The Eureka sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1902-current, 1922-12-09

institutions Of his country make
IL almost necessary for q resident to
carry some sort Of credentials, and
the nngerprint has become q stand
ard Of Identification there.
IL the system is ever introduced
into the United States It will probab-
ly have to be on q more definite basis.
To start the system. angerprints
would have to be taken Just as the
census is. After that. each year
children attaining 6 years could be
hnger-printed on q fixed date.
PATTERNS NEVER CHANGE
Mr.. Bennett says that this age lin
it is not set because OF any change in
prints due to growth. An individuals
fngerprint patterns do not change
from birth to death. except to be-
come larger. A baby 4 weeks old
can be fnger-printed, Mr.. Bennett
explains, though 1t is difficult to keep
the fingers uncurled sufficiently to
make q clear print, and the ridges
r SO fine that they are not easy to
analyze. For a permanent record,
therefore, It IL considered advisable
to wait until the sixth year.
Each print record placed on file In
national, State and local bureaus
would show the name and address
and next Of kin of the individ-
uAl. II he changed his. address, or
II the next of kin died or left the
country, the local bureau would ex-
pect to be notified of changes to be
made on the three records. The ef-
ficiency of the system would thus de-
pend to some extent ON the cooper
alton Of the public in keeping the
record correct.
The argument has been presented
that such a system would be expen-
sive and that cities would not regu-
lariy 60 to the trouble Of Of identi-
flying the human mysteries and noti5
tying the proper friends or relatives!
Mr.. Bennett says that cities all
/ ready go to a great deal of trouble
and expense in such cases. and that.
municipal authorities would welcome
the establishment of a system t. help
them, especially since 1t would meal
a saving In other directions. To keep
a man suffering from paralysis in the
city hospital until friends claim him
or his people can be found is expen-
siye. To bury a mysterious body In
the potter's field costs $25 or $50. To
send a telegram to a mans lei OF
kin in a nearby city would cost per-
haps less than q dollar ssnd the city
would be glad to be relieved of its
responsibility so readily. Cities do
not often dispose Of q human mys-
terry carelessly, because II Is always
to their advantage to solve the puz-
zie. In burying an unidentified body
a city might be burying d trouble
| some criminal or a missing heir, and
,ne search for hat person might go
on needlessly for years. Yet in spite
of Investigations and widely adver-
tised inquiries 10000 such bodies
are buried each year.
Identifying persons who are for
some reason unable to prove who
| they are is the most obvious use of
the proposed fingerprint bureau. 9th
er uses would undoubtedly be found
once the system was established. An
impostor would find 1t difficult to
| keep up his bluf once he was Is
pected. To refuse to show official
fingerprint proof Of h~isidentity would
be to invite suspicion. and sooner or
later his prints would be obtained by
some ruse and checked up officially.
Claimants for the fortunes of long
missing heirs could be made to prove
their claims by the fngerpIint rec
ords. Insurance cases could be set
tied by reference to the official files.
That is. for instance, II an insured
man were killed in an accident, and
his widow were put to the necessity
of proving that the dead man was in
deed her husband in order to draw
his insurance. fingerprints might be
utilized.