Evening star., 1932-01-24

He turns up his nose in disgust If
you talk about female talebearers, called stool
pigeons" who serve the police in ordinary
crime investigation work, for they are a cow
ardy, Sinking, undependable lot, of a low order
of intelligence.
But mention the decoys "come-on girls"
used by detective services and also by the mil
itary espionage and counter espionage organi-
zations, and he takes off his hat
Suppose that, being sleuth, you had run
down some rascal who had committed serious
crime, perhaps stolen q document concern
ing the national defense. You had trailed the
fellow to his fiat, you knew his bad record; you
were absolutely certain that he had done the
job, but you also realized that he was clever
that he had not left scrap of evidence against
himself
What you going to do? How are you going
TO find the loot? II you arrest him, he will
laugh in your face and make you look like a
fool. On the contrary one must not arouse
the least suspicion. But you must do something,
you must wage an offensive, you must try TO
get the stuff before he disposes Of it. And how?
The one thing to do, and 1t is classic in
every good investigation service in the world,
is to throw into his path a clever girl, who will
make fool out of him, make him talk, make
him tell everything he knows. And she must
not only be smart fast worker and have a
cool head. Sometimes when she gets into
JAM she must fight like fury to save herself.
At other times, having cleaned up, she must
make quick getaway. She's as different from
other types of spies as day from night.
THE French have carried the training and
| use of these decoys to high point of per-
fection They have scores of Mile. zazas or
zizis at hand always ready to do their dazzle
dazzle on some suspect; and there are lew big
eases in which they don't play some role,
though the police, anxious about their own
fame. try to save them from the spotlight The
neighbors do exactly the same.
AS case in point, take a recent affair that
still has all Paris talking. 1t concerns the
valued police auxiliary Mile. Zaza Decoy No.
IA who has just helped to pull another daring
coup.
With no other weapons than pair Of
launhing blue eyes, blonde curls, feminine wiles
and Tom Thumb umbrella, this little
Pariaionnc, with a tiny hat cooked over one
ear plunged into the lawess Corsican jungle,
where men worse than wolves TO round up
the prize bad boy. A few dazzling smiles
thrown his way, to disorgani2e him mentally,
and in "a hours the bad boy had been called
to give an account Of himself before higher
court The mademosele is fast worker.
IF you want to catch bear, sprinkle
little honey around" old French proverb
runs 1T is better than army Of guns"
The chef OF the Surete Generate the eff
cient national detective force, had been work
ing for months to get Joseph Bartoh,
desperate bandit of the bush who had killed
two gendarmes last year, not to mention
dozen civilians.
reward of 700 francs (s12, ,00O) had
been vainly posted for the bandits head. A
dozen traps had been laid, without the least
result. The best Surete inspectors" disguised
as peddlers, tourists, surveyors lumber deal
ers had combed the hills and gorges for a
trace of him. but Bartol too wary. He
had bodyguard Of five desperadoes, armed to
the teeth who never left him an instant His
innumerable relatives kept him well informed
of all strangers in the district. In spite of the
police constantly at his heels, the fellow levied
tribute monthly hotels, motor lines and
industrial enterprises, even carrying his i'm
pudencc to the point of using rubber stamp
marked Joseph Barton, Bandit Palneca" on
his letters.
. ECENTLY the Surete men learned that
N Bartoli trying to hold up Simonetti
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