The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-09-04
DEPARTMENT HAS
 BEEN SUCCESSFUL City Detectives Have Recovered Much Stolen Property SAD GANGS BROKEN UP Every Burglar or Hlohwayman That Was at t1l Active or Success ful Has Been Captured by
 Policemen.

Tn the two years that they have been on special duty Detectives Bodeker and Hamilton nave made most enviable rec ord in the matter of recovering stolen property and catching the negro thieves who have operated to any extent.
 Since 1903 these two officers alone have recovered nearly s4Ooo0 worth of stolen property, and they have captured or aided materially In the capture of the three negro thieves who have commit ted the majority of the thefts.
 The two detectives have also convicted about 90 per cent of the negroes that they have arrested, charged with fel- onies. They have averaged about thirty convictions out of every thirty-seven cases in the criminal court to which negroes they arrested were bound over after trial in the inferior courts.
 The amount of stolen property recov- cred by the police department in Bir- mingham averages well above that re- covered by other department in propor- tions to size. Those who are in a posi- ton to know state that In this respect the administration of Chief Wier has been more successful than that of any other chief in the southern states.
 Figures Shown.
 The two detectives were appointed the latter part of May 19O3 both of them being taken off of beats. From the last Of May to the first of the following year the two recovered stolen property valued at $10, ,25S.75 In the twelve months of 1904 the detectives recovered stolen property amounting to s15,S72.5O. and for the eight months of this present year they have annexed s1S,Ol775 of property which has been stolen.
 At the last term of the criminal court thirty negroes who had been arrested by the two detectives were tried and all but three of them were convicted and given terms in the mines varying from two years to twenty years.
 A great deal of the property recovered by Bodeker and Hamilton was stolen in other cities and brought to Birmingham tc be disposed of. Several hundred dol- lars worth of watches and other jew elry which was stolen in Montgomery was recoverd in Birmingham, a number of things stolen in Nashville, St. Louis, Cincinnati, Atlanta and Chicago, and brought to Birmingham, has also been recovered and returned to the police au- thorities in those cities.
 Three Bad Negroes.
 The police department has been very thorough in it's work of catching the ef,I i,, their thefts. Walter Rutherford, who robbed twenty or more residences on South Highlands was captured by the de- pertinent and most of the stolen property was recovered and returned to the rghtful owners.
 Elijah Jones, the negro who robbed the residence of J. B. cobbs and others, was he stole was returned to the owners by the police department Some of 1t could not be recovered.
 Frank Jones, the last of the wholesale burglars to operate in the city was cap- tured about ten days ago by Policeman Williams, and the department recovered practically everything that he took Among other things he broke into the residence of Lieutenant Eagan of the police force and took some articles of clothing. In all he is supposed to have robbed about fifteen residences. The police department has also broken up several gangs of negro and white highway robbers which operated in the ] city extensively. 5ome of the negroes have been hung and some of them are serving time or are awaiting trial.
 The gang of white boys from Atlanta which held up so many people in tho city at one time was captured by thu detectives and two of the members have been tried and convicted and another |, 1 in the county jail awaiting trial.