The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1922-12-29
new METHODSFOR
CRIME DETENTION
Chemistry Is the Changing
Work In Old Paris
BAYLE Is FEARED
Chief French Technical Bureau
Greatly Disliked BY Grim
inal Glasses.

inal Glasses.
Paris December 5-ECorrespon-
dence of The Associated Pressl-A
chemist, Of recent years has be-
come the best known detective in
France. Edmond Bayle is small,
dark, quiet man; he works in a
modern equipped laboratory in the
Palais dc Justice; be is feared by
criminals of all classes, and his ul-
innate fame promises to surpass
that OF Alphonse Bertillon, the
French finger print expert who died
in 1914.
DR.. Bayl is chief of the technical
Bureau of the Paris Police depart
ment Here all the criminal infor-
nation of the republic is concen-
trated, classified and studied. From
this bureau the expert chemist and
physicist gives directions In the
field of criminal detection. So sue
cessful has he been that the ig-
norant criminal classes have come
to regard him as a worker in Black
Magic. His unique methods have
ment of New York City. DR.. Bayle
rarely gives much attention to the
personality of criminals or their
particular psychology. He works
rather with material things. His
workshop consists Of many rooms
and passageways, equipped with all
the paraphrenalia or a big indus
trial laboratory, and includes a
photograph gallery. He hasNspectro
scopes, microscopes and x-ray ma
chimes by the dozen, each fitted
for a special purpose such as ex-
aiming blood spots, forged docu-
ments, counterfeit money, powder
burned clothes, and the wreckage
that is picked up on criminal
! trail. II
Study Lined With Books
Dr. Bayle's study is lined with
books on science, and catalogue re-
cords of his work. In the records Of
his bureau there are registered no
less than eight million names of
persons involved in crimes, past and
present
"The detection of crime today is
something very different from the
popular conception" said DR.. Bayle
to The Associated Press correspon-
dent" The Sherlock Holmes and
Arsene .Lupin stories of great Grim
inals and their feats are no doubt
most entertaining, but that is all
can say for them. From my point OF
view there is no crime that cannot
be detected, that does not leave its
traces behind, at least theoretically.
For one thing criminals, as a rule,
are not very intelligent. The uned-
ucated man usually commits crimes
OF passion and brutality; the ed
ucated man runs to fraud.
"My. methods astound the ig-
norarit criminals, and they have
cone to fear me when ! enter the
courts. The So called intelligent
professional criminals seem to have
begun to try to thwart me, in a
small way. Nowadays they en-
deavor, by wearing gloves, not to
leave fingerprints behind, but We
finger prints through gloves can be
detected. ~
= Crime Not Mysterious
Crime is really not very mys-
terious. The curious point to me is
that the crimes which interest me
most do not interest the public
: 1n0T0 LdS UCSu FOly 6lOdI piS-
gress made in the detection Of
Crime during the past six or eight
years, particularly through the ap-
plication of chemistry and photo
graphy to detection.
"In my opinion we are not yet in
sight OF crimeless civilization
Crime is a part of human nature.
Much of 1t is spontaneous. The fear
of detection and punishment will
not prevent it. - -.
II would like to point out that
part of our endeavor has been
to help protect innocence, and pre-
/ vent the miscarriage of justice.
Science does not seek to convict. 1t
looks for the truth, no more and no
less.
'During the war spy case, that
: of a certain Vigo, alias Almereyda,
attracted much public attention. The
man was found dead in, his cell, and
there were those who claimed he
had been assaSsinated/ there. The
only evidence was two spots on his
shoe laces. BY comparative analysis
of these, one | found to be mud and
the other paint off his bed, and
was able to conclude he had hanged
himself and thus clear the jailers
of guilt.
[ Another case: ~ during the war a
young captain wrote his mother the
night before p battle in which he
was killed. A postscript to the letter
revoked a former will in favor OF
his wife. BY analysis of the INK and
| the handwriting in this postscript,
! it was shown that the mother had
! forged his signature. She confessed
| 1t, though her confession added
nothing to the value of the proof.
"We are beginning to eliminate
eye witness proof in crime. We pre-
] fer our own, as eye witnesses dis
tort the facts without sometimes
/ wishing to. Science cannot lie."
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