A WIN FOR TESS

Evening Post, Volume CXVI, Issue 65, 14 September 1933, Page 6

A WIN FOR TESS

FINDING A LOST MAN

POLICE DOG'S INTELLIGENCE The addition of two Alsatiau dogs to tho police force of New South Wales was recently announced. Early on tlio morning of Wednesday, August 23, one of them, Tess, scored a notable win. Her job was -to track not a criminal, but a rabbit-shooter lost and benighted in French's Forest. C. W. Harris, aged 25, wont from Manly, Sydney, into French's Forest, carrying a gun aiid cartridges to shoot rab'bite/ He had no matches. -That night he gathered leaves and dry twigs in a cave, and fired bullets into them, without igniting tho leaves and twigs. Ho then extracted bullets and powder from several cartridges, put a cartridge case in the barrel, filled some powder in on top of it, put some more powder in the leaves, and fired at them again. Thus ho got a fire, warmed himself at it, and went to sleep in tho cavo. At 2 a.m. a polico party, with Tess, left Manly and entered French's Forest. Tess was allowed to smell a coat belonging to Mr. Harris, and was brought to the spot at which he left Ms car. She took up the trail. It was a wandering trail, and she was sometimes baffled for a moment whero bo had recrossed his' tracks, but she could distinguish tho more recent trail' and she followed it. For all its complexities, slip was able to travel through the forest rather too fast for the police, who sustained falls and bruises. At i a.m. she reached the cavb, and momentarily disappeared. The police waited some little distance away.

Inside tho cavo Mr. Harris was asleep by tho smouldering fire, which was not visible to the police. Mr. Harris said that the dog licked his face and butted him with her head till he stood up. Then, placing herself against his legs, Bhe guided him to where two of the police were waiting. ' Whenever he walked in tho wrong direction the dog pushed against his legs until ho was on the right track. Having delivered the goods, she did not then lose concern in him, but took a friendly Interest in■! him all tho way back to the main road. Whatever might. have been her- attitude to a tracked fugitive, she seemed to know that this time her protege was of good repute and something to be proud of. The spot where Mr. Harris was found was about two miles from the edge of tho forest, but tho police search party had covered a much greater distance. The Commissioner of Polico (Mr. Childs) said he was pleased that tho polico dog had performed so well in the first difficult task of real polico work she had b.een given. Ho said that it proved tho value of the polico dogs in tracking lost people and possibly saving lives. The dogs have yet to have the experience of tracking down criminals.