Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1916-04-24
POLICE FORCE TO
REMAIN THE SAME
List of Appointments Contradlcts
Rumor That Council Contemplated
Decrease in Patr0lmen.
PUBLIC SAFETY FIRST THOUGHT
Fire and Health Departments VIII Not
Suffer from Policy of Strict Econ
0my-Need More Men.

According to the list of appoint
ments submitted to the city council
this morning by Commissioner A. C.
Stouffer of the department of health
and safety, there will be no changes in
the Moline police department during
the coming year.
Confirmation was delayed until this
afternoon because of d few questions
of a technical nature. These questions
had to do with manner in which some
appointments were listed and are
purely of a minor nature.
The city council will this year have
TO trim expenses in various way, but
Mayor Carlson and a majority of the
council members at least are firmly
convinced that no changes should be
attempted in the police department.
This is also likely to apply to the fire
and health departments.
Moline has for years been hampered
by an inadequate police force. The
force now consists of only 81 active
members, including the chief, two
desk sergeants, two patrol drivers
and the police matron. In other words
there are only IS patrolmen and two
plains clothes men to patrol a munich
pality of 10000 people. During the
summer one of these IS patrolmen is
off of patrol duty, being assigned to
motorcycle work. Another must spend
most of his time doing traffic duty at
Fifth avenue and Fifteenth street.
Police Beats Too Large.
] The result is that each patrolman
/ has a beat to cover which is far toe
! large. Because of the character OF
citizenship here, however and because
/ of the efficiency of the force as whole
the department has always succeed
/ ed in holding crime i'll check There
are many minor violations. however
which the police. with a thousand and
one things to do and handicapped by a
limited number of men, simply do not
| have the time to follow up to the ex-
/ tent they would like TO.
1t has been recognized by the coun-
ell for a long time that the police
force should if possible be enlarged
and according to the statement made
! by Mayor Carlson in council meeting
this morning, there is therefore nc
chance of it being decreased. To cut
the size of the police department
would undoubtedly be to run the risk
of severe crime outbreak As both
the fire department and health de,
partment are closely related to the
lhealth and lives of the people, there is
believed to be little likelihood that any
changes, except possibly of a minor
nature, will be made by those depart
ments. While all of these depart
ments are under the jurisdiction of one
commissioner, in trimming expenses
the council will not have to consider
i the wants of individual commission.
ers, but of where cuts can be made
where the minimum of inconvenience
will be caused to the people of the city
as a whole
Cuts in the police. fire and health
| departments would not only cause in
convenience but would also endanger
lives. health and property. and for
this reason it is understood these de-
partments will be maintained as al
present.
Those Appointed.
Appointments submitted to the coun.
Gil this morning by Commissioner
Stouffer were as follows:
Chief of Police-O. NJ. Bisant.
Day desk sergeant-Ben DeJaeger
Night desk sergeant-Charles F
Grell
| Detective-Henry Lebbert.
Assistant detective-Otto Halter.
Police matron-Mrs. Rose Salisbury
Retired officers-N. c. Starofskv
Chris kuttler, Tom Kearnev. Atwill
Mowry.
Patrolman-P. A Ross. Swan O
| Larson, Louis Fromme. Charles Nor
rison, E. E. Walline, Ted Anderson
Bror Ohrstrom, George Hassen, Axel
I. johnson, P. E. Negley. Sam Stew
art, Charles Gallagher, William Wei
mers, {. E. Gellerstedt, E. NJ. Peter