The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1907-02-17
JOSIAH FLYNT."
Author and SocioIogist Succumbed to
Pneumonia.

Chicago Dispatch in New York World
Josiah Flynt Willard, more widely
known as Josiah Flynt.' the author and
sociologist who, as a cosmopolitan vaga-
bond, procured at first hand facts with
which he later assalled the theories of
celebrated criminologists, died as he had
lived-unconvenuonall Although strick-
en- with pneumonia, he refused medical at.
tendance to the last. He had laid him
down in other shadows all over the
globe, and he saw no reasons why he
should not emerge from the one confront
ing him.
In his 38 years of life he had "tramped'
through almost every civilized country.
His experiences are perpetuated in
Powers That Prey" "Tramping With
Tramps," THE World of Graft" THE
, Little Brother" Notes of An ltinerant
Policeman" and other absorbingly inter-
esting books which are conceded to be
texts on sociology in their sphere. He
was a nephew of the late Frances e.
Willard, head of the w. c. T. U.
The call of the Tramp" came to Will
lard when he was a boy in Appleton,
Wis, where his father, oliver Atherton
Willard, was a member of an esteemed
family His mother who Is still living,
was Mary Bannster daughter of one Of
the founders of Northwestern univer'
sity. In later years the university re.
quested from him biographical data, and
he replied to the following questions:
Postoffice Address-Still to be decided
upon.
Period of Attendance at Academy-For-
gotten: | was generally running or In
swimming.
Place Where Other Preparatory Studies
Were Pursued-In the world at large.
Degrees Taken-Past master in the art
of tramping.
And he was past master tramp"
He took up his life shortly after finish
ing a course in Berlin university in 1896
He hit the road" through Germany
Russia and England. He "hit it, later
in Asatic countries and through the
United States He served terms in jail
for minor offenses in order to get at the
heart of things sociological. He knew
all about making his bed on the bumper
of a freight car and how to win back
door lunch Through these personal in
vestIgations he procured facts and intro
duced common sense into the study OF
criminology. He took issue with Lom-
broso and other savants on the question
of degeneracy in the criminal
Willard held that the denizens Of the
under world differ from those of the up
ner world more in their circumstances
than in the psychology. In short, he
found that the ratio of those possessing
projecting ears, high cheek bones, fixed
ewes and tatto marks was about equal
in each world.
Willard met in his wanderings and
formed firm bonds of friendship with H.
sen the dramatist, and Count Tolstol.
He was entertained frequently by the
latter
In the regime of Police Commissioner
Michael c. Murphy. Willard stirred up
hornets nest in police circles with a
series of magazine articles on graft. One
of these was entitled York. Dishonest
Citv." Commissioner Murphy and Chief
of Detectives Titus wanted to arrest
"Josiah Flynt'' on charge of criminal
libel. While detectives were looking for
him Willard called on Chief Titus and
bet him the cigars that Josiah Flynt'
wouldn't be caught. And he wasn't.