The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-07-21

s 49, f's''A VIZ VI
against other gamblers IL would allow
him to do business "a proposal which I
submitted to Commissioner Waldo and
was by him rejected. and the condi-
tIons under which he actually beca me-
my stool pigeon and continued as such
down lmost TO the time OF the murder.
are all fully described in the statement
which Ia annexed.
In view OF the deadly injury lone me
on the trial by this association with
Rose. II IL necessary TO explain here why
| valued his oYer TO become my s,ool
pigeon so highly that I submitted II 10
commissioner Waldo. and why I con-
tihued 10 avail myself OF his services
aiter he consented to act as my stool
pigeon. An officer who raids a IN mblIne
establishment, as your Excellency doubt
le realizes. must always produce tw1
tninfs at his peril he must produce
gambling paraphernalia found In tn.
place raided and persons who were actu.
ally engaged In gambling there.
II no gambling implements be found
the officer will be charged with having
violated the residence OF a peaceable
cltizen which he was charged to pru.
tect. his will lead almost certainly
TO Dismissal from the force. very prob-
ably to a criminal prosecution.
II ne find gambling implements. bu,
no persons actually using them. the an
thorities at Headquarters will always
suspect him OF having warned the
gamblers In advance. with the result tina,
he will certainly be deprived OF simiiar
details In the future, and very likeI,
MS prospects OF promotion would be SER.
ousIy' II not fatally. impaired.
Tells of First Obstacle.
The chief difficulty experienced nv
every police officer assigned to raid
s'hpilng houses IL TO secure the prelim-
mary evidence on which a MAJ istrats
VIII issue the necessary warrant Tha
nrst essential IL to secure admission n,
soneone who will testify that he saw
canning In progress, As entrance :,
enei. such establishment IL v,gilantly
ssuaaueu ny watchers who allow no un.
NnoWh person to pass. the dit9culty of
obtaining evidence is apparent.
"nen a police agent does succ..d
IN gaming admission and a raid Ia mad
me doorkeepers of every Mi
nouse ~ town attend the police CONT
"nere the men arrested are arraisned
Ior the purpose OF identifying the in.
FORMER. WHO, needless to say. is excluded
ever afterward from all such .tablIsh
ments; The supply OF police officers
a,aiiaoie Tor such purposes Is limited.
moreover they soon become known and
against them. s'"'"
The only other way OF obtaining svi.
dence Is through what are knew, a.
stool pigeons" TIE person who can
ordinarily be obtained to act as a stool
pigeon is usually a worthless fellow
,"ho' ai'er agreeing to betray his fel-
lows TO the police for money, will quite
hkely In turn betray the police TO IN,
gambler for another sum Of money by
refusing TO appear in court against the
place raided on his information.
Why stool Pigeons Fail.
The authorities at Headquarters ex.
poet from the raiding officer not merely
production at the police station OF
gambling pataphernalia and persons
round using them, but also evidence
enough to hold the gamblers in the DO.
nee court, When men taken on the
RAD are and discharged be-
cause there Is not sufficient evidence IA
hold them the raid Itself becomes un-
Justified and the officer In seriously
discredited, And IL is Just here that IN,
stool pigeon Is very likely to fail the
officer. "
with a man so we'll known in the
gambling world as Rose to act as A
stool pigeon there was no gambling
house against which | could not obtain
evidence sufficient to obtain a warrant
authorizing "A raid and to Justify the raid
after 1t was made. At the same tim
ne was always able to conceal his own
contribution to the aid by putting for.
ward some other person TO give the
necessary testimony. As a matter of
fact II was through information which
he furnished that I succeeded In car
Tying out successfully every raid, with
out a single exception. which the Com
missioner ordered me to make, and in
closing some establishments which had
long been in business. hut had never
before been entered by a policeman.
But while this record was one which
l labored hard to establish and strove
continuously to maintain. It was not
without sinister features,
There In one danger. as your Excel
lency we'll knows. which always bese,s
an officer engaged In tho suppression OF
gambling and which grows ever more
serious In proportion to the success
which he achieves. and that Is a
frameup.
The gambler Ia usually a man OF in
huence. almost invariably a member Of
some political organization. active In the
work OF political campaigns and quite
liberal with contributions. His success