receipts is laid by every year to provide a sinking fund with which to pay off the bonded debt assumed by the city in purchasing the waterworks system. The plant has been kept in splendid repair, and the city could now sell it for more than twice what it originally cost. The cost of all repairs, extensions, additions and maintenance is borne by the water 'consumers, and they likewise furnish the sinking fund to retire the waterworks bonds. The plant maintains and pays for itself. The city has not spent a cent on the water plant outside of the revenues derived therefrom, and it will never have to do so.

The tale of our electric lighting and water plants illustrates the results obtained from different methods employed by municipalities in managing public utilities. Our electric lighting plant has been under political management and our water plant under business management. No wonder the results have varied so widely. Under our present system of municipal government, the political management of a public utility owned by a city is an extremely difficult thing to avoid. But it must be done, if municipal ownership is to succeed.

The failure of cities to provide adequate salaries for men to superintend and manage public utilities is a hindrance to successful municipal ownership. By such failure, they are unable to secure competent superintendents, mechanics, and workmen.

The uncertain tenure of service of city employees is another drawback to mu

nicipal ownership. Competent men, even at fair salaries, hesitate to accept employment in a public utility plant owned by a city, for the reason that they have no assurance of a permanent position. They are liable to be thrown out of employment by the next administration. They have no prospect of promotion. Municipal corporations have little gratitude for faithful employees. The ordinary man would rather take a position with a private corporation, at a lesser salary, where he can be assured of permanent employment and of promotion, if he deserves it.

As the matter stands now, few American municipalities are so governed and have sufficient business ability to properly manage a public utility. In order to be successful in the ownership of public utilities, our cities must adopt the businesslike methods practised by successful private corporations. The management of public utilities must be divorced from politics. Competent superintendents, mechanics, clerks, and workmen must be secured. Adequate salaries must be paid. Employees must be assured of continuous employment during faithful service, with the prospect of promotion for work well done. Unless these methods. are adopted, it would be well for municipalities to leave the ownership of public utilities in the hands of private corpora

tions.

M. C. Ralston.

M

ROM remote times it has been a constant problem for police, and those citizens invested with the austere mission of administrating justice, to devise a system absolutely secure for proving the identity of individuals, not only those suspected of crime, but also those recognized as habitual criminals; and the efforts thus put forth were well justified, when one remembers that the question of identity holds a most important place, not only in criminal matters, but also in matters relating to civil rights.

From the earliest times savage tribes and uncivilized nations began to utilize physical description of the individual; for example, by notation of characteristics of the human face, or by merely glancing at it. These measures, however, are quite inadequate, since they rest upon no fixed rule, and the results obtained in the greater number of cases are variously interpreted, according to the judgment or temperament of the observer. And

while it is true that this is a bad and defective method, from which can arise the gravest errors, yet it has been and still is a factor of the greatest importance in determining resemblances of physiognomy, and thereby increasing the difficulty of distinguishing the difference which can exist between two different people.

In the judicial annals of all countries, notable errors have been registered; errors arising from the facial resemblance between two individuals,-one the real criminal and the other the innocent person, who has been too often condemned in his place. As time went on, these "happy go lucky" indications or resemblances became extended, and other details of the human organism were brought in to their aid, as, for example, stature, age of the person, state of teeth, color of the hair and beard, tattoo marks, traces of wounds, and many other indications. which manual labor, the different arts and professions and accidental occurrences imprint upon the human organism. To these were added footprints of

men and animals, traces of wheels of vehicles, but in all this there was nothing which offered any absolute guaranty in a subject so delicate and serious as that of personal identity.

As the insufficiency of these methods became more and more apparent, there arose those anthropological studies from which Bertillon believed he had constructed a sure and perfect set of rules for individual identification, and to which he gave the name of "anthropometria." This method for many years enjoyed the favor of the public, but today the system of Bertillon occupies the last place in the science of the human identification, and for these reasons: First, because of the instability of its measurements and too perfect identification, and, secondly, because it

entific congresses, when they recognized the scientific groundwork of his system, declaring publicly that the anthropometrical system could not satisfy the requirements of justice, for the identification of criminals, nor contribute to the repression of the habitual criminal. The new idea was also favorably accepted by some of the European countries, for it was strongly supported by Lacassagne, a celebrity in legalmedical science and director of the distinguished school

cannot be utilized during the entire period of human life. These defects had been noted by students of this science as early as 1901, but Vucetich had noted them as early as 1891, for in that year he spoke in public regarding the application of dactyloscopia in the identification of criminals.

