The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-01-10

Identification bureau during the new
year. The Bertillon system will be
again put into service and the depart
ment Will become a member of the
National Bureau of Identification. The
advantages of this step are obvious.
l have purchased camera and the
necessary outfit and we will maintain
criminal photograph gallery. BY
taking our own pictures we will be
able to save a large sum, and to be
in a way independent
The RogueS' Gallery will be kept in
accord with the system used by the
National Bureau. We will adopt a
modern system Of indexing criminals
whereby we will be able to follow them
through their trials, into prison and
out again. In this way we will be able
to tell at any time just where a GRIM
inal with whom we have had dealings,
is. Escapes, deaths and pardons will
be recorded along with discharges aft
er sentences have been served There
is no more important branch of police
work than that of the Identification of
criminals.
To Have Shooting Gallery.
It is highly important that the police
officer should be familiar with
the construction, handling and use
OF the revolver with which he
is armed.
With this idea in mind I have de-
termined to establish a shooting gall
lery, where the men of the department
may become proficient in the use of
their pistols. The careless handling of
a weapon by an officer might do ir-
reparable damage. The members of
the department will be required to
use the range which will be erected
in the yard at headquarters.
Wants Automobile Ordinance.
The fact that there are so many au-
tomobiles in use in Savannah prompts
me to ask Council to pass an ordi-
nance requiring the owner of every au-
tomobile used on the streets of the
city to have attached to his machine,
so that 1t can be seen without trouble,
number to be furnished by the Clerk
of Council, and to be registered by
the clerk opposite the name and ad-
dress of the owner of the machine, and
TO provide a penalty for failure to
comply with the requirements of such
an ordinance. 1t is plain that an ordi-
nance of this sort would be invalua-
BILE to this department, we finding great
difficulty in identifying rapidly NOV
ing automobiles. 1 earnestly ask that
Council give this matter immediate at
tention.
other Ordinances Wanted.
I also ask that an ordinance be
passed requiring bicycle dealers and
repairers to make daily reports to this
department of bicycles that are pur-
chased, or whose appearances are al
tered, and to require a description,
with the number of each wheel. and
to provide a penalty to be imposed
where the ordinance is not lived up
to. In my opinion this ordinance would
be of great assistance to us in recoV-
ering stolen bicycles.
Each year a considerable quantity of
unclaimed property is carried over. and
l ask Council to pass an ordinances
empowering me to sell such unclaimed
property after a reasonable time has
elapsed, and after the property has
been advertised. This includes prop
erty found by officers, and that taken
from prisoners. and known to have
been stolen, although no owners are
found.
A Signal Light system.
I am now in correspondence with the
heads of departments in the North and
West with a view to establishing a
signal light system as an adjunct to
the Gamewell system. While l have
not yet been sufficiently informed on
the subject l believe that such a sys-
tenn could be installed at no great COST
and it would be invaluable.
The signal lights are scattered
throughout the city and are manipu-
lated by an operator at headquarters.
BY means of a switch in the Office the
Continued on Seventeenth Page.