New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-02-26
SECRET SERVICE
An English Police Comm'ss'on
er's "reminiscences.
THE LIGHTER SIDE OF MY oTFlGE1AdL!
LIFE. BY s Sir Robert Anderson; York =; K
B.. LII. d. svo, PIP. xii, 295. Ne"
The G.. II. Doran Company

THE LIGHTER SIDE OF MY or kin e.
LIFE BY Sir Robert Anderson, York:
r., LII ID. 8vo, PIP. xii, 30. NC"
Inc u. ii. Doran COMPANY
Sir Robert Andersons reminiscent
received free advertisement p'o'
bly, unprecedented i'm the history Vi puD
fishing. when, in the course OF thei'
appearance in "RIackwood's Magazine
one OF his statements was made the SUI
ject Of debate in the House OIL I'm
mons. The author goes over tne
matter again in an appendix "
book, printing the letter he Wro''
The London Times" in answer u ~
Prime Minister'S declaration tii''
had violated the rules and traditions "
the civil service. The cause OF olie"o'
was his confession that he was the a."
thor, while connected with Sco'i''.N
Yard, of the series OF anonymous ar
Giles on "Parnellism and Crime. pli''''
in The Times" a quarter of ceh'u''
ago.
Fenianism. indeed, plays an important
part in these pages, the author reiie'"
ing our memory Of the unr"asonihs pan
that seized England at the time Oh '.'
violent activity AS for the ClerKeh"e'i
explosion he says:
THAT was not the work of the teniaitt
! organization at all, but of small game "
I low class London Irish within It's rah n .
( As a matter of fact. 1t frightened ,ho
! Fenans quite as much as II lri I'LL had no
/ mart in the outrage, they expected " IN q
/ for in consequence of 1t; ana IL seha,nd
measures of repression mad beeI at'p No
/ they would have suDmltted VIM H., nv
/ test nut when they discovered that ~
exnloding a cask of gunpowder they cou,u
| throw not only the public but the so' thnt,
, ment of this country into mysteries, a lie
/ rallied from their fright anu SCI ivy
| to profit by the lesson
The earlier pages of the book are ue-
voted to it's authors career IN the Din
lisl civil service before he was attaciieu
IN the secret branch of the police. lie
gives some instances of the red tape
that swathed and hobbled the Office
transaction. of the country's business III
the late COS, and boasts gleefully OF MS
method of expediting the reports vi
royal commissions by feeding their
members abundantly at luncheon
Heretofore they had had TO content
themselves with sandwiches and sher-
". which left then: hungry and maze
them intractable at the afternoon ses-
sions. IAN army travels on its stom-
ach." he says; 80 do royal commits
sons."
At the time Of the disbanding of the
French secret police after the fall OF
the Second Empire, some of its clever
est agents came to London to offer their
services to Scotland Yard. 1t was from
one of these men that Sir Robert re-
ceived the information that Count dor
say died. not as was reported, from a
carburce and a resultant affection OF
the spine, but from a bullet aimed at
Napoleon III while they were walking
together in the gardens of the Elysee.
He clears up some of London's great
murder mysteries and anonymously tells
of a Fenian procession that marched to
music from instruments taken out OF
pawn with money supplied by the Home
Office for that very purpose. 1t was
|
councils Of the conspirators. In this
connection the author gives others the
benefit of his experience:
warned the leaders in my pay that if
/ outrages occurred | should possibly de-
nounce them. and certainly stop their sti-
| Ponds | use the word advisedy. In work
| of this kind payment by results may OPP
crate a positive Indictment to crime,
whereas regular payment of fixed amount
has marvellous influence on the recipient.
! He learns to count upon 1t. and is careful
! to do nothing TO forfeit 1t.
This, he adds. is efficient work, but it
is not Snowy" for in secret service
work fame is not to be gained by pre-
venting crimes, but by detecting them
after they have been committed and
bringing the criminals to justice. Or
ganiZed crime he found less difficult to
deal with than the isolated criminal who
works alone and keeps his own counsel.
For instance: In February, 1884, he was
informed that French anarchist had
left his tailoring shop in Soho with a