Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-05-24
BY ARTHUR WOODS,


1T is not an easy. Job to police a big
city.
In the first place, the sheer num-
] i bsrs are formidable New York has
population OF nearly 1000 900,
and the police force numbers some
! 10000
Secondly. crooks are skillful They
don't want to get caught, and the odds
are very much in their favor. Nowadays,
| particularly, they have the advantage
Of all modern improvements. They can
get the Swiftest motors with the quick
/ est pick-ups; they can acquire any kind
of weapon that they need. So far 1t is
undoubtedly safe to say that American
mechanical progress has worked more
| to the advantage of the enemies of
society than to its defenders. In a way
the crooks got the jump on the police.
| Under the best conditions the police
mans job has tense and terribly diff
cult moments. It may be desperate
| physical combat that breaks loose on a
policeman without warning - UNEQUAL
combat where ne Is pitted against a
bigger man, desperate man, or against
several men-he knows they will not
hesitate to take his life II necessary.
Or he may be up against situation
which he has to decide on the spot yet
1
study for days before reaching a
| judgment.
Politics Adds TO Difficulties.
| He may come across two arguing
men, one heated and indignant, the
other calm and collected. The indig-
nant one sees the policeman.
Officer, arrest that man. I demand
| It, He sold me lot of worthless stock.
paid him $4,000 and today it isn't
worth a nickel. Arrest him. II you
| don't I will have you up on charges
| and sue him in court"
The calm and collected one reioins
"Othcer. lay finger on me at your
peril. III sue you for false arrest and
have you up on charges in the depart
ment. I sold him the certificates all
right, and he paid me $4,000. be-
| lieved the certificates were good: they
still may be, though the company isn't
looking very well now but I didn't mis-
represent one existing fact. 1t was
| simply a case OF judgment"
What Is the officer to do?
The normal job Is truly difficult
enough. But the difficulties are over
whelmingly increased If the poison of
politics enters in also.
Higher Powers interfere.
A few years ago a friend Of mine
was writing book on police systems in
America. / was then in Office in New
York. gave him letters to police
heads in various cities.
| On presenting one Of these letters TO
the chi-f OF police in Middle Western
| city he was cordially greeted: Going
TO write book, are you? About police
In American cities? Want to look over
my force, do you? Well, that's all right,
I'm glad to have you. Just as well YOU
didn't come last month. though, for ]
have reorganiza d the force. Got it done
now and there amt a damn Republican
| on it,
How does the intersection of politics
| poison police force?
The Job of the police is to maintain
law and order, preserve life and prop
erty. II they go at this in an intelli-
gent. honest and straightforward way
a police force can give good service to
city. Political influence in the force
however, prevents the police from going
about their job in a workmaniike way
| II they arrest some one who has strong
/ enough political influence, they find
themselves In trouble a. once. But
/ they probably viii not arrest him. for
they will have heard-even the very
new patrolmen will have heard from
their colleagues-that they must watch
their step and take no chances ON in
terfering with men. or in affairs, which
are lin right" with the authorities.
Police Held Only Pawns.
The effect of this IS to hamstring the
force. They won't get into trouble If
they keep out of the way when trouble
occurs, for no one would be likely to
| find out anything about it. If they
1 orf iR1 11n
| they make an arrest, they never can
| tell whose friend they may be interior
Ing with. BY far the safest course is
not to Interfere
Considering the throtsling effect poll
| tics has on the operation of a police
force, the wonder is not that city
where political influence Is rife in police
affairs IS SO badly policed, but that it
| is policed as well as it is!
A policeman once put it to me, Com
missioner, If you don't mind my saying
so, the biggest thing you have done in
office Is to make us cops dare to do
our duty"
The policeman isn't much more than
pawn in the game. If he makes a
false step he has got superior officers
down on him, and he may also have the
united force against him of district at
| torneys, police magistrates, district
! leaders and the mayor himself. Who
can blame the policeman for Sinking
difficult duty under such conditions?
1t is hardly worth while to try to in
troduce better practices, better tech
nique better police methods into q de-
partment If the men are net free from
| political hobbies are not free to use i'm
provements freely and professionally in
l-order to help them achieve their sworn
duty to the public. 1t makes little
difference how good police methods may
be If the policemen are hot allowed to
use them.
"Old Days" Falsely Appraised.
People talk of the good cid days, and
often we hear the wish expressed that
| they might return so that the town
could be we'll policed again. Reminis-
cences are INDUCED in as to the days
when cops were cops, tough-fiSted, hard
boiled relentless on the trail. Examples
are cited as to desperate criminals who
were brought in, much the worse for
| wear.
One cannot deny that In these good
old days many a criminal was brought
in who was wanted for serious crime
and who apparently had been hard to
detect. Seemingly inSoluble cases were
solved. MurdererS and other desperate
criminals who had fled the city were
| traced, enc might say to the remote
parts OF the earth. and were brought
! back Miraculous recoveries were made
of stolen property, and although the
public knew something and suspected
more as to the brutality of police meth
DDS. they were rather prone to believe
that such methods. thj2d degree, ETC.,
were necessary in dealing with such de-
PRAYED characters, and that the results
in running down criminals and recover
ing stolen property justified the methods.