat fur a week.
Now you woultn turn a man down in
that condition Lock at me face and
hands II yer dort ',lieve," continued the
unfortunate. thrustilg two gaunt, SCOT
begrimed hands II. 'front.' of the sergeants
face. While the appeal of the tramp
would have touched the heart of many of
the citys generous citizens on the streets,
it had no effect upon that OF the desk
sergeant, who in cold, sharp tone said:
We'll, you are back again, are you?
Wei, thought | gave you sixty days not
more than several months ago. Every
time you come in here you have diff
ferent tale to tell. Now. Willie, I'm go
ing to give you just two minutes to clear
out. II you don't I'll be hanged if l don't
send you down In the Maria this morn
ing and make it point to see that you
are given thirty more just for luck"
The sergeant finished his talk with
loud rap on the desk with his fist. which
so startled the visitor that, in moving
quickly, several pieces OF his clothes fell
on the stationhouse floor. Then giving
the official sharp look he walked to the
! door and turning, muttered distinctly:
Say why don't they get a new guy
| here I'm getting tired of being thrown
| out in this cold storage way. Never mind
| though, pard, perhaps you'll be in my
boots some" He never finished, how
| ever, for the sergeant made a step in his
| direction, with the result that the man
who said he had not eaten a morsel for
seven days ran down the stationhouse
steps with the agility of a well-trained
athlete, and disappeared down Twelfth
| Street toward the Smithsonian Grounds
| with his tattered garments flying In the
| wind.
| Just then the hands of the stationhouse
clock pointed to 1920 o'clock and the desk
sergeant, noting the time. put away
neat-looking report and lay himself back
in his chair, for from then on up until
3 In the morning he would be unable to
complete the statement. as the policemen
would be kept busy dragging in Saturday
night rollickers who were guilty of vio-
| lating the law.
! Scarcely five minutes elapsed before
| there was unmistakabe evidence that
| struggle was going on outside the sta
| tionhouse door, followed by the scufliing
| of feet and finally by the appearance of
two policemen bearing between them a
| beligerently disposed prisoner, whose
writings and contortions indicated that
he was boiling with rage. He was soon
overpowered. however. and despite his
! struggles. was dragged to a cell. II Is
experiences like this that render the po-
sition of policeman anything but pleas
ant still it would not do for the policeman
to club the men under arrest, for then
they would be criticised. and probably
after a long and tiresome session Of the
Trial Board would lose their positions.
The unruly man under arrest was left
in the cell until he recovered his senses.
when his name, age, occupation. birth
ala rIafh her fnar cd ain npla