The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1912-01-22
POLICE OF BERLIN.
Each One Is a Sort of Gar on
His Own Limited Beat.
EVERY PERSON is WATCHED.


The Civil Service System.
"When you arrive at railway sta
ton In Berlin" said professional man
who spent year in Berlin, you are
not surrounded by clamoring crowd
| of cab drivers, some of whom a stran-
! ger would be foolish to trust. You tell
a policeman what you want-whether
a cab or a porter-and he gives you a
number. When you emerge from the
station uniformed governmental en-
ployee, either cab driver or porter,
military manner. He has been or
! dered for you by the policeman inside,
and when he presents his number, cor
| responding to the one the policeman
gave you, you can trust him to take
you or your luggage wherever 1t is to
so. The government is responsible for
the safe arrival of yourself and your
luggage at hotel or other destination.
If the porter should run away with
your belongings the government would
reimburse you.
THE police system is wonderful.
The officers carry no revolvers or clubs,
only swords. Each one has only a
small beat to cover-a couple of blocks
or so-that he has time to be the mont
tor of the moral conduct of every per-
son in his district. He knows exactly
what each person is doing, where he Is
working. how he Is spending his leisure
time and whether he is behaving him
self There is very little crime, and
the police courts have little business.
IF you commit an offense you are
not dragged off to police station. In
stead, your name and address are tax
en- by the officer In the district. and the
next day letter informs you that you
have been fined an amount In keeping
with the character OF your offense.
You are told that you either can send
the money by messenger or appear at
the projects Office for trial at certain
time. 1t doesn't pay to give police
man a wrong address either. because
the system is so perfect that they will
find you anyway and fine you more.
The policemen are instructed 70
prevent attractions of the law. not to
wait for persons to get into trouble and
then arrest them. Each policeman has
such small district TO cover that you
can find one whenever you want one
He sees that his district is kept clean,
that each house in II is sanitary and
that each resident gets fair treatment
from his neighbor, Disputes are settled
with no thought of appeal before they
ever get TO the police station.
Soon after | arrived was on my
way to the university one morning and
saw a policeman at a cab stand ex-
amining the hoofs and backs of the
horses, the harness and the cushions
and wheels Of the cabs.
what are you doingr asked him
politely.
LAS representative OF my govern
ment.' he replied. I am inspecting to
see that the passengers of these cab
men are assured safe journey with
them. The government is responsible,
you know. and it is my duty to see
that all dangers and possibilities of
discomforts are eliminated
His answer was given in most
courteous manner
There are no paupers In Germany.
Everybody pays as he goes. You can
see the result in the independent man
ner of even the street sweep He
knows he shall be provided for in case
he encounters adversely.
For instance, suppose lamplighter
or a bootblack becomes i'll or suffers
an accident BY the way, the boot
blacks of Berlin do thriving business
because not a man, from street sweep |
er up to banker. would think of APP
pearing on the street of q morning |
without having his shoes shined. II /
such a lowly worker becomes disabled |
the government association of his dis |
trict gives him a certificate to any |
physician for whom he may have a I
preference. 1t is good for two weeks, |
and the physician is assured, through /
the association. that the government |
will pay him. If more than two weeks /
medical attention is required the as
ISOLATION issues a new certificate. The |
disabled worker pays for his medicines
in the same way. The physician gives /
him a certificate on the druggist, and |
the latter is not allowed to charge /
more than the customers station in /
life justifies.
"a ride on the governmental rail-
ways assures you absolute comfort /
and safety. They laugh at our spread
ing rail- and 'washout' accidents over
here. The construction of German rail-
ways won't permit the rails to spread.
And after a train passes over q certain
stretch of track walker follows along
behind to see that all is safe before
another train is allowed to use 1t.
There is no political graft. The mo-
ment "a man goes to work for the gov
srnment he is disfranchised. He is
under civil service. and he has a life
time job If he gives good service, but
the others do the voting.
Il met an American lawyer who re-
sides there and rather marveled at his
ability to make a living. told him
about it.
Il make good living he explained,
by telling Americans how to keep out
Of trouble. And tell them if they
take their cases TO court they must
expect exact Justice. There Is no