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About The Oregon daily journal. (Portland, Or.) 1902-1972 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 23, 1906)
ru i 1 i FFtClAL. recognition has been given . the finger print as a means of identifi cation The United States Government .has adopted the system.' : s v Hereafter vll recruits :' enlisted "for the army will nave impressions cf their finger tips filed as part of their record, and those of men 1 already in the service will be taken. At each army post and recruiting station a man edu iaiedtnthe new art will be stationed. ' In a - short time it is expected that the navy will do Not only will the finger prints absolutely V identify deserters, and, it is thought, serve to check the great and growing evil , of deser-y "tion in both branches of the service, but will prove a blessing to the families of enlisted men. There need . be no : more "unknown dead" in war; everybody' found upon a bat tlefield can be identified. : : . A WOMAN I tAOJt. -V .'f new system arg now- By comp.rln thl. print, .tanr tlm. th.fturv with L being wento-armyL0jfictahPy.a..womanncnct. flte4 mitK w nii.tinf papery u a I ?. I - !il I i m mm l l. t. wno is regaraea as us cleverest exponent in this' country. v;-.. v' ' . v '' .'-''J-' '? One of the most interesting and import ant developments of the new centuvf, the fin ger print jy stem, is making wonderful strides. : Originally adopted to insure the identification - of criminals, it is being taken up for 'use by t t . .1 . , 1 . J - t panns ana me paymasters acpartmcms or ln order to put th. y.t;m into operaUon. or. at icaeu laf re industrial enterprises -Where' hundreds - lv It a atari, forty anilated m- from vartou army , , . . (. poeta in the Eastern part of the country will be instruct or illiterate men are employed. Many bUSt- ed at Waehlnctbn In taklnic flnger prlnu and tn pholog- -: L - L m. ,1,. . ' raohy. One smaUrr aauad bae already ben trained. ' thetrthumbsaS70SafegUard-aga.nStChecktlmmM-imr mn"m recruiting station "- .-J . raising Mnd against forgery. GVKR an immense green mound In BtonawaU Ceme tery, at Winchester,. Va la a autely marbls shaft erected in honor of the unknown dead who " He buried beneath. One of the inscriptions upon It atatea that -"non know who they wera wr whence" they came. In the future. If only a finger print of the dead soldier can be obtained, positive Identification of the remains will be had. When It la necessary to-lner the fallen : at once, upon the Aeld of notion, prlnta of their Anger will be taken, the hnpresaloc Inclosed In vial and buried with the aoldicr. ... ,., ... . OUID you go to jail for a dor I Would you aubmit to incarceration with crim - inala, "drunks" and maladorous char- actert generally for contemnt of court rather than give over your pet to the public exe-, eutionert "' :, . t... Thi is what Dr. J., A- Horigan. a Drominent politician of Kansas City, Mo.;nd candidate for .' the Democratic nomination for Congress did a ' wee.fc or so ago.': JUig famfly'and his friends heart 'ily applauded his unselhsh devotion to the doff. D' . R. HORIOAN Uvea In a handsome house on Main street. Kansas City, but the dog, at last accounts, could not be so deAnltely located, aa he had been spirited away In order to evade th execution of . the death sentence imposed Upon him by th police Judge. - That la why the owner spent three hours in th municipal lockup. He preferred Imprisonment to reveal ing the whereabout of the condemned animal. Dr. Horigan's dog waa charged with having bitten a UtUe girl, and th physician was - arrested for harbor pg a vicious anlmaL He waa sentenced to pay a An of 1109, and. In addition, ' waa ordered to produce hla pet for immediate execution by the police. , : This th doctor flatly refused to do. "Th dog Is In a safe place and all th police and polio judges tn Kansas City cannot make me produce him," he said. "Than you are in contempt and I wUI send yon to JuO until yon purge yourself by agreeing to bring the dog Into court.' said the Court, determinedly. - - After three houra confinement th police Judge, Harry O. Kyi, thought that, the leaven f repentance had worked eufltclently to produce th deelred effect upon the doctor, and he ordered him haled before the tribunal one mor. - , . "Will you tell the police where th dog la concealed T" ' asked th Court, a little mora gently than before. "On lit tie girl la worth all th doga Is Christendom, and I have determined that this dog must die. He bit a little girl, and that sort of a dog cannot live In Kansas City.". 