THE LONG ARM OF THE LAW.

Otago Witness, Issue 3250, 28 June 1916, Page 63

THE LONG ARM OF THE LAW.

HOW CRIMINALS ARE BROUGHT TO BOOK.

The hunted criminal has in these days little chance of escape. First of all, even if he gets clear away from the scene of the crime, if the hue and cry is raised before he leaves the country he is liable to be stopped at tho port of embarkation. Nowadays, thanks to wireless telegraphy, he may be arrested and put in irons in mid-ocean. And even if lie reaches a foreign country he is not safe. There are extradition treaties between most civilised nations, and the fugitive lands on foreign soil only to be arrested and handed over to tho representative of the police of the country whose law he has outraged. Noil's ho safe after tho lapse of time, for the law has not only a long arm, but a long memory. The best-known instances of the length of the legal arm in arresting and bringing back fugitives have to do with extradition cases, One of the most famous was

that of Jabez Balfour, who, fleeing the country after the Liberator frauds, found his way to the Argentine. Frank Froest, the celebrated globe-trotting sleuth, was : ent to bring Balfour home. Owing to the uncertainty of the lav.- in that country, it was feared that Froest might fail m his task. But, as is well known, he did not fail, although, the- case was taken from court to court until most people despaired of the return of the notorious financier. The Devil's Isle.— Froest on one occasion arrested an American crook in the West End of London, and had him extradited to the States. There he escaped, and set sail for Loudon vowing he would shoot Froest. Fortunately for the detective, the criminal met a man in Paris whom he thought he would shoot first, and the detective's life was safe, for the simple reason that his would-bo murderer was given a life sentence in the Devil's Isle. This terrible French penal settlement recalls the case of Edie Guerin. This man succeeded in accomplishing the almost impossible feat of escaping from the island, and, after many privations and adventures, reached'London. There he lived in obscurity for a while, but in the end lie was given away by a female associate. the notorious Chicago May. and arrested at the request of the French Government. Luckily for Guerin, he was able to prove that lie was born in England, and his extradition was refused. He retained his liberty) but nearly lost his life. Baulked of her revenge, Chicago May succeeded ininciting Mexican Smith, another notorious crook, to attempt to murder Guerin. The gentle May and her accomplices were eventually arrested, and sentenced to long terms of imprisonment. —Sma rt Ca ptures. Another famous case in which the criminals attempted to find refuge in England, but were pounced upon by the long arm of the law was that of "Monte Carlo" Wells. Wells and Jeanne Parris were arrested on a steam launch in Falmouth Harbour under sensational circumstances. They were charged on an extradition warrant with being concerned in a Paris bank swindle. The French detective, Inspector Roux, came over to England, and, after lengthy legal proceedings, he was able to take Wells back to stand his trial in Paris.

In the Whitaker Wright case, the financier, formerly the managing director of several limited companies, was prosecuted by the official receiver, on the charge of manipulating the balance sheets so as to show large profits. Wright had left England for America, but he was arrested there, and extradition proceedings were begun. He voluntarily returned to" England, was tried and sentenced, but evaded justice by dramatically taking poison in the dock.

