How the S.M.P. Calls Science to Its Aid The methods employed in the detection of crime and the manner in which the Shanghai Criminal Investigation, Department works were the subject of a lecture given on Thursday evening by Mr. 8. C, Young, Deputy Commissioner of the S. M. Police, at the International Arts Theatre. Ins Young addressed a large audience, and was introduced by the Secretary of the Shanghai Munieipat Council, Mr. J. R, Jones.
Murder, according to Mr. Young, is the worst crime that can be found in any country, and he emphasized the fact that this particular crime is} brought to the attention of people more than any other. Yet murder, fas far a8 results show, does not, pres fent a5 many difficulties as do many other lesser crimes. All manner of felnlie means are uted in ealing the murderer. to-day, The modern criminal is more scientife than the colder typo, and thus it is necessary to use science to catch him. Finger prints are especially valuable, He {old of the development of the fingerprint wntll it came into universal use. Although signatures and seals could be forged. it was realized early that a thumbprint could not be.
The earliest om cial: use of, fingerprints was by Sir William Hersch 1858." He used the thumbprint a protection against forgery, and all documents and seals of his were ac~ companied with his thumbprint as fan added precaution. The general Use of the fingerprint in connection With the detection of criminals was delayed, however, owing to the lack of a method of classification which Would enable the finding of the required "prints in a collection, Sir Francis Galton and Sir Edward Henry ultimately evolved a system of classification, and the latter troduced it to Scotland Yard in 19¢ When he was Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis.
Photography also is considered specially valuable in the detection the criminal, as it affords a means identification, "Both front and pro-fle pictures are taken of a man, and, although many changes may be made his appearance, such as the growing or culling off of the hair or moustache, he still can be identified. Measurements also are taken of a criminal, 50° that, no matter what change he may make in his appeartance, he still can be identined, indicated "that connivance jin this shoddy swindle is not merely an affair of the local military faction, but dotiberate stroke of governmental policy." "To show that the Chinese tariff rates on the smuggled articles fare by no means higher than those levied by other countries, including Japan, the spokesman gave several comparisons.
Tu certain instances, Japanese tariff rates converted at the present exchange rate are lower than the corresponding Chinese rates, but are 125 to 2,295 per cent, higher than the Chinese tariff when they are converted into Customs gold units, equivalent on the basis of 1 G.U. to Yen 0.8025, that Is, the GU/Yen exchange' prior to the devaluation of the Yen.
"What is_'more," the spokesman continued, ""China' has perfect tree dom and the treaty right to impose any rates of duty on articles imported, as long as it does not infringe onthe most-favoured-nation clause. On the other hand, Japanese merchants are under treaty obligations to comply with the Customs regula tions governing tantis, inspection, and the prevention of smuggling. This is Jeleat to anyone who knows anything about the Sino-Japanese Commercial Treaty of 1896 and the Sino-Japanese Tariff Treaty of 10990, "The Japanese press further de-ries that certain Chinese tariff rates (meaning the percentage equivalent of certain specific rates) are ¢xorbitantly high under the present Yen/ GU exchange. This is another mis. representation of the real situation.
The True Picture To get a true picture of the situ: lon, he stated, attention should be drawn. to. the devaluation policy pursued by foreign the last few years, which has brought! down their foreign exchange on countries retaining gold currency. The par value of one Customs gold unit (containing 60.1806 centigrammes of pure gold) Is fixed ut Pence Sterlug. 19.7265, US.A. Gold Dollar 040, of Gold Yen 0.8025, Because of foreign devaluation, the exchange value fof the Customs gold unit is now 32.504, USS 00738, or Yen 231105 (as of April, 1936), "The effects of such a sharp depreciation in the exchange value of devalued foreign currencies onthe Chinese tariff, or any tariff collected on a gold basis, have been fan apparent increase in the percent ant of all specific rales as plied to goods from devaluation countries, and a falling off in the Fevenue collection from ad valorem "This high percentage equivalent! referred to by the Japanese press' the spokesman concluded, "is the out growth of currency devaluation—the devaluation of Yen in Japan—rather than being due to the rate of duty itself. Ag regards the argument that it is not fair to charge a specific duty on Japanese goods which are much cheaper than European or American produels, whether a commodity should be subject to specific or ed, valorem duty largely is determined by the ature oF characteristics of that commodity, rather than by its cost, A casual reference will show, he said, that where the commodity is under a specifte duty in the Chinese tariff, it is #0 treated in the Japanese tariff. Comparatively simple in administra 1 tion, specific rates ust lly predominfate in. present.day tariff-making. In many tariffs, the number of specie ale headings is found {o exceed that Jot ad valorem headings, and in the Tapanese tariff there are more specific rate headings than in the Chinese tarift.—Central News.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.