The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-01-08
BY MERRILL A. TEAGuE.

CStaff Correspondent of The Advertiser. }
 Panama, k. F., Dec. 22.-The most ad- mirable institution in this Republic is the police force. In intelligence, capability and personnel it is vastly superior to either the army or the navy, and for it the populace has infinitely more respect than it has for either of the others. This force is composed of about 300 men, each distributed throughout the various cities and towns of the Isthmus. It Is com manded by Chief Arrange. who has his headquarters in this city and who. di- anna, Colon and other larger cities in the Republic the force is sufficiently large to certainly preserve police order, while Tn the smaller towns and villages from two to six men are stationed. No town Is too small to boast a little building, over the entrance to which is sign bearing the legend, inspection de Policia, ana. while the force Is essentially noncom- batant organization. it does it's work so well that public order is most excellentiy maintained.
 The personnel of this force is restricted, in so far as restriction is possible. 10 na- tive isthmians. Occasionally there IS en- countered a policeman of pure. negro blood but while the entire force is dark-skinned, the native element from the soutncrh departments of the Colombian federation, where a larger ,sturdier and more resp lute race Of men is bred; but the $6o (Co- lombian silver) paid as 8 monthly wage, Is sufficient to hold every member of the force fin bonds of strongest allegiance 10 the new republic. The superior station the policemen occupy in the various com munities is another anchor to their fe- RIfty. The work Is comparatively light, their uniforms, blue, with red trimmings, and white pith helmets, are attractive, and they are looked up to with such re- spect and obeyed with such promptituoe that membmership on the force IS com monly regarded as quite the most com- fortable berth procurabie under the lstn- man Government.
 An Orderly People.
 Except that they are required to patrol their beats. which they do in lazy sort of way, these policemen are seldom cali ed upon to exert themselves, as the breaches of the peace are of infrequent occurrence. 1t is, in fact. quite remark able that among a people so generally benighted and backward in their civili- zation, there should be state of pubic order more excellent than is to be found in any city of consequence in the States, but such is not the case. There are, as matter of course, numerous street brawls. but these are of little moment. as they are limited to set-toos with the fists. and nobody can be seriously in jured. Drunkenness Is not looked upon es a public cffense.- unless the drunken man makes himself particularly obnoxious for in this country drinking Is the rule rather than the exception. Again, gamb- ling houses, common immortality and places or 1lisrepute are never lnte1ereu with. This means. to be sure, that this police force has less work to do than a similar organization in the States would be called upon to perform. for here there Is a very different and most generous construction placed upon what consti- tutes breach of the peace.
 But. allowing for the liberal view. the lsthmus must be set down as a place wher the law Is publicly respected. and where the people generally are peaceably disposed and law-abidlng. When disor- her occurs. however, the police force has little difficulty in quelling it. None of the officers is permitted to carry a revolver "a policeman with pistol would have too good chance to start a revolution his equipment being limited to a rubber coat for protection against the torrential rains. a whistle for use in summoning as- sistance in case of trouble and ponder ous lignum vitae mace.
 Methods of the Police.
 The moment trouble breaks out the po- lice blows his whistle and then mixes in the melee. That lignum vitae mace of his is a terrible weapon. and he uses it ln- discriminatory. Clubbing Is the method resorted to upon all occasions for restor-