Organised National Robbery. —

A case unique in criminal records and one that developed into a huge and territying conspiracy and reign of terror had its inception in* the United States in the year 1905. Tts beginnings were simple and apparently innocent enough. The American Bridge Company, having more work on hand than they could cope with, sub-contracted with another firm to take over part of it. Quite an ordinary business transaction, but the indirect results were terrible. Hundreds of lives were lost, millions of dollars' worth of property was destroyed, and anarchy ran riot in every State of the Union. The cause of all the trouble Avas simple, but by no means innocent. The American Bridge Company employed only trade unionists, but the firm with which it sub-contracted did not. As a result the Bridge and Structural Ironworkers' Union declared a strike in August, 1905, and, not being satisfied with a mere ordinary strike, certain influential officials decided to try the effect of the most unscrupulous intimidation. Buildings in course of construction all over the United States were blown up with dynamite and human lives were remorselessly sacrificed. For no less than five years'the dynamitards went on from outrage to outrage, until in 1910 they reached the culminating point of a reign of terror by blowing up the palatial offices of the Los Angeles Times, and sending 21 men to their deaths. The authorities had not been idle. Hundreds of detectives and police were put on the trail, but as the number of investigators grew, so did the number of outrage's. Many of the sleuths were bought off or "removed" by the conspirators. At last the authorities sent for William J. Burns, formerly head_ of the secret service. Disguised as a bricklayer Burns swiftly and skilfully worked his way into the centre of the strike movement. Within a. short time he was attending the inner counsels of the dynamitards as a delegate. Burns pursued his hazardous task of collecting evidence with a zeal and cunning that outmatched the wiliness of the miscreants he was tracking down. Finally one afternoon the great dynamite conspiracy was smashed by the dramatic arrest of Macnamara, secretary of the National Association of Ironworkers; James Macnamara, his brother, who turned informer; and Ortie Macmanigal, the ringleader of the whole affair. The Crippen Affair.— One of the most sensational and dramatic affairs of recent years was the arrest of Crippen, the self-styled doctor from America, for the murder of his wife, Belle Elmore, the music hall artiste. Mrs Crippen, or Belle Elmore, as she was known to a wide circle of friends, suddenly disappeared. Her luusband announced that she had gone to fulfil a scries of engagements in America. He afterwards caused announcements of her death to appear in theatrical paper*?, _ Her professional friends made inquiries in America, but got no reply. They afterwards consulted Scotland' S"ard in the person of Chief Inspector Dow. He cabled to the American town whore Belle Elmore was supposed to have died. No such person had been there. Inspector Dew called on Clipper., who answered all his questions

with apparent frankness. The police, I under Inspector Dew, worked assiduously, but could not arrest Crippen for murder until the body of his victim was found.

Then the newspapers got hold of the story, and Crippen suddenly bolted. From that moment Dew was certain that Belle Elmore had been murdered in London. A thorough search of Crippen's house in Hilldrop Crescent followed, and, sure enough, under the floor of a gloomy room in the basement the .searchers come upon the remains of Crippen's wife. There was some public feeling because it was alleged that the criminal had been allowed to escape, but as it turned oat his capture was merely delayed. After a brief Continental trip Crippen left England on the steamer Montroso bound for Canada. Ho was disguised as a clergyman, and some of the passengers became suspicious of him. Then, tor the first time, the value of wireless telegraphy in tracking down criminals was proved. Captain Kendall sent a wireless message that he believed he had "Dr" Crippen on board. Inspector Dew decided that this was 'probably correct, and as the Montrose was a slow vessel he made the trip to Canada on a faster liner, and he was waiting to effect his dramatic arrest of Crippen when the Montrose arrived at Father Point. The trial and sentence of this criminal caused such a sensation that it is still fresh in the public memory. Brains Versus Muscle. — A striking instance of the slendorness of the clue which often brings down the long arm of the law on the criminal's shoulder is told by another well-known detective. A well-known crook, who was wily enough to have long eluded the police, was suspected of having stolen a valuable diamond necklace. This man posed as an army officer, and the detective in question did not know him personally. He knew, however, that the wanted man had a passion for a particular kind of cigarette—he had dropped the end of one when he stole the necklace —and the sleuth concentrated on this slender clue. This special kind of cigarette could only be bought at a certain shop in Piccadilly. For weeks the detective watched that shop, and one day his jiatience was rewarded. The wanted man entered, followed by the detective. The crook was a powerful fellow;, who had been a gymnastic instructor, and when the detective arrested him the struggle was so desperate that the shop was partly wrecked. Bat the criminal was brought to trial, and the detective had the satisfaction of securing the necklace before the bogus army officer was sent to penal servitude.