Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1916-08-04
WOMEN DE TECTIVES
-Rx FREDERIC .. HAsxm.

force. perhaps because elements. For. de-
spite her facility handing people over to the law
Mrs Goodwin a humanitarian. Twenty years ago
she herself felt the pinch adversely when she was
left with children to support She secured po-
sition police matron but her natural ABILITY Tor
datectivA work was evidenced and she given
her first case In New York it is Illegal to gamble
on horse races. OF there are races ana IL Is
we'll known that individuals bet them, but no
organized booking and gambling is permitted Hence
when it known at headquarters that a number
of women were meeting in the back room of a liquor
store for the purpose of placing money on the races
a woman detective required to get the evidence
Mrs Goodwin became regular member of the meet
ings where suspected her profession and finally
turned the whole establishment over to the police
The majority of cases handled by women detectives
in New York deal with petty swindles such as the
arrest of alleged physicians praccing without certi
Gates fortune tellers, mediums, small thieves, etc.
which are of a dangerous order. For most OF
the larger crimes dealing with murders, thefts. black
mail kidnapping smuggling men used. 1t is
estimated nearly ninetyve cent OF the crimes
committed York the work Of foreigners
and for this 1t is necessary to maintain men
nationaties the detective staff For ex-
ample almost every kidnapping is perpetrated
by Italians against their people in this country
so that necessary to have an italian detective
handle the If German is the principal factor
in a case, German detective covers it, and the
same is true of Spanards, Norwegians, Swedes and
tain evidence In offices. boarding houses and apart
nnents when there is grave and apparent danger
connected with it is given to
Thus when $4,000 robbery occurred one day and
agreeaby surprised since it her ambition to work
on bigger things. bank clerk and messenger,
rying bag containing $4,000 in taxicab, were at
tackled and the money taken away from them.
glimpse Of disappearing taxcab speeding in the other
direction only clue turned in at detective head
quarters The authorities however. had oc-
casion suspect two of the theft-men who
already we'll and much desired at headquarters
for various crimes 1t also that these
frequented boarding house in downtown street.
where they planned their crimes with two women of
equally desperate character. 1t became Mrs Good
wins task therefore TO gain access to this boarding
house secure evidence that these had
mitted the taXicab crime.
untidy clothes, with her hair screwed in
a speaking with unmistakable Irish brogue
she obtained employment in the boarding house a
maid Seeing in the maid nothing but slovenly,
Irish Of incredible stupidity the
women the allowed her to their room,
errands for them, and otherwise gain all the
tective out of this house however, with we'll
developed of nerves. since it inhabited by
crooks of dangerous sort, who, if they had
suspected her mission would have Immediately
killed Afraid sleep at night when disguise
might discovered, Mrs. Goodwin kept awake by
great quantities of black coffee and relieved
the nervous tedium by planning where send
daughter to school
For her valuable assistance in this case was
made detective sergeant, and her future
detective assured. probably tell you
the underworld any other in New
York. with all its horrors its peculiar social strata
its occasional elements of pathos There popu
lar fallacy which the York detective force would
fain and that is the assertion being
honor thieves They do not believe that there
a single crook who will not turn states evidence
against another himself
There five detectives the New
York detective staff, and they have had exceptionally
few failures. The profession is gradually widening
for women. The only difficulty in securing femi-
nine force lies fact that it takes a woman of
stony forbearance unusual appreciation the
public good TO feel sorry for the average crook
and let him 90, several suggestions for leading
a a nOber life.