The Washington times., 1901-12-15

nv ""'S diIesteu criminal and obtain
ed for him suitable term Of imprison-
ment their interest in him lapses for at
Ieast so long as he Is safely incarcerhted
but such is not always the case Some
: times the police arrest and get convicted
man who might be able to give them
most valuable information concerning
other crimes and criminals; and there Is
no time at which felon is more frank
snan when in prison. and no person to
whom ne so readily conides his deeds in
the past and plans for the future as a fell
low-felon.
In France every advantage Is taken of
this. and detectives are sent to prison
becoming for the time common jailbirds-
ior the express purpose Of meeting GRIM
inals and obtaining their confidence. IL
IS also done, less frequently, in this coun-
try, and from time to time the police
| secure in this way most valuable infor-
| nation which could not be obtained nv
any other means.
At Scotland Yard.
Scotland Yard has 6 staff Of detectives
who form one OF the most mysterious
bodies Of officials in the world, so mystic
| rious that not one person in thousand
knows more about them than that they
| exist. They are employed in cases where
absolute secrecy is required. They never
4
| any court-in short, they never do any
| thing which would imply that they have
| the remotest connection with the police
| Yet they execute most important duties.
| SO close is the secret kept that none of
the ordinary staff know by sight or name
any OF this mysterious body of detectives.
They are totally unknown to each other;
| inceed. the probability is that the only
person who is acquainted with them and
[ could ye
OF the criminal investigation department.
IL Is these mea who. among hundreds of
other difficult and dangerous duties.
from time TO time become jailhirds and
worm themselves into the confidence of
criminals whom the police believe could
render very valuable information. For a
famous thief catcher to attempt to dis
guise himself In prison dress and insinu-
ate his way into the trust of thieves
would. 1t is manifest. be the sheerest
stupidity; prison dress is about as bad as
disguise as anyone could prossibly as
sumo, and clever rogues make il one Of
their first tasks to learn the personality
OF every Scotland Yard detective.
Fatal Loquacity.
But the jailbird who at labor yearns to
say something to some one else than the
members of the prison staff, and blabs
means to work when he gets out or some
other equally interesting item of infor-
nation, may. for all he knows or sus-
poets, be whispering in the ear of a gov
ernment spy, who is living like a felon
simply on the chance of ellcitIng the in
formation then being freely accorded
him.
Detectives often have put before them
clues and other matters, the source of
" fva
little OF it is supplied to their chiefs by
innocent men who wear prison dress and
eat prison fare because 1t is a part of
their duty.
1t may have been noticed that some
habttual criminals are arrested for crimes
committed or contemplated shortly after
being discharged from prison. The rea-
son often is that in prison they have con-
fded their doings and plans to fellow
convicts-in the hope, perhaps, of getting
pals for future enterprises, but generally
from boastfulness and love of talking
who have duly reported such conversa-
tions to Scotland Yard.
Constantly Watched.
For example. a week or two since
man was arrested in a West End garden
for being on enclosed premises with in
tent to commit a felony within a week
of his discharge from prison, where he
had been for a burglary committed at
Norwood.
Now. the fact about this affair which
would strike most people being
stranger than any of the others is that
for three nights prior to that on which
the man was arrested plain-clothes Of
fcer was waiting in the garden with
out any apparent object. The simple ex-
PLANTATION is that the police were in
structed that an attempt would be made
some time after a particular date (that
on which this criminal was 10 be dis
charged) to break into and rob a GER
tain West End house, and some one
should be ordered to see that the at
tempt failed and the burglar was ar
rested.
Thus the man found himself captured
re he could commence operations. He.
II course, knew he had been given
way" by some prison pal to whom he
lad told his plans. but he could hardly
AVE guessed that his pal was one OF
he mysterious men hailing from Scot
and Yard. which was the case. The
PAL was, however. not doing time
or the purpose of discovering contem-
,lated burglaries, but to endeavor to ex-
ract some information, not from the
risoner whose confidence he did obtain,
iut from one who was in Jail for crimes
ommitted by him in company with other
leut WuOSt lutulllJ Illt pOilCt utSlitu
o know. Many a criminal escapes i'm
lediate arrest only to be betrayed by an
ndiscreet and less lucky companion in
more than the man in the
treet would suppose
Spies to Watch Wardcrs.
But it is not only te elicit information
rom the prisoners that spies are put in
risons. There are black sheep in every
Did, and not every prison warder is in
orruptible. Sometimes there arises In
ficial minds vague suspicious that in
ertain prisons warders are smuggling
Dod tobacco. or letters into cells for
risoners possessing means of paying for
lch favors. How are such suspicious to
g confirmed or dispelled? Conviets can
ardly be relied upon to betray warders
ho have rendered them services which
he law forbids. Hence the Imprisonment
( a spy has TO be resorted to as the only
leans Of getting at the truth.
In such cases II Is not infrequently con-
dered expedient that the spy should go
trough the regular stages which lead to
le prison cell-arrest, trial. and COM
lttal-to obvilte any suspicion in the
inds of the warders of the prison he is
astined to enter. and when this is done
D one connected with the charge-ex-
,pting the innocent accused is aware
the true character of the proceedings.
ut this course is never adopted when
can be safely let out. rs IL approaches
travesty Of Justice which the legal and
,lice authorities very properly abhor.
ore often it is found sufficient to dump
spy dSH2 IN a prison IL he were
ansferred from another prison for rea-
ms best known to the authorities.
In the event of spy being placed In