The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1920-02-05
SAYS FINGER PRINT
FORGERY POSSIBLE
Expert Claims to Have
Forged" Prints of New
Jersey Murderer,

NEW YORK. Feb. 5.-Offlcials OF
the International Association for Per-
sonal Identification here. an organiza-
ton having for its object the ringer
printing" Of every man, woman ana
child in the United States and Can
ada have started on inquiry into the
charge made by Milton Carlson, q
Los Angeles handwriting expert, That
finger prints can be forged.
Carlson says he forged" the finger
prints of a convicted murderer IN New
Jersey in human blood on butcher
knife, making a perfect thumb i'm
pression of a man 5000 miles away.
Experts it is said pronounced i per-
feet. So far as known, the CallIor-
Man is the first man to announce sue
cessful duplication of finger prints,
used for the past 1000 years as an
infallible means Of Identification,
Forger finger prints are possible put
ineffective il Is said by officials OF
the international Association for Per
sonal identification here. "A GRIM
inal." said the secretary of the asso-
citation, would not have one chance
In a. million Of success In Fastening q
crime upon an innocent person oy
means of forged finger, print. Our
researches show that in every case OF
reproduced print the lines are too
palpablv false to deceive skilled eye.
They show up under a strong magnl-
fyinG glass like a rubber stamp or
wood engraving and not like the orig.
inaI finger lines which. by reason OF
perspiration and oil, are clear and
sharply defined. d..
"Handwriting experts may attempt
to discredit finger prints because their
use detracts from their business. bnt
the fact remains that human seals as
the finger prints are called, are an un-
failing test 50 far as identity is con-
cerned. They have practically super
seeded the, Bertillon system in New
York state but until the law is chang
ed. the Bertillon must be used in the
penitentiaries. When the lines are
blurred, as often happens, a finger
print is worthless. but If they are cleaI
1t is infallibla evidence. It has beer
shown that if the finger ridges were
shaved off or sandpapered they came
back NJ
1T is popularity supposed that finger
prints usually are only shown in blood
| The fact Is that you leave a finger
print upon everything you touch. Il
Is quite Invisible to the naked eye. The
expert, however. will take bit o.
powder-za dark powder on light sur
face or light powder on a dark sur
face-and will quickly develop thu
print. The powders used are lamp
curious sulphide and dragons blood.
Mature has carved on our fingers
these seals and they should be Zpu
| to civilian as well as police use. I'm
| doubtedly they have been the meant
Of detecting thousands of criminals
| Hundreds of individuals who come u
| New York and are swallowed UP il
| this great city, their bodies final!
| landing in the morgue, might never b.
! buried in the potter's field II we hat
a, national finger print registry o
| civilians"
The New York finger print organl
cation officials say that despite Mr.
| Carlsons charge, genuine finger print
are an invaluable aid to identify vic
| tins of train wrecks, or other dis
| asters and for ascertaining the iden
| tity of persons who have temperate.
lost" themselves.