Evening star., 1933-07-30

pressed that they organized the inter-
national Criminal Police Commission.
with an ofice In Vienna. The organiza-
ton. the offspring Of the conference.
represents the effort to establish a
World Police Bureau, has gained some
headway and has accumulated records
and statistics.
Washington Headquarters Proposed.
It has been proposed, however, that
Washington be chosen as the locale
of the proposed international bureau.
For this several reasons have been
advanced. The Department of Justice.
with its present Bureau of Criminal
Identification, would naturally CO.
operate. There are also other Federal
departments which might assist. The
various commonwealths are jealous OF
their police powers and there is in
consequence no national police in this
country, as in European countries.
Under the Constitution, however. the
Federal Government has authority to
coin money, to manage the mails, to
collect revenue beth internal and from
imports and to restrict immigration.
All these activities require police work,
although the law enforcement officers
are not designated as policemen.
The Secret Service. which was an
Army intelligence bureau during the
Civil War. now devotes itself to arrest
ing counterfeiters and to similar ac-
tivities. The pest Office inspectors,
really Federal police detectives, appre-
hend persons who make unlawful use
of the mails, rob or kill postal en-
ployes, steal letters or loot pct Of
fees. The revenue officers who suppress
illicit distilling or mconshining are in
effect police detectives also. The same
classification could be applied to coast
guards or officials who arrest snug
glers and to the dwindling forces Of
the prohibition units. The inspectors
of the Bureau of Immigration. which
is under the Department of Labor, are
charged with keeping out unwanted
aliens. All these bureaus of the Gov
ernment have records Of criminals
which are of much value and could
be made available for the use Of a
worldwide organization.
There are other more or less Official
groups of law enforcers in the United
opment of the bureau. Among these
are the Sheriffs and Police Omcers'
Association. the International Associa-
ton of Policewomen, the Fraternal
Order of Police, which is virtually a
union for policemen of the ranks, and
the World Association of Detectives,
which enrolls private detectives. There
is limited and somewhat exclusive
organization, the International Asso-
ciation of Identification. It is COM
posed of experts in fingerprint analysis
and in other means Of Identification
by physical peculiarities. This last as
sociation. technical and scientific, pub
lishes bulletins and papers which would
give chronic brain fag to the average
layman seeking to understand the dia-
grams and formulae reproduced.
National Unity in Europe.
In European countries and, in fact,
in most nations throughout the world,
the police are organized on a national
rather than on the local basis which
obtains in the United States. They are
more or less military in their opera
tions. In France, Germany, Spain and
other continental countries the police
were once soldiers of the garrisons,
from which they were detailed to duty
in the polls" or city.
The Anglo-Saxon idea provides essen
TALLY for peace officers under local
control. In England, for instance, the
police are appointed locally, although
they are constantly being inspected by
the central government or the home
Office to see that they maintain their
efficiency. Scotland Yard, it is always
noted, proceeds with great tact and
consideration when operating outside
Of London. It handles the provincial
police oficials gently. The American
police, in asserting independence of
Federal and State control, are even
more insistent than are the English
provincials. It was many long year
before the police of New York City
could be induced to wear uniforms,
which they objected to as liveries
which only servants could be expected
to don
Among the American police depart
ments of the cities there Is already
much effective cooperation. The New
York City Police Department especially
excels in its helpfulness and courtesieS
extended to the police of this country
and those of foreign lands. Its Bu-
reau of Criminal Identification now has
more than 100000 fngerprints, be-
sides hundreds of thousands of photo
graphs and huge piles of records of ar
rests and convictions. All this is ac-
cessible alike to the constable from
Yaphank or to the high constables of
London.
Fingerprints Exchanged.
Between New York and Scotland
Yard there is constant communica ton,
especially in recent years, with the
number Of international criminals in
creasing. The records of the famous
English detective division are about as
extensive as those of the Bureau of
Criminal Identification in New York's
Police Department. It often happens
that a criminal arrested here has an
English record. He may be wanted by
Scotland Yard. Something in his man
ner, his speech or papers found in his
possession when searched suggests to
Commissioner Bolan's men that he
came from some British city. His fin
gerprintS are made and an especially
characteristic one is selected, from
which a section is taken. In code Ian
guage the specimen Is described in a
cable to Scotland Yard. In many
cases identifications have been made
by the underseas route in two or three
hours.
BY the same token. Scotland Yard
may pick up New York gunman or
gangster and send over a description of
print from one finger The expert
identifiers here have been known to
complete an Identification within few
minutes after the query has been de-
coded. The classifications of finger
prints are SO closely made that from
description the identif1er may 60 to
one special drawer out of hundreds Of
such receptacles, then to a single port
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