received up to the present time we have identified 1,351, or 4.95 percent, as having police records. I would just like to cite a case typical of identifications effected for the Army, the Navy, and the Marine Corps, a case of enlistment by one Jess Argo, whose prints were received by us from the Marine Corps. In 1927 he was first arrested in California for auto theft and was sentenced to 1 year. In 1931 he was again arrested for auto theft in California, at which time he received a sentence of 5 years. In 1933 he went to San Quentin again under a 5-year sentence for auto theft. In 1939 he tried to enlist in the Marine Corps. The records were searched and his identity established.

MERCHANT MARINE FINGERPRINTS

The merchant marine follows the same system as other Government agencies which send the prints to us. The Maritime Commission on November 7, 1938, initiated the practice of sending to the Bureau the fingerprints of members of the American merchant marine who are sent to the school for seamen conducted by the Coast Guard for the Maritime Commission. Since that time out of 2,528 prints received the Bureau identified 669, or 26.46 percent as having previous police records.

In a recent case, within the past few months prints came in of a man who tried to enlist in the merchant marine. The man had been arrested in 1916 in Oakland, Calif., for assault to kill. In addition to that, there was a record of 10 arrests in Texas, New York, Louisi ana, Cuba, and the Philippines. There were many prison sentences. He was paroled on several occasions.

PERSONAL IDENTIFICATION FILE OF FINGERPRINTS (CIVIL)

The Bureau maintains its personal identification files separate from its criminal files. This file is composed of those fingerprint records of persons throughout the country who have voluntarily requested that their prints be included therein for future reference. This file was initiated in 1933. Various civic groups throughout the country sponsor civil identifications, particularly junior chambers of commerce and the Boy Scouts.

In 1939 the Bureau received 546,991 personal identification prints. That was an increase of 37 percent over the receipts of such recordduring the previous year. We receive an average of 2,021 personal identification prints daily and have on file today 1,588,904 such prints. The value of the maintenance of these records is reflected many times in cases of accident or injury. One case, which is typical is that of a man whose prints were received from Salem, Oreg. In December 1939 he was murdered with a blunt weapon and his body thrown into a ditch. The prints were received here and identified as those of Alexander Harju, who had been fingerprinted in Newberry. Mich., in 1937, when he went to a hospital for treatment. His nearest relative recorded in our records as residing in Superior, Wis., was notified of his death.

APPLICANT FINGERPRINTS (OTHER THAN FEDERAL GOVERNMENT)

Applicant prints other than those received from Federal agencies and departments are received from States, cities, counties, and various local communities. In many communities there are requirements that any person applying for a position such as a taxicab driver or a position as a domestic or as a hotel employee must be fingerprinted. Many of these prints are sent to us for check against our criminal files, and in numerous instances the fingerprint impressions are identified as being those of persons having previous police records.

As a typical example of this situation I would just like to cite a few cities and the figures on prints submitted in November 1939. Manhattan Beach, Calif., had 16 applicants, of which 8 had police records.

Miami, Fla. 68 prints were received by us, of which 12 were those of persons having police records.

Miami Beach, Fla.: We received 1,230, of which 124 were identified as those of persons having police records.

From Wichita, Kans., we received 14 applicants' prints, of which 8 had police records.

From Kansas City, Mo., we received 29 prints, of which 7 had police records.

From El Paso, Tex., we received 182 applicants' prints, of which 65 had police records.

From Balboa Heights, C. Z., we received 276 prints, of which 17 had police records.

During the fiscal year 1939, 183,437 such records were received by the Bureau, an increase of 63,641, or 53.12 percent, over the number received in the previous fiscal year.

WORKS PROGRESS ADMINISTRATION APPLICANTS' PRINTS

The practice of fingerprinting applicants for positions with the W. P. A. is not generally followed. The W. P. A. in New York City, however, fingerprints all applicants for W. P. A. work in that city. Since January 1939 to date the W. P. A. projects in New York sent us 24,531 prints of persons applying for W. P. A. positions in that city. Of that number we have identified 1,961, or 8 percent of the fingerprint records submitted, as being those of persons having previous police records. Of that number 5 were fugitives from justice and were apprehended through prints sent to us. The remainder had records of crimes from misdemeanors to murder. In several instances applicants for positions as recreational advisors or playground instructors were ascertained to have previously been arrested for sex crimes. By reason of this procedure the director of the W. P. A. in New York City has in his possession all pertinent information relating to police records of applicants for appointment in his organization.

I would like to cite the case of one man in New York, Thomas F. Dunn, who made application in August 1939 for the position of watchman. His prints were sent to us. Since 1919 he had been arrested 27 times and had been incarcerated in penal institutions 20

times. We were able, of course, to inform the W. P. A. of the history in this case.

Mr. RABAUT. What kind of job was he looking for?

Mr. HOOVER. He applied for the position of watchman?

SINGLE FINGERPRINT FILES

The single fingerprint file is composed of the records of 14,216 persons known as public enemies, persons either in the category of kidnapers, extortioners, bank robbers, or confidence men-all individuals with long criminal records. Of that number, 14,216, it is sig nificant to note that 4,331, or 30.5 percent, had been the recipients of one or more pardons on paroles or other form of clemency. Some had been recipients of such clemencies as many as 14 times. They were all, as I say, the most notorious public enemies we have record of in the F. B. I.

GENERAL-APPEARANCE FILE

We also maintain a file known as the general-appearance file: that is, the photograph and description of the persons whose fingerprints are filed in the single fingerprint files are cataloged and filed for assistance in identifying perpetrators of crimes whose names are unknown to their victims, but who can describe and identify such criminals. These files are very valuable in cases of confidence-men activities, where we can send police department photographs of the suspects, and the person who has been victimized can examine the photographs and many times make identifications. We have on file photographs of 2,956 confidence men.

