The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1906-04-17
Popularity Of the Force Am
ply Demonstrated By the
Applause That Greeted
the Performers Last Night
SCENES IN A STATION
oHIEF MURPHY's REALISTIC
play A GREAT SUCCESS =
WE'LL KNOWN POLICEMEN IN
PROMINENT ROLES.

That the Police Department of Jersey
City is very popular with the citizens at
large was amply demonstrated by the
splendid audience that assembled in the
Bijou Theatre last night TO enjoy the
annual police show for the benefit of the
Police Mutual Aid Socisty. AS has been
known for years the police show is bound
TO eclipse anything in the line of high
class vaudeville. to say nothing of the
usual glimpse of scenes inside OF a police
station. That the public is interested in
these scenes is evident to all who have
seen a curious crowd gather in front of
a station house when even an ordinary
offender is being taken in a station
house and the arrival of a patrol wagon
with half a dozen or more offenders ar
rested is the signal for crowds that come
trooping from the tenemente and private
houses nearby Curtains are drawn.
however. and the public glimpse is shut
out. At the annual show the public is
given a chance to see the interior work
ings of the police department. Chief
AIurphy's pIaylet this year has been re-
vised and brought up-to-date with the ad-
vance Of the electrical paraphernalia
kand other methods used in the capture
Fof criminals. The new features are the
Beutillon system of Identification and the
advanced idea of handling Juvenile of
Tenders. When the curtain rises a ser
geant is seen at the desk. the captain
,cemes from his private Office and takes
eommapd. patrelmen come in to go cut
Ron duty. man on post calls for reserves,
fire alarm Is turned in and policemen
!. sent 10 the scene of the Ere in patrol
Swagon, a truant Is brought in. followed
aSby the bringing In Of notorious porch
climber, who tries to bluff the police, but
is tripped up on the Bertillon measure
ments. He is stood up" and the playlet
winds up with the turning out of the
might relief The playlet in condemned
form gives the audience comprehensive
Sgiance Of the scenes thai are daily and
nightly enacted in the average police sta
.tion, with a bit Of headquarters scenes
,ARroMn in for good measure. The men
who appear In the cast are men who
play the original roles, and it is only
natural to presume that the playlet goes
OF with the smoothness of intricate yet
we'll oiled machinery. Police Captain
Kelly appears as the Captain; Sergeant
Toppins is the man behind the desk; Mi
chael Flynn appears as the truant; Act
ing Patrolman Patrick Kelly as the porch
climber: Patrolman John Fennessy as
the man who arrested the porch climber;
Detective Sergeant William Robinson as
the Bertillon Operator; Detective-Ser-
geant James B. Larkins as Detective
Sergeant on duty; Sergeant Finnie as
Sergeant in comand of relief, and Will
lam higgins and Cornelius Noonan as
lroundsmeu with relief Picked men of
the force take part as patrolmen, and
their inspection and drilling last night
Eclicited volleys Of applause that came
from every part of the house. And what
mn audience 1t was that greeted our FIN
est" Stretching down from the gallery
under the dome. through the balcony. the
orchestra circle and the parquet to the
foot-lights, men in all departments of the
busy life of cosmopolitan city were
seen accompanied by splendidly gowned
women. Few public shows draw such
audiences. The financial, the social, the
business end the political interests were
al represented last night. While the
Mutual Aid Society is anxious to build
isp its fund, the members and the COM
knittee.in charge Of the arrangements and
EH6 uiell10FtE VI Tile GONACtJ dLC VNCl ana
ions that nothing cheap in the " line
shall be palmed off This is al old AK
lom Of the Soesgty. oven the decorations
be the theatre bear witness to this fact.
The interior of the theatre is fairly
bblaze with the artistic blending Of the
hational colors lighted up with electric
bulbs. In other words the audience itself
splendid picture. There were not
tiany prominent politicians in last nights
audience compared with the other inter
BITS Of the city. But these interests will
esve their inning on various nights Of the
eek Tonight win be Democratic night
3 a Robert Davis and host Of Demo
Is vii attend thy performance. To
rsoa nigh. sae followers of Col. Dick
- Ysa osssas most Of - ,--asninent