The Tucson citizen., 1902-02-13
MARKS THAT BETRAY
1T IS RATHER HARD FOR ONE TO
CONCEAL ONES IDENTITY.

Detectives Helped by Trivial Diatim~
gushing Signs - Your Eye, Your
Finger Nails, Your Clothes or Your
build May Reveal You.
Everybody carries about with him
many trivial distinguishing marks by
means Of which n shrewd detective can
discover his identity. Take the matter
of clothes. Most men get NIL their cloth
ing from the same tailor, but whether
one does or not and however careful he
NAV be to cut OFF every tag ana mark
the tailor who made the clothes can
identify them. Thread. stitching, but
tons. llnings-all tell their own tale.
More especially do those extras which
the tailors call specials" These are the
extra pockets, fountain pen or pencil
pockets, eyeglass pockets, watch pock-
cts lined with wash leather. cigar. tick
ct, flask aud inner waistc0at pockets.
1t Will be remembered that 1t was by
means of II trousers button that the
identity of Norcross, the man who tried
to blow up Russell Sage. was dtscov'
cred.
Then your finger nails are liable to
betray you. Any manicure will tell you
that 1t takes between 10J and 100 days
for a new finger nail to grow upon the
hand OF n man In ordinary health. &c.
cording to his age, the nall growing
quicker on the young and slower on the
old. So any bruise or other mark re-
ceived on the white crescent at the base
OF the nail will take nearly four months
to disappear.
1t was q knowledge of this fact that
enabled detective to arrest the forger
Simpson In Paris some time ago. He
learned from Simpsons landlord In
Bristol that q window had fallen upon
the mans hand and bruised his thumt
some time Ia the first week OF March.
q few days before he disappeared.
Four months later. when the detec
tive met Simpson In Paris, the black
spot was just disappearing from the tip
OF the thumb nail. 1t was the only
means of Identification. for Simpson, by
sha wing his head and dressing like
priest, had absolutely changed his ap
pearance.
Some time ago criminal was brought
to justice by the testimony OF his own
watch one which he had carried foI
years. He was charged with murder
and his defense was an alibi. which he
nearly proved. He said that he had not
been near the scene Of the murder for
three months. and no testimony could
be produced that he was not telling the
truth until one OF the detectives who AT
one time had been n jewelers. appren
tice happened TO look at the mans
watch
Inside the watch case. written In
signs that only matchmaker could
read. was the evidence that the time.
piece had been In the hands OF re
palrer Of watches the day before the
murder. With the watch In his hands
the detective visited the town near
which the murder had been committed
and went around from one jewelers.
shop to another until he found a watch
maker who recognized the umepiece as
one In which he had put a new main.
spring on the day preceding the mur-
der. Thus the alibi was broken down,
aud the prisoner finally made full con
fessIon.
Again. only one man In 215 Is not
lopslded and badly put together. Many
a man who is a fine athlete and In
splendid physical health would be
amazed to find how unevenly he Is
made up II he should undergo the test
OF IA measuring tape. Either one arm
or one leg is longer than the other, one
shoulder higher than the other. or, still
more frequently, the eyes are not the
same or placed In the head In exactly
the same way.
People have been Identified by the
fact that the pupil Of one eye was lar
ger than that of the other. The nose Is
very seldom exactly straight. but
swerves little TO the right or left.
though the defect Is not noticeable to
the ordinary observer. Above ALL IL man
who IN starting out on criminal career
should never go to n dentist. The filling
Of the teeth Is n sure record, and even
II the criminal has all his teeth pulled
bis false teeth will be as sure a means
Of Identification.
pu rWa