Mr. RABAUT. I might ask you at this time: Has there been any appreciable improvement in the parole system in the State departments to fit in with the requirements that would assist in this work and that would show a marked improvement throughout the country!

Mr. HOOVER. There has been some improvement in the last 4 or 5 years, and it is crystallizing more as time goes on by the insistence of public opinion and by editorials appearing in many of the newspapers for tightening up of the parole administration.

Along that line, I would like to indicate that there is not one of us who is engaged in law-enforcement work, and I don't know of any police chief in this country, who does not believe in parole. What they have criticized, and what I have criticized, is the maladminis tration of the parole systems with the injection of sentimentality and the placing of the interest of the individual before the interest of society. That is gradually being improved in many communities. It is going to be a very long, slow, hard fight.

Mr. RABAUT. There has been some indifference on the part of some judges to that, too?

Mr. HOOVER. Oh, yes. Some judges have been indifferent to the proper administration of parole and indifferent in the granting of probation. I think basically, parole has to exist. But I think a man who is granted a parole once and has violated that confidence should never be the recipient of parole a second time. Our records show cases of men paroled five, six, seven, eight, and nine times.

1

FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION LAW ENFORCEMENT BULLETIN

In regard to the F. B. I. Law Enforcement Bulletin, I have here, and I would like to submit it to the committee, the current edition of that bulletin. The monthly publication of this bulletin was initiated in 1932, the purpose of it being primarily to make available throughout the country the names and the fingerprint classifications of persons who are wanted by various local authorities for the commission of crimes. In other words, the police authorities of Massachusetts have no medium other than our organization to send such information throughout the country except at great expense and not without great difficulty. The bulletin includes the names of wanted persons. It has recently been expanded to include the names of many missing persons being sought in various parts of the country, the initiation of this practice resulting in a central clearing house for such data. It contains various scientific articles. In the current issue you will find an article listing all of the automobile license plates and their colors for the present calendar year. This information will be of inestimable value to law-enforcement officers of small towns, who otherwise would not have this information available.

Eighteen thousand copies are distributed monthly to various police departments throughout the country. Many interesting identifications are made from it and many wanted persons are identified and apprehended as the result of local officers having this information available to them.

UNIFORM CRIME REPORTS

The tabulation of uniform crime statistics was initiated in 1930. These statistics are incorporated in quarterly publications known as Uniform Crime Reports, which are distributed to law-enforcement agencies and students of criminology throughout the country. Today 4,312 communities are participating in this project. All cities in excess of 50,000 population except Bayonne, N. J., submit monthly reports which are tabulated in these quarterly reports. From it we are able to prepare and distribute some very interesting charts.

We have prepared particularly for the information of the committee this chart, known as Offenses Against the Person. It gives, by years, the known offenses of murder, manslaughter, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny by theft, and auto theft. You will find various fluctuations in the types of crime. For instance, you will note in the last fiscal year murder, manslaughter, robbery, assaults, and auto thefts decreased in the country, whereas rape, burglary, and larceny increased. Offenses against the person, those which I have just cited, decreased 1.07 percent and those against property increased 2.14 percent.

Another interesting graphic chart is one reflecting the annual crime trends, showing the rise and fall of various crimes.

RECOVERY OF STOLEN AUTOMOBILES

Another chart, which is of interest, is the recoveries of stolen automobiles in 49 cities of over 100,000 population.

Mr. RABAUT. Is that decreasing?

Mr. HOOVER. Automobile theft is decreasing.

Mr. RABAUT. And how is the recovery of automobiles?

Mr. HOOVER. These figures show the number of automobiles stolen in these 49 cities of over 100,000 population with a total population of 17.5 million. There were 27,625 automobiles stolen, and there were 26,514 recovered, or 96 percent, which reflects a very excellent record on the part of local authorities and the Federal agencies working with them.

Mr. RABAUT. Put that in the record.

(The matter referred to follows:)

Recoveries of stolen automobiles, January to September, inclusive, 1939; 49 cities over 100,000 in population

(Total population, 17,426,838, as estimated July 1, 1933, by the Bureau of the

Number of automobiles stolen._
Number of automobiles recovered.

Percentage recovered_

Census)

VALUE AND TYPE OF PROPERTY STOLEN AND RECOVERED

27.625 26,514

96

Mr. HOOVER. Another chart that is of value is the tabulation we have of 49 cities over 100,000 in population, giving the value of property recovered and the value of property stolen and the percentage that has been recoverd.

(The chart referred to follows:)

Value of property stolen and value of property recovered with divisions as to type of property involved, January to September, inclusive, 1939; 49 cities over 100.000 in population

[Total population, 17,426,838, as estimated July 1, 1933, by the Bureau of the Census}

NUMBER OF PERSONS BETWEEN THE AGES 16 TO 24 ARRESTED

Mr. HOOVER. Another chart of interest is the one reflecting the number of persons arrested between the ages of 16 to 24, showing that there are more arrests at the age of 19 than at any other age. Of all the arrests made in the country 19.2 percent are under 21 years of

age.

Mr. RABAUT. Is that a change from last year?

Mr. HOOVER. Yes. Last year there were more arrests nearer the age of 21. Now it has dropped to the age of 19. It has gone back. Mr. RABAUT. Was it 21 last year?

Mr. HOOVER. Yes.

Mr. RABAUT. I made a reference to that on the floor.

Mr. HOOVER. It was 19 about 4 years ago.

Mr. RABAUT. It is going down again?

Mr. HOOVER. Yes.