The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-01-22
SECRET SERVICE
 BUREAU MUST 60
Will be Absorbed by Another
 Department of Government
FOR EcoNoMY's SAKE
troI of Customs Matters Which Deserves Especial Atten-
 ton of Detectives
By JONATHAN WINFIELD


 Washington, January A.- Especially - Within year the long famous Secret Service" of the bureau government, the greatest crime detecting force in the country will probably be wiped out, of existence. Not that Uncle Sam means to discontinue his crusade against coun- terfeiters and other volators of the federal law, but for the sake of economy, this bureau will be absorbed by another department. There has been constantly increasing demand for more secret agents from the department of justice. An in vestigation showed that in nearly every department a number of special agents were detailed for duty.
 Often the work of the department over laps that of another, and the conclusion was reached that there should be one central agency to which all matters of a detective nature should be referred. For this and a number of minor reasons 1t has been decided by President Taft, Secretary of the Treasury Macveash and other members of the cabinet that a great economy can be effected if these agencies are combined into one bureau
 Accordingly, Chief John E. Wilkie, of the secret service has been detailed to organize bureau of special customs agents of treasury department. After this branch of the service Is thoroughly equipped for field duty, 1t is expected that what is now the secret service will be placed under the direction of Stanley F. Finch of the department of justice. Later it. is the intention, 1t is said, of combining all of the detectives or spe- cial agents into one bureau
 The special agents department of which Chief Wilkie is now the head will deal exclusively with customs matters. He is now hard at work getting the force into shape and is going the rounds of the leading cities and ports where customs agents or special agents are em- p1oyed, with view to effecting number of reforms, When he gets through over hauling the force there will be more vigorous probing into the administration of the customs laws at the different ports than ever before.
 The agitation for a special force of cus- toms agents started about a year ago, when there was talk of a general in vestigation into the administration of cus- toms laws. The scheme has never been carried out
 The New York port has been vigorously investigated and a number of detectives are now engaged in finding out whether there is anything wrong at Boston St, Louis and San Francisco. Examinations
  ports, but special investigations have been conducted at only a few.
 All orders to the customs agents will pass through Chief Wilkes hands, and he Is to be primarily responsible for everything. Heretofore. orders have gone through various officials before reaching the agents and responsibility for error has never been satisfactory fixed Here after, there will be no such chance for Tbo will he to Wilkie, and the men will have no op- portunity to object to work assigned them, because it is in conflict with an order someone else has given.
 Contrary to the old order of things, the new regime will keep the men moving No agent will be allowed to settle down in any locality. Hence the new service has already received the name of the flying squadron" Its members will be sent to any port, where there is the slightest suspicion of crookedness or ir- regularity in customs and will even go to Paris or London to watch things.
 Once the flying squadron arrange p,ents worked out it will prove a terror to those who seek to defy the customs laws, or evade them in any fashion or to the official who connives at smuggling.
 In commenting on the new order of things, Chief Will<ie says that when the customs agents are fully prepared to take the field repetition of the recent New York customs fraud will never occur. Undervaluation frauds will be an unheard of thing, and attempts of society women and others to smuggle into this country dutiable purchases made abroad will completely disappear
 'There will be no incentive for a person to break the customs law" continued Chief Wilke, "and customs frauds will disappear because. in the first place, such an action will be beneath respectable people, and in the second the smugglers will know that jail or penitentiary sen tence is extremely apt to follow such an action.
 Heretofore. customs agents have been dealing with travellers on plane that is too lenient. When the incoming passen- ger arrives with trunk full of dutiable articles, and tries to cheat the customs officials he or she usually begs off, and escape with a reprimand.
 Under the new scheme. when passengers make a declaration. ik will have to stand. If the law is violated, they will be arrest ed for a breach of the customs laws, just as any other offender is arrested for breach of the peace
 "This new service Is going to be very much on the job, and you can say that it intends to make record even second 10 that attained by the secret service
 While Chief Wilkie has been busily en- gagged in his new task the work of the secret service has not been interfered with It's work Is going on just as usual, appropriation for its continuance having been made by Congress until the end of fiscal year.
 The secret service was organized in 1911, when the first reference was made to the bureau as a secret service force. Tn 1e6l however Congress made appropriations for the suppression of counterfeiting, which has been continued to this 4ay. Now the service is to be placed under the supervision of the bureau of investiga- tion of the department of justice, which will have permanent headquarters in the large cities of the country. These will be located in Seattle, San Francisco. Los An geles, Fl Paso. San Antonio, New Orleans. Kansas City, St. Louis, Denver, Buffalo, Chicago New York. Philadelphia. Boston and Atlanta, Ga The Chicago and New York offices have already been establish- ed with 16 men each These agents will he expected to do all kinds of detective work for the government, including run ming down counterfeiters, apprehending criminals. and detecting all kinds of crime against the United States.
 In the establishment of permanent of- fees in the federal buildings of the large cities, the department of justice expects to save considerable money. Now, when a case is to be investigated in San Fran cisco. they have to pay the fare of one of, the agents there and back. Under