1 -nut your wonor, expostuuuea tne doctor, "the dog la a houeehold pet and th girl atepped on his tail while V teasing him. He Is not used to that sort of treatment. and while I Sat sorry, the dog bit her, It waa not seri ously and ah really got no mor than ah deserved, Th iiu cccrr surAY 1 ) SfiyOTS. t (OIF 7 matter to identify the dead, from the cradle to the grave the linea on the tlpe of a 'pereoh'a flngera never change, and the chancee of the flnger prnU of two Individuate being alike are one In alxty-four billion. rrequent applicatlona are made to the Pension Bureau for eertlHcatea In lieu of lost or dtwtroyed dlchrge papor. When paper are iaaued on theM aubsUtutea they are eometlmea found to be fraudulent. " With tha flnr nrlnt ivitcm no man Will be able to get a new certificate unlraa hie Identity la eetabliehed hv It. purpose of the War Department to have wo Is familiar with Anger print and ptiotograpnio wora. Arranaementa aro bang made"by the Navy Department to follow the example of the aiater service, but for th present only the Anger prints of new recruits and .those who,40-en)tit will be taken. More or less of k prejudice exists In th navy against :. th system, ItJs said, but It la hoped that-thie-wUl be- removed in time when it la understood that the enlisted men of the army submit to U without objection and . -without feeling- that hy-ar heny- way humiliated. Within a short time. It la announced, an examination wtll be held In the Bureau of Navigation to aecure clerks who will have charge of the work In Washington, and ; will Ale and classify the records.. These positions will cav tJWO. While Indorsement of th United States Government givea th Anger print system an oOicial standing, it bad dog I a pet of th family and plays with my children .every day. De you suppore I would allow a vicious dog to plsy with my children' "That may all be as you say. doctor, argued the Court, "but this girl's father haa Aled formal complaint, ' and th law. says that dogs that bit people must be killed. . .' - "The law be ! well, the doctor Indulged himself In th luxury of a remark similar U that ascribed to Mr. Vanderbllt In relation to the people. "This dog," be continued, mora diplomatically, "will not be shot, and that la all ther Is to It" It was squarely up to the Judge to send the doctor back to jsil or gracefully back down. He choaa a mid dle course.' Beside, the doctor's attorney waa already' h ah.r S,urL ' P P tn-.cw ,w "Will vougre not to place any obstacle In the wav of th nolle ln their 'search for the dogT" th ToUv Judge asked, aa a final way out, . mmmsmmu V t v. I I .i.,y, V ' I ' . .V': . 1 journal rornxArjD. Sunday kcsning. septettes 23, ic$ ... 7PJ UICLE SAM ITS USES.. already come to ' be recognized aa one of the really big and Important products of modern, titnee,. T.-. . For aome yeara !t haa been employed by English police ln their criminal record, by the French and others In the Old World, and Ita value la now being generally, recoinlaed by the police authorities of American cities, In many of which it baa been adapted, v ' But even more, the system seems likeiy to be adopted by banks and by large industrial institutions. Only a short time Ao It was announced that officials of the pay- n masters'- departments of steel and Iron companies and other extensive enterpriaea in Chicago, were considering , the Installation of a Anger print system of par checks. ' - Instead of making bis mark on the pay check, the employe. If he cannot write, will leave the Impression of his right thumb as his receipt.. - ' ---The paying-teller of a prominent trust company In Chicago is also investigating the method. . The valuo of the aystcm can best be told, perhaps, hy a woman who is regarded as the leading expert la 1 th United States.- Indeed, eo -great la her skill that ah- na, bn ,umm0ned to Waahlngtotr to Instruct govem- mont officials in Anger print methods and to help estab lish the service there. - , liTs. M. K. Holland, of Chicago Is thir woman,. Even before aha made a study of Anger prints she was widely known as a detective and criminologist. Handsome, with dark, searching eyes, her fac stamped with -alertness" and power, Mrs. Holland is charmingly amlablo and womanly.'- . "The science of Anger print. ah said the other day, '"(a valuable both in detecting crime and irt - vldlng an abeolutely reliable and unchanging record of Identity. . - "Only In Ita developed use Is thlaystera hew. It was known aa a means oft -4untlAcetlo ages ago by the Chinese -and, wa tired to some extent bv the Hindoos. In modern times, aa far back as 16M, a learned man In England named Grew wrote a paper noting the curious :, GrJLA. tiarijimtn V v 1L1J J 11 u ...ir-- . I aO. . 7d ! fact that the peculiar ridge of the fingers never changed torn infancy wage. V . 0( UU yersTaa U pretty generally known, th ; British police department haa made use of and developed from this simple fart a wonderful aystem of MentiAoa- tion which la fast being adopted In America. It I. now being used In many of th larger cltlea of ' th United flutes. Before long It will be In ua ln every prisonm the country, for Its usefulness in posithrelyj."'r nZTYLi 4.htAr i heavteat in ld.ntiryln, criminal. V proved beyond the '.hadow of JT lulT bBly" doubt. Bertlllon uses K himself In connection with his own aystem, and th two work hand in hand with, th most perfect harmony, i. "The Bertlllon system, admittedly, la practloabl only for adults, depending as It does upon meaaurement of th ' bonee. For, should th criminal grow after the meanure- ments are taken ther would be slight