Evening star., 1917-09-30

Al tHe TOUR mlillOna1reS mentioned Dy
III. Halfway Symons had been kid
naped, and heaven knew it looked as
though they had been-and if Burton
Conybear was also prisoner-and II
Philip Waring last of prominent
family. well known socially-if Philip
Waring were mixed up In the abduc-
tions, then Herkomer would need every
ounce of the brains with which Kelcey
credited him.
This was not an Extraordinary con-
clusion. considering the circumstances.
For, as all policemen know, there are
two kinds of artists in criminality
First there is the professional criminal
who has been at odds with the law
since childhood, or who. having 1apsed
once from the straight road. finds the
climb back difficult or undesirable
Second. there is the criminal who has
led. so far as the world knows. so far
as. often, investigation shows. blame
less life. and yet who is suddenly dis
covered to have planned a crime of
magnitude and executed it with amaz-
ing cunning. 1t is these latter who are
the more difficult of apprehension.
For in almost all cases they come
from the brainier, better-educated
class They are men-or women, some
times-of Imagination. and imagina-
ton means forethought. painstaking
care. the drawing-on of the loose ends.
At least. 1t means that in criminality.
And so, having imagination. they are
HuCh more dangerous lnan tnOSe OI lne
first class who have drifted into crime
sunk to it through psychological graV-
fly. For the work of this second va
riety is not haphazard, chance born; it
is calculated, weighed. measured.
Herkomer knew that the case con-
fronting him was the work of the sec
ond class of criminal artistry. The ap-
pearance of Philip Waring in the af
fair was proof enough of that-pro-
vded. of course. that there was CON
rection between the note found by
Peter Perkins and the abductions of
Clurg, Prendergast, Larned and Mi
kells.
And while that connection was un-
proved. while 1t was still not at all
certain that Burton Conybear was. de-
spite the note he had written. a pris-
oner at all, If Herkomer should assume
that there was connection it would
give him working basis to go upon.
And it was rather improbable that two
crimes. similar in nature. should oc-
cur almost at the same time without
relation to each other.
1t was crime of the second class.
Philip Warnings blood. his position. his
life. lifted him above the level of the
first class of criminals. A Waring
would not jeopardize his whole career
without weighing the matter very
carefully. He would use imagination;
he would forestall the various moves
of the police; he would
Herkomer sat down at his desk. He
was a good, capable executive. with a
thorough knowledge of police methods.
He had studied the Scotland Yard sys-
tenn and the ways of the continental po-
lice. Educated for the bar. hoping to
follow in the footsteps OF his father.
well known jurist, Herkomer. taking
course in criminal Jurisprudence at
German university, had become inter-
ested in municipal government, espe-
cially that portion of 1t relating to en-
forcing and upholding the law.
Called back to America by an offer of
an assistant professorship in his alma
mater. his lectures on European police
deartments had attracted the attention
Of municipal welfare league in large
western city. He had delivered two ad-
dresses to that league. Later. the new
ly elected mayor of New York. anxious
to put the police department on high
plane, invited Herkomer to consulta-
ton, with the result that Herkomer mad
become police commissioner.
Aside from one or two matters that
like the crank who had been refused
admittance to the commissioner and
later had given valuable information to
a newspaper-were of no real moment,
Herkomer had given complete satisfac-
tion to the mayor. to the press and to
the public. Many changes in method
and personnel of the force had proved
than a mere pedantic theorist. that he
was a practical business man with
sound sense.
But-and 1t was the but" that con-
fronted the commissioner now-Her-
komer knew his own limitations. He
was not a detective. He could direct
the operation of the detective bureau,
could instruct his subordinates to round
up wanted" criminals, could even ad-
wise them how to go about that round
ing-up process-under certain condi-
tions. And those conditions always mad
to do with a crime committed by
criminal of the first class. But when a
crime such as this occurred-there hao
really been nothing quite like 1t IN MS
was at a loss no" 10
proceed.
He thought of Kelcey's description of
the Greenhams' activities and shrug
ged his shoulders. 1t was but another
proof of his oft-iterated opinion: That
as public opinion conceived them. there
were no detectives in the world, never
had been any detectives in the worid.
There were policemen. and that was all.
And he himself was only policeman!
And policemen's limitations were so
obvious. Policemen could. if lucky. APP
prehend a professional criminal, after
pigeons, they could catch a professional
criminal in the act, or when crime or
violence was committed too openly
But rarely indeed did policemen eaten
a professional, habitual criminal In the
midst of his plans, before he had COM
mitted the crime he intended.
And as for the imaginative beginner.
who had planned every detail. who had
brains and education-there was not
chance in the world. hardly. Of appre-
hending such one before the fact
not. at least, for a policeman. Super
human detectives might do such things,
but even they would need something to
go upon. to work from.
Herkomer sat down again. He mad
been pacing the Office once more. He
was dwelling too much on what might
happen to the missing millionaires. AS
A matter of fact, the purpose OF the
kidnapping didn't matter: the diknap-
ing itself was crime. And he could
not say that he had nothing to go upon.
He had Philip Warnings visit to the
bank with Burton Conybear-which
might be innocent, but which. II not,
gave Herkomer working basis.
He smiled. although trifie ruefully
What great detective of fiction was
ever given more by the author than
this as a basis from which to deduce?
Yes but Herkomer was only a police
man. And he could deduce nothing,
save that 1t was vital to apprehend
Waring His smile became less rueful.
The same deduction, and no more,
would be made by the greatest detec-
tive that ever mystifled an anxious
reader.
He'd been forgetting the important
fact that Rome was not built in day,
that it had been laid stone by stone.
Herkomer's first stone was WarinS.
him as a foundation there was
nothing to build from. He must have
patience
He picked up a newspaper; a little