The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1940-09-05

Old History Brings Back
interesting Pictures
Cify's Great Need Was
Bicycle Squad
INTERESTING pictures Of the
i early days Of the Tacoma po-
lice department are revealed IN
a copy Of History Of the Tacoma
Police Department" published
by and for the Tacoma Patrol
mems Benevolent association.
brought to this desk BY Walter
Dahl. 2103 So. K St II was pub
Hshed in 1908.
The first picture, a well dome
portrait of Mayor John La TX,
recalls a period which high
lighted Tscoma's municipal his
tory. Mayor Linck served only
one term but II was a lively one.
Equally reminiscent Of that
period is the picture OF J. M.
Duley, Mayor Linck's chief of
police. Duley was an old timer.
he had been a deputy sheriff
and constable for several years
and his sympathies were with
the older men on the force. As
far as the restrictions imposed
by partisan politics and the
spoils system in municipal sf-
fairs permitted. he gave the
breaks to the experienced men.
Familiar among the photo
graphs Of members Of the
force are those of members
Of the detective staff. II was
headed by John Fitzgerald,
whose picture shows a char
acteristic pose poker face
and derby hat cooked over one
eve. With him are shown ID.
o. Smith. Adam Wiley, James
Milone, William Fackler. chief
during l. ID. Campbelfs sd-
ministration; p. ID. Mckay and
John Ellison. Geary and Mi
lone are still In Tacoma. the
latter the only one Of the
group In police work. He Is
member of Sheriff John
Bjorklund's staff.
Other pictures which will re-
call familiar scenes and Incl
dents to the older members of
this generation are those of w.
S. Van Voris, humane officer
who became a national char
acter; A. S. Read and ]. w.
Nedham. captains; w. H. Ray
mond. L. B. Mccoy and Homer
Croker. sergeants. Then there
was the mounted squad
Theodore Hopkins. X. F. Brown
and ]. c. Williams.
Then there comes the patrol
wagon drivers-John McCor-
mack, Hiram Moore and j. G.
Trosper. The patrol wagon
was a relic of old days. 1t
had been In service II years.
In hauling drunks and others
who bumped into the law the
wrong way to the police sta
ton It was estimated that the
wagon had travelled about
100000 miles and had worn
out 20 span of horses.
At the time the history was
published the city was about to
purchase the first automobile
patrol. II was described as be-
ing equipped with "a 40 horse
power engine, capable of fur
nishing a speed of about fifty
miles an hour. though from 10
to Is is sufficient" The latter
was the speed that could be OBJ
tanned by the horse-drawn wagon
on short spurts. That had been
found sufficient up to that time.
The automobile patrol sup
piled one need but there still
was another. as this paragraph
indicates:
In these days of the auto
mobile, the motorcycle and
other fast travelling vehicles
In a city the size Of Tacoma, a
bicycle squad Is found to be
n necessity. 1t Is of use not
only In running down and stop
ping automobiles and other
vehicles breaking the speed
limits. but permits Of fast
transportation to the scene Of
a crime"
Believe 1t or not. there were
bicycle riders in those days who
could easily run down an auto
mobile travelling at the Excess
sive speed Of Is miles an hour.
And talk about getting to the
scene of a crime in a hurry. one