The sun., 1910-01-09
TIE SHERLOCK OF BALTIMORE
COCAINE rs THE EVIL cor.
SWAMI rs DRIVING AT.


The Drug Drives the Maryland Nexros,
Crazy. and ISIS Ordinance MSk,nr
POssesaiOn eG u . Crime Has I'm,
Down Gases 0f Disorder Great,v
Histl shl There is a Sherlock in on,
midst-not the Holmes OF Dr. Doyle b,t
nevertheless ons whose business it is to
stamp out crime. just unlike the Famor.
detective Of fiction. however. he is con-
Quoting a war on cocaine and NOR.
phine.
The visitor is Col Sherlock Swami. and
he is the head OF the police system oI
Baltimore To be exact he is president
OF the Board Of Police Commissioner oi
that city. These officials. as he explained
yesterday. are appointed by the Governo- ,
the chief Of police bearing the title Of mar.
shall. which has never changed since Bal.
timore was little town.
They have had very busy week thss.
police commissioners. hearing graft case,
and other cases that had come UP for trial
and Col. Swami slipped away 10 New
York st the close TO try Q few days resi-
cure at the Waldorf
"We occasionally pick up in Baltimors
cases OF what are called the white sIav.
traffic" said Col. Swami in answer to a
Question. There were two cases lust be.
fore left. but 1t Is only in large cities
like New York and Chicago where ths
traffic exists to any large extent. You
can depend upon it that II anything ia
coming to offenders in that line they se.
il in Baltimore good and hard
The three platoon system is too er.
pensive a luxury for us to indulge in in
Baltimore. 1t is ideal, but we cannot
afford 1t. We have only 100 patrolmen
TO every 700 people. think Baltimors
does more policing for small number Of
men than any of the cities OF its size in ths
country. Our foreign element is a very
respectable class. and being largely
composed of Germans it is comparatively
orderly.
Il have taken great interest in ths
traffic regulation in London and New
York, and a year ago ! introduced
traffic law. We now handle street traffc
about the same as it is done here, and il
has revolutionized the use OF the streets
We don't have many open places requir.
ing 70 be roped of. but We use ropes IN
very wide streets along the docks 10
allow a stand for wagons in the centre" y
When a policeman gets drunk on duty
in Baltimore, as In a case that happened
here on Thursday night. his captain has
authority to suspend him Immediately
without telephoning TO a superior officer,
Charges are then preferred, and the man
is brought to trial before the Commits
sioners. I'VE don't stand for drunkenness
on our police fiorce, said Col. Swami.
Does the city OF Baltimore spend much
for automobiles for its employees he
was asked.
well, there is one automobile in the
T,lss .. Nk.E
Department and think the Street Clean
ing Commissioner has one. We are little
ahead of New York in one way. We uss
motor patrol wagon. and 10 is the most
satisfactory thing we have ever put In
service.
toward mainly for some time past Is thu
suppression OF the sale OF cocaine and
morphine. | regard the cocaine habit "A
the most widespread and the most vicious
Of the evils that threaten this country
Among the negroes OF the South an
enormous quantity is used. and am told
that men have made immense fortunes
by shipping cocaine down there and hav-'
ing il sold sIIrreptitiously. Among the
negroes in Baltimore IL was used to an
alarming extent. The Legislature was
not in session at the time started out TO
fight. but got an ordinance through thu
City Council which makes the possession
Of cocaine a crime and limits the sale Of
it. TO its use in regular prescriptions. II
is made Illegal for physician 20 prescribe
IL to a patient who is habitual user OF
the drug. The punishment for a violation
Of the ordinance is imprisonment for from
six to twelve months. together with a
fine of from 500 to $500, half of the fine
going to the informer. Since the passage
Of the ordinance the number OF cases
brought into our police stations for dis
orderly conduct has not been one-third
Of what it used to be.
The ordinance was fought and was
carried to the Court of Appeals. which has
just upheld it. The Legislature Of Mary
land is now in session, and | am going
to TRY to lhave the ordinance made a
State law. / have had lots OF INQUIRIES
from persons in other cities interested
in the suppression Of the traffic, some
from New York. and i am told that
the habit has many victims UP here. I
believe il is the curse of the country. A
negro simply gets crazy under cocaine
In Baltimore. am glad TO say, we've got
it beat. The only way to stamp out the
evil. in my opinion, is to make the pos
session OF the drug a felony.
Il expect to look into the new Police
here to see whether there
are any improvements can take back 10
pa ltinnOrq with me-