The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1924-12-06
With The
Aibi Artists
A Cross Section Of the
Daily Grind in Judge
Schuldt's Court
Read EN- and Weep.
By DONALD MaeDOUGAL
And the Band Plays On

Nothing much to it--just a cut
corner, a busted Ford coupe, q
trip to the hospital and a $25
fine. The next five cases were
about the same thing nothing
unusual or exciting about 'em. so
we dropped into the Corporation
Counsel's office to see If anything
interesting was going on there.
Here's the notes we came away
with:
Peace and security in the Dis
trict are maintained under the
provisions of the police regula-
tons, consisting of thirty-three
articles, the health regulations
and the building regulations all
three codes being about the same
size-and twenty-six acts of Con-
gress relating to the District.
Traffic Rules Hefty
The traffic regulations are
right hefty, with their twenty
sections, of which, for instance,
Section Is contains sixteen para
graphs with fifteen amendments
thereto. And all this traffic jam
OF herein provideds and shall-do-
so-and-so's forms one article of
the thirty-three articles of the
police regulations. And the police
regulations and the health regula-
tons and the building regula-
tons, amended and be-whereased
to about twice their original size
and half their original clarity,
and the twenty-six acts of Con-
gress, are what two police clerks
in the Corporation Counsel's office
must have at their pens points,
ready for instantaneous use with.
out reference to index or digest,
as you know the cards. of a
deck in a poker game.
We watched these two clerks
as they stood behind the counter
in the Corporation Counsel's Of
flee, coats off, sleeves rolled up,
pens sputtering dealing out "in-
formations" to tired and hungry
cops just OFF their beats. The
nearest thing We ever saw to it
was the paying teller Of a hot dog
establishment about o'clock in
the afternoon.
100 InfOrmatiOns a Day.
These two police clerks handle
an average of 100 informations
per day, and the nontraffic cases
must be finished and ready for
the judge at $50 a. M, and the
traffic cases by 1890, which gives
speed of about one information
every four minutes--on ordinary
days. On peak days-Mondays
that is-they handle nearer 1870
total.
In the little office, somewhat
less in size than the waiting room
Of country railroad station, are
perhaps fifty people, counting
policemen, civilians and a fair
sprinkling Of women and chill
dren-babes IN arms and under
foot. The officer, after his eight
hours vigil in Bloodfield OF
Peaceful Valley $50 named be.
cause of the small number of
murders there recently must
wait perhaps an hour in line to
file his case. If he has time be-
fore police court opens he may
run over to one or more of the
other courts-the Supreme Curt,
perhaps, or the less strenuous but
more distant Juvenile court; or he
may merely be tired from chasing
a burglar, and DESTROYS. Of getting
home for little rest before chas-
ing another one.
Must Work Fast. :
In this jostling impotence, the
information clerk must determine,
from oral report of the officer.
what particular article, section and
paragraph of the police, health,
or building regulations as amend
ed or what act of Congress has
presumably. been violated. And
this without loss of time in search
ing index or file, else offense COM
mitted last August, say, would
still await the proper did then
and there"
A garage is being built in an
alley, for instance, and a truck
driver carelessly dumps a couple
thousand of brick so that vehicles
are unable to pass. What regula.
ton has been violated? Is it a
traffic case-obstructing traffic?
Is it violation of a health regu-
lation-depositing litter in an
alley? Is it building regulation
case--or is there some police regu-
lation in such casees made and
provided? How about the acts of
Congress relating to the District
of Columbia-have they anything
to say about the matter? Who
should be charged with the alleg-
ed offense-the truck driver, the
truck owner, the brick dealer, the
foreman on the job, or the owner
or the premises? Suppose the Of
ficer knows the owner of said
premises, but never saw the truck
driver and doesn't know him from
|, Billy Bedamned? And it's ten min
utes past nine, and there's fifteen
men waiting to tell their tales of
woe?
Clerks Job No Sinecure.
We suggested that the position
OF information clerk isn't what
you could truthfully call
sinecure.
Its pretty bad, sometimes. and
Keeps us jumping. 1 saw what I
was up against when l first went
on the job, and I took a course
in law SOS I'd understand what
was doing and not make any
breaks. attended class after
working hours+-six nights a week
for five years. l graduated last
June. I've been on the force 20
years."
You took a five years course
in law to fit you for this work?"
sure. It's a tough job"
II you worked all day and at
tended class every. night, what
time did you get for studying?"
robbed my bunk for that
You must have had a lot of
promotions-what's your rank?"
"I'm a third class nriuata-I rn.