POLICE DOGS.
IS there an increase in the percentage of crimes of which the authors remain undiscovered There are probably no available statistics dealing with the subject, but there are several recent cases which have excited a good deal of public attention, and which do not seem to be matched by parallels in earlier records. Omitting the Slater and thellorrison cases, as to which it is sufficient at the moment to, say that,
public opinion has not been thoroughly satisfied, there are three in which every trace of the criminal seems to have been completely lost. Miss Money was killed in a railway carriage in Merstham Tunnel, not only without any criminal being brought to book, but even without suspicion falling on any person connected with her. At Woking a little girl was killed in the most revolting circumstances, under conditions as regards surroundings and available evidence which would seem to have given the police an easy task from the first, but their efforts led to nothing. The Starohfield case, in which a father was tried for the murder of his son and acquitted, was one of the strangest of all, for all motive for the crime appeared to be lacking. But in each ease the police methods, whatever they were, and however assiduously they were carried out, resulted in failure. Could they have been supplemented by any more efficient system P Could the police be provided with any fresh means of detecting crime in such circumstances P It is plainly a question worth asking.
Major E. H. Richardson, in an address delivered on May 15th to the Chief Constables' Association, bas suggested that the police service might be greatly aided by the use of dogs. This is a subject to which he has given close personal study, and in which he has made many experiments. He has come to the conclusion that the employment of dogs would be the solution of a problem which is becoming increasingly difficult. Burglary and petty theft, he points out, are an easier business than they used to be, for the working citizen, owing to the increase of facilities of travel, lives to-day out- side the town, and consequently the area of police supervision has been greatly enlarged. There are districts which are undoubtedly under-policed. It may not be everywhere possible to supply the necessary extra numbers of constables, and Major Richardson's suggestion is that the deficiency should be made good with a supply of dogs. This, be urges, would even be an economy, for the cost and keep of a dog is much less than that of a man, and he estimates " the efficiency and capacity of a constable on duty, provided with a dog, to be double that of two constables without dogs." The man gains in range of hearing, and his powers of detection are supplemented -by the dog's powers of scent. The value of a dog as a companion in certain circumstances need not be insisted upon. The gamekeeper at night, the pedestrian on a lonely road, children on a country ramble, find their natural safeguards in their dogs. As regards the special arguments which may be brought forward for the use of dogs as an aid to police, Major Richardson sums them up as these. First, there are the superior hearing powers of the dog, which enable it to detect sounds unheard by the policeman. Next, there are the dog's powers of scent, by which it can discover persons who might have escaped the observation of the policeman, either in the darkness or hiding among bushes, in gardens, and so on. Third, there is the protection which the presence of the dog affords to police- men engaged in dangerous work. Major Richardson has been told by constables that the presence of a dog gives them such a sense of security that they venture into places where they would hesitate to go alone, and he has known several instances of men owing their lives to their dogs when they have been attacked by roughs. Lastly, Major Richardson points out that there is a very considerable moral effect caused by the known presence of dogs in localities where crime has been frequent, and that this has led in more than one case to an actual diminution of crimes connected with a particular district.
As regards details of method, and the type of dog which has been found most suitable for police work, Major Richard- son writes from personal experience. Much depends on the nature of the ground to be patrolled, and also, of course, on the character of the dog itself. In some cases it is better that the dog should be on a lead. In others it may be let loose, but should never be beyond call—say thirty or forty yards away. In certain cases it may be necessary to muzzle a dog, for some dogs with good noses are apt to bite more quickly than others, and, except in special circumstances, it is best that a dog should not be encouraged to use its teeth. One of the chief advantages of a dog, apart from its value as a companion, is, of course, its power of tracking a criminal by scent, even when the scent may be cold. For this purpose, it may have surprised some of Major Richardson's audience to hear, he does not recommend bloodhounds wholly without
reservations. The bloodhound is naturally an incomparable tracker. His whole intelligence, or rather instinct, ie "con- centrated in his muzzle," and, "given a fair chance to get • thoroughly good scent of the trail to start with, it is extra- ordinary to see the steadfast and inexorable manner in which he can run a fugitive to his lair." Also, Major Richardson believes, the very name of bloodhound is a terror to the criminal. The feeling that he is nowhere safe, no matter how fast he runs or where he goes, and the vision conjured up of the huge bound, with his red eyes and deep bay, ever pursuing and pursuing, makes a very deep impression on the criminal mind. "Even if the hound fails ninety-nine times, the hundredth time of success will more than counteract all the failures." So much for the bloodhound's unquestioned powers. But the great drawback, for practical purposes, is the expense. Bloodhounds are very costly dogs, and to staff the police throughout the country with them would involve a very serious outlay. Major Richardson recommends •a a substi- tute the Airedale. Airedales are strong and heavy; they cannot be kicked aside as a smaller terrier might be; they are courageous, which sheepdogs are not always; they are not uncertain in their temper, as retrievers often are; they have excellent noses, they are very intelligent, and they are very hardy, which is a considerable recommendation for police work. Major Richardson gives some interesting details of work which has actually been done by these dogs. He has Airedales working in police and military service in different parts of the world, and some of the beet of them are in India. An Airedale recently tracked a man for a long distance through thick jungle to his hiding-place. A dog with a good nose can distinguish the scents of different natives. A sentry dog which went through the Abor Campaign took part in a sham fight in which some of the Gurkhas were dressed up as Above. Among these sham Above was a real Abor, and the Airedale picked him out and attacked him vigorously, though he would pay no attention to the make-believes. Instances of the work of bloodhounds in tracking criminals are, of course, common enough; but that Airedales can be used for almost the same purposes is a consideration which, combined with their cheap- ness, must remain one of their strongest recommendations as ideal dogs for police work.
Those who would supplement the opportunities of the police with the work of dogs cannot ignore a certain sentimental objection to their use, which is possibly a reminiscence or an association of ideas rather than a reasoned argument. Uncle Tom's Cabin is still an influence. Also, as Major Richardson points out, it is perhaps felt that there is not the same necessity for the same class of dog in England as in France and elsewhere, where the police have to deal with the Apache type of criminal, who state or shoots at eight. In England "one has to avoid as much as possible the criminal being bitten." But on certain occasions and in dealing with certain types of crime, there will never be any likelihood of senti- mentality outweighing argument. If a constable is attacked, a good dog will defend him. Again, in the case of crimes against the person committed in lonely places—particularly when, as has sometimes happened, the crime has been repeated —only one feeling will be uppermost. The immediate need is tracking and pursuit, and to that end man going hunting calls in aid against man his immemorial assistant, the hunting dog.
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