The morning journal-courier., 1908-02-20
Work of Hotel Detectives Who Guard Against
 Crooks.
COMPLETE, WILLY SYSTEM
Not Much Chance for a Criminal to Do Any Crooked
 Work.

T da"e say it would shock many a guest at our great hote S t. be told that he is in a network of spies as complete and cunning as any devised by the Russian secret police. and that even the affable gelc, aman who pS ss- e' him the salt or the waiter who brings him his soup may be q detec- tive in disguise" oays a story in Tit Bits.
 Not, continued the London hotel manager who made this startling statement to the writer, that the knowledge need take the edge eff his appetite or cause a moments uneasi- ness, if he has a clear conscience and has no designs on the spo )ns. The spies Will soon sum him up and won't trouble him at all; but .nere are prob- aply some among his fellow guests on whom they have a very watchful eve.
 The fact is-and it may as well be knoWn-that almost every large hote in London (and elsewherel has its stair of spies, whose presence is in- dispensable in the interests of the ho-
 
 tel and its guests. The chief of the staff is very wlde-awake and experi- enced detective who has an intimate knowledge of the crooks who make big hotels their happy hunting ground -card-sharpers, thieves and swind- ling gentry of al kinds, who are about the cleverest scoundrcls in the world.
 These men, as dare say you know are almost invariably well dressed, gentlemanly fellows, with all the ap- pearance of men of wealth and with considerable skill in ingratiating themselves with their fellow guests and potential victims They have to be very clever, however, to blind the photel detective, who, if he doesn't know them at sight knows the type we'll enough and keeps a very keen eye on their movements
 Usually a tap on the shoulder and a word or two whispered in the ear are enough for these rascals. They may have just announced in the bill Hard room that they intend to stay at least month; somehow they are unexpectedly called away, and with in an hour the hotel knows them no more. These are of course, the crooks who are immediately spotted by the detective and who have short shrift: on those whom he suspects but is not sure of he keeps the eye of lynx, and at the first suspicious sign off the lt trft 1& forcefully as if they had been shot out
 And it is not only the professional crooks, who hail from the Continent and America that the detective is on the watch for. He is responsible for the morals of every one in the hotel from the guest who wanders innocent ly into room not his own. and wishes to take away souvenir of his absurd blunder, to the walters, chamber maids and cellarmen, who have mixed ideas as to the right of property. They are all on his list and they must he i very cute to hoodwink him.
 "Oh, no, he doesn't work alone: he works through a score or more pairs of eyes as well as his own. He has staff of assistants among the em- Iployes of the hotel. of every class from walters 10 porters; and so secret Is the system that these auxiliary detsc- | tives are unknown as such to their l fellows and even to one another. Ynr can Imagine the difficulty of being dis honest under such conditions of socrs- ! cy and mystery, for there are eyes lit. orally everywhere. and some of them are almost sure to he those of a spy, i whose duty It is to report the most | trifiing deviation from honesty
 In some hotels the system Is car 1 ried to such an extent that the most i harmless looking guests and even | their visitors arc shadowed in their i goings and coming until their per- ,ct responsibility is placed beyond doubt; l the corridors are patrolled hv stealthy feet at night to insure that there IS no night walking with felonious intent: and have even heard that at ono ho- tel there Is a detective hall porter with skill in portrait sketching, who keeps record of the pictures of ev- cry new guest for future possible ref crence
 Naturally, mistakes are occasionally made through excess of zeal-it would be wonderful If they were not-and quite innocent people are suspected nf sinister design One detective I know nearly put his foot into it badly once. He felt sure that he recognized in q ] loudly dressed guest we'll known sport from New York On referring tl ! his 'rogues' album tie face seemed ldentlcal and the detective was inst on the point of giving him a warning to clear out when, by stroh, If luck, he discovered that the susp eted man was worthy manufacture anl may i or of his native town Wha- would have happened hut for his provi1 an- ! tial discovery l shudder to think
 What does the head detective get? Well, very comfortable salary, can assure you. One man I know, who is about the sm lriest detective in Europe, gets GOO pounds a year in addition to the best in the way of board and lodging; lno:hcr has a sal ary of 500 pound;. and I have heard that the chief da5 e,ti1o 2t a famous ' hotel gets as much as 1,200 pounds a year-and no doubt ha is cheap Tt the price"