We can imagine the ridicule which was heaped upon him for having dared to say, in 1891, that "anthropometria" was not practical. Some called him a madman, others an imbecile, and others again declared him a visionary. He was violently attacked in newspapers and reviews, but at that time he made no reply to his critics. He continued studying, working, and experimenting, and finally those who had been the first to attack and villify him ended by applauding him at the sci

of Lyon. The method was introduced by France, Belgium, Norway, the Netherlands, Italy, and several other countries. The Academy of Science of Paris, in reply to a consultation by the French government, granted the seal of its indisputable scientific approval on this new system, giving it an everlasting fame. We now come to the second part of the Vucetich system. The main principles on which the dactyloscopical system is based are the immutability, continuity, and invariability of the digital tracings, which become visible even before birth, and remain unalterable till death, disappearing only with the complete dissolution of the body when putrefaction causes the destruction of the skin. During life neither wounds nor abrasions, neither burns nor any other accident, can permanently destroy the curves or tracings. The continuity can be temporarily interrupted, but in all such cases, it is quite easy to re-establish the resemblance between two impressions which belong to the same individual, even when taken with an interval of years between, and

even if during that time there shall have happened some severe but curable accident. However, it is not only the inalterability of the curves and designs which makes it of priceless value as a means of identification, but also the circumstance of its immense variety. Not only do great differences appear when one person is compared to another, but there are also great differences in the ten fingers of every person, these differences appearing in such a way that each person has in his or her finger tips a seal which is his or hers alone, and which individualizes the person among all humanity.

There exists, however, something more. The technique of finger print impressions is very simple, and its practice requires no complicated instruments nor any special knowledge. A little printer's ink, a piece of board, a small roller, a sheet of white paper, and attention on the part of the operator.

Although we may know that digital tracings, curves, and designs are inalterable, and that they can be and are reproduced with the utmost facility, yet we should get no farther if we had not been able to establish a rigorous classification which permits us to differentiate or distinguish the corresponding impressions between hundreds of thousands of individuals, and to confirm by comparison the similarity of those which. belong to one single individual; also to make fixed rules for the filing or pigeonholing the respective facts.

This difficulty has been fortunately conquered, and its unanswerable advantages can be condensed as follows:

Absolute security in its application, that is to say, the perfect facility of verifying the identity of an individual, after having made sure that the successive variety of designs makes confusion quite impossible. At this point, it becomes necessary to remember that there are ten original elements, upon which are based all possible combinations. These combinations may be compared to those of language, in which everything starts from the letters of the alphabet, or they may be compared to musical harmonies, which are derived originally from the seven notes of the gamut or scale. The sim

plicity of the technical part must also be remembered. It consists, as we have already, noted, in the economy of installation, which can be arranged with very little cost in any given place, large or small, and finally can be utilized at any time of human life, literally, "from the cradle to the grave," and can be applied to people in every social sphere, because it reconciles the requirements of scientific investigation with the respect due to the human being.

Digital impressions are very old indeed, and the study of them began many centuries ago. The British Museum possesses exhibits of finger prints believed to be three thousand years old. Palmistry has been a precursor of Vuceticism, just as alchemy has been that of chemistry. Vucetich discovered that digital lines are invariable after the sixth month of life, and that they stand until the decomposition of the corpse destroys the tissues. On embalmed bodies the lines will stand a very long time, for they are still visible on Egyptian mummies exhibited in museums. Hundreds of unknown corpses have been identified in the Republics of South America by the Vucetich system. The identities of a good number of victims of railroad accidents have been discovered only through their papillary lines. This means of identification is indeed of very great help in any of the civil, military, or political affairs. of the communities.

On account of its undoubted usefulness, Vuceticism has gained a legion of admirers and collaborators.

Juan Vucetich was born in Lesina, Dalmatia, Kingdom of Croatia, in the year 1858. When he was twenty-three tablished himself in Buenos Aires, where years old, he left his native land and eshe applied all his time in the study of sciences. He came to Chicago last May, on his return from China, where he gave a course of instruction at the Ministry of Justice in Pekin, and he was invited at once to attend the International Police Convention at Washington, and explain his new system for the purpose of introducing it also in this country.