Above all, the professional eriminal has an absolute loathing for the whining individual who pleads for merey because he has "been over the top.
More often than not he has never been in the fighting line. He is just a coward seeking refuge in the hero's trench, Hundreds of professional criminals served with dis. tinction in the war, so they know.
"Tt's all. right, governor; it's a fair cop." The' assurance comes readily from the man who knows the game is up. He gives the police no trouble, and after a clean fight in the dock for a verdict of not guilty, takes his punishment—or his freedom—as a matter of course.
Nor is the professional criminal, speaking generally, a violent man. He docs not carry firearms. If he assaults a police officer it is not with the object of injuring him, but solely with a view to getting ProressioxaL Eriqverre Ovrracep.
Some time ago armed ruffians raided post offices and at the point of the revolver robbed defenceless girls. The professional criminals were incensed. It was not playing the game.
Moreover, the tendency was for magistrates and judges to tar all criminals with the same brush and to regard them all as in the same dangerous category. Punishments went up with a bound.
A vendetta was declared. Professional criminals joined in the hunt for the armed raiders, and one or two suspects are known to have received a severe thrashing from men with more peaceful proclivities.
The man who gets his living by crime has his good as well as his bad points. He may be wicked and uncouth, but he often congratulates the police officer who has been too clever for him.
"You will have a harder job next time, old man," he says with determination as he goes away to serve his sentence.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.