Paul Pry Detectives.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIC, Issue 13462, 7 December 1907, Page 3 (Supplement)

Paul Pry Detectives.

.Mr John N. Raphael, writing in the " St. 'James's - .-Budget," • .distinguishes the French detective police into two. classec—those who attend to crime, and those who. spy on the public for purposes. The second class seems to consist largely of men who send in reports on the chance of their being paid for. ' France's supervision of, her citizens is a terrifically complicated matter (isays Mr Ra.pllael). In a special s;et ;of rooms ther© Paris no fewer than 500,000 dossiers, containing notes and. information on the private live.® of men who may become a danger to the. Republic. Those dossiers vary in volume according to the importance of the person named, and they are constantly being 'added to . and v .'altered. For their confection an . enormous army of' spies 'is constantly employed, .and-.no-information is considered too trivial for inclusion in a dossier.

Recently, at a ball given- at-tlie Hotel, cW Ville, there'were, in addition to ill© six or eight detectives who invariably accompany the ''President .wherever- he may go, thirty others among the guests, "placed there"—l quote, the official reason given when their presence was re- j quested—" to. inquire into the . political i feelings of the -'guestis. .. f . "The-..police exercise;. by means of the Cabinet Noir,' supervision over the cor.--•espondence of everybody who is likely .« - receive .letters of an interesting nature. Phese. letters . are unsealed, read; copied,.--nid sealed lip. again, with, the result that, hey arrive a couple of days late. I. know says Mr Raphael) of 0110. French niagis-: rate who always has .hits lum 0- the country, and even so his'does-not ilways get ..them.. And there, is., not a. o reign journalist in Paris who -is not, larefully looked after. ■ " It iias happened, not :only to , myself, jut'.to numerous English iriendir in Paris, o be sipping a hock quietly, ;it the (Jale 1q la Paix,- and to be . accosted ,by a, gentleman, speaking the rockiost of Eng ish, who, pointing to tins newspaper at vhicli his victim had: been glancing, renarks with an elaborate air of . beingvisualA rotten (Government, this one >f France.' "'lf, as will . happen in nine :af<?s out of ten, you turn' your back and i,nswer nothing, y.ou • will be*, noted down 1-s having strong anti-Governmental opinons. and expressing annoyance-at the--mere nention of the name of the Government, fou will be lucky if, the- mention ; -' pro)ably an Anarchist' ..be not added. If, >n the other hand, you talk, the man will vritei a three-volume romance, of notes or your dossier, and your opinions, will )e given in a manner that it would i>uz:le either yourself',or .your mostv intimatb tnd closest friends to -recogiiisßi .as ;yours. there is' but one way to avoid the nuisince.. Show your detective that.you know liin to be one, lauglx at. hiin grtniallv. aid tell him that- you will be',pleased to .vrite his record for him at. much a. lage. Then he will shrug, ln« > shouldertj, -xplaiu that ' he also must earn a living, tud will leave you. _ . "The French Home ,Office runs private :orrespondencei agencies', placers to which etters.may be addressed, and from which hey can 'be,, forwarded,- with ia view to :he exact opposite to what takes place, :hat is to say, discretion.) Every letter, jassing through one ''of theseij: agencies 'vhicli are subsidised by the. Home Officey is opened and copied before its- owner gets t: As a. proof of the asaertSon, only me of very many which can be adduced if lecessary,. I may mention : that in 1897, ,vhen everybody believed that Easterliazy a-as in London, an employe© of one of Jiesa' ao-encies let outi- the news that lie ivas secretly in Paris. It seemed imposdble, because -hi® letters, came with -Lonlon stamps, - and postmarks, . but this igency had a London correspondent, an.d ; or .a small fee sent letters abroad, ko hat they should come back with nonParisian postmarks on them.'".--: -