Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1914-11-16
.F|NGER-PR|N SYSTEM
now IN USE BY ARMY
Acknowledgement Andrews Has on
File Records of 202,244
~ individuals.
REPORT TO WAR DEPARTMENT.
Deserters Detected When They Re
Enlist--Dead MEMS Identity rs
tablislled and Evidence OF Theft
Promptly Furnished by Marks.

WASHINGTON, d. c., November Is.
Brig dier- General George Andrews.
as Acknowledgement OF the army. has
made "a report to the War Department
In regard to tho successful operation
Of the finger print system of identi-
ficatioh In the detection of military
Offenders. AZ present. he says, the
adiutant generals office has on file
the fnger-print records of 202.244 in
dividuals who are now or had been
previously enlisted in the army.
During the past fiscal year 467
cases of fraudulent enlistment OF for
mer deserters. general prisoners and
others were discovered through the
hpger-print system. During tho pre-
ceding year the number of cases OF
fraudulent enlistment discovered
through that system was 256, and
during the fiscal year 1919 tho Num-
Der was 32T.
This office" says General Andrews,
has identified by means OF this sys-
tenn dead men who were former SOL
be satisfactorily established in any,
other way. az well as civil offenders
who sought TO cvadc arrest for their
crimes by enlieting in the army under
assumed names, and soldiers who left
Impressions Of their fingers while In
the act of committing some serious of
tense.
Examples Are Cited.
"a few examples of such cases may.
be OF interest, and the following cases
are cited:
.'The body of man. supposed b,.
the police to have beep that OF mur-
dered soldier. was found in San Fran
cisco. AS II was impossible to iden-
thy the body from the data furnished
this office, the military authorities at
san Francisco werc directed to take
finger prints of the dead man. Upon
nj nf T.
Office II was discovered that the body
was that OF soldier supposed to be
serving In the Philippine Islands. 1t
was learned later, however. that he
had deserted about six weeks before
his body was found.
"A body, believed TO be that OF a
soldier. was found near Texas City,
Texas. but the medical officer who ex-
amined the body, reported that ow-
ing to the decomposition of the body
following long exposure, no proper
identification could be made, and that
on account of the wrinkled condition
OF the fingers no satisfactory finger
prints could be obtained
The medical officer ingeniously.
made SEPARATE gutta -percha impress
sions of each finger OF the dead man,
properly labeled the impressions and
We're arranged here in the order in
which they would have appeared on
the finger-print form. were classified,
and the identity of the dead man was
established beyond doubt.
Thief Is Identified.
THE commanding officer Of a posi-
on the Pacific Coast forwarded to this
Office Photographic copy Of the i'm
preston of one finger, the impression
having been made on a piece of glass
by person who broke into n build
ing at the post. Several men We're
N q 1an en-. 49,, ~ .
iy determined definitely that one of
The suspects was the man whose fin-
ger made the impression on the glass.
1T Is undoubtedly true that the use
OF nnEer-print records and photo
graphs has deferred criminals from at
tempting TO enter the army for the
purpose OF escaping detection and ar
resi- by the civil authorities"