chance for IdentV Ana tion. But In all my life I have not seen th Anger -prints of any two persons In any degree alike." Mrs. Holland then took the Anger prints of several visitors as a practical demonstration of th work. Th Angara were pressed lightly upon a piece of paper, pre- ' f era My by rolling each from side to skJo so that an ira- ' preaslon s leTt of the wholo of the Anger end. front and , sides. A chemical waa then applied, when the powerful m- 1 mm rAVeAled th nrln Thl tm 4h MrfM4 ImnrMalA. I but an absolutely positive identification can be made. It I III III! II I . I "I will wlUlagly agree to that," replied th doctor, knowing that he waa perfectly safe lu so doing. Th dog had been safely smuggled away by some underground dog railway, and th doctor knew that all the, police in town avoid not And th animal. "Then 1 won't send you back to JaU,'' remarked the Court, much relieved and with a great show of. magna nimity. . .. . ... " "Thanks," replied the doctor. laconically, as h bowed hlmeelf out of the magistsrlaj presence. T. In th meantime, tha doctor's children are Incon solable at the enforced temporary exile of their play mate, which la a handsome black setter, with the gloss iest fur and the most graceful of drooping ears it la .really a handsome brute, and the whole neighborhood s'dee with ho doctor. ' : .... Mrs. Horigan commends her husband's stn li v matter and la rather proud of being th wi j uf t t sort of "JaU Mra.'V ; f a If Hi T- : l- :. ..aw 1 11 r. -r , i to I) ' - waa explained, however th Impression may he mad, No pcreon. Mr.. Holland declared, could escape WentU ; floation after' their Anger print bad been taken. Jwc- pWnlnf. ah said: - , L M - - Examlnhwr th tanalMl pangea.or J"fWP n II '""Inl ur''r- '".T11.1. 5 l " ""TlV f ?Ji rJTL Mr Jf Z mtSt?- P"" cJ?.tr.J-'"f J'leL ' - , , tv. th ridges on th hands of a negro are very fin, resem Ming tho of a woman. i , "All prlnta are classified and placed In cabinets. And here la th need for aclentlAe knowledge. - "It i by means of this classification and wonderful system of filing that a given Anger print can b found by th expert from among millions In a few minutes of time. More dt moult still, although requiring little mor time, la th placing of a print in ita exact placet among th millions in th cabinet, so that when yon want i aga'n you know exactly where to And it. "The expert at this work doesiaot even require a copy; of th finger print Aled In order to And it,'- W hay signs that - Just aa certainly Identify the . print. Therefore, If the chief of pollco In Washington, for Instance, take a prisoner suspected of having committed a murder, h has but to take hla finger print, and by clasaiflcatloni reduce tbat print to a .sign expressed by a few letter and numbera. i " "Uuon receiving this sign In Chicago I am as well off : aa If I had the actual finger print. "Often a murderer will leave the imprint of hla thumb or finger on some article of wood, paper, glass, Iron, any thing. I have known of a number of casta wher a &lece of wood wa sawed out of a window siU or a door tn s used for purpose of identification on account of Anae prlnu left upon It. Th prints, you understand, though at first invisible, ar mad visible by a chemical and lu teaalfled by a powerful glaaa . "The growth of the system will Immensely facilitate th work, making possible th positive identification of any man who. haa ever been ln the hands of th police, no matter how many yeara may hav passed. , "Again, let a merchant draw a check and press his Anger upon th written Agurea, the amount could note , be changed without Instant detection by the use of this chemical which reveals th finger print It will - be wondered how this woman cam to be sj pioneer in auoh a field. .,;.' hire. Holland simply states that she Is a pupil ot J. K. Ferrler, th leadlrg finger print expert of th new Scotland .Yard, criminal Investigation department. jLonuon. . . s . -r , Th new system fee run to make a favoralifa biiiNiiMii la England I l!I. -At that tlm. as irtrw. Mrs. Holland was engaged, with her husband. In the Identification ot criminals, and they were publishing the Official organ of th National Association of Police Chiefs. Even at that lime shit had been Instrumental In th capture of many 'oaeperaie criminal , s . Mra. Holland waa greatly Impreesed by all she real of the new system, snd ther waa nothing published con cerning It thar she did not study, tine had made eonn i , arable progress when J. K. Ferrler, recognised as t i great exponent of the system on the other side of' t. water, eame to thla country In charge of a government i exhibit at th 8t. I-otils EipolJn. Mr. snd Mrs. l(.l -also bad an exhibit there. A they er eir'ly known to Mr. Ferrler, the British exn'rt ir t' r .hiblt hla headquartera for demotimrm." m I ; print system. 8o Intense did her Interee; l .in ( threw her whole soul Into tne i ' syetem. Mr. Ferrler rmni. I I a te-ir. snd during the vh"le , ' had ,t!ie bnotlt tf coniln' qu-n.- In that she Is now r 1 !-- is nothi c""' I n r t at hr e i ft 1 t J v m ; :.:t, . i