Show r. r Ag Against Auto Thieves Must Be Taken f. f 8 8 8 8 8 8 ig Freight Rates Insuring Use of Trucks by Shippers Shipper ers REASE IN AUTO HEFTS PREDICTED fOR THIS YEA R c Coast Auto Under- Under Biters Hold Convention at Portland 1 S rlland 1 I nd Ore April 10 Automobile i B are arc on the tho Increase despite all alls all's allIs Is s fo to curb them diem There arc men make a business of stealing cars ng rig them into another state and ft j selling selling- them More automobile automobiles automobiles' s' s wIll occur on the Pacific coast ding Portland this coming sum- sum I than ithan 1 in 1 any previous pre summer pe- pe ieso eso are arc a few of tho the high spots Tan ran Rn Interview with B. B W. W McCay I investigator ator for the theft bu- bu I. I tp f the Pacific coast auto under under- rs' rs conference who was In Port- Port last t week Joe Keller former in in tho the Portland police pollee depart dopart- t ls manager of tho the Portland of- of of the theft bureau tho the automobile the theft l sit- sit ii Is extremely serious and is get- get worse instead of oC better Mr lr Mc- Mc lc- lc sees certain rays of ot lI light ht One em is the efficient operation co-operation j i 1 getting etlin from motor vehicle de- de neots especially in California Oregon in iii the wa way of or checking cars through records in the He says the tho California ment now has a vcr very complete m rn of records and he Thigh ht h praise for Cor the tho manner in inthe li Ii the Oregon motor vehicle de- de neat ent l keeps eps its records Oregon Deportment nt Praised d sSt t t to illustrate to how helpful the thet l t vehicle d departments can bo be Ing Ing in ingv g us to run down and recover n n cars let me cite three cases 1 happened app this week weck while Iwas I Iw was S Oregon regon said said Mr Ir McCay I t I ht with mo me the records on two that had been stolen In Califor- Califor nd which our bureau had reason V had d 1 been been d driven Into into Oreid Ore Ore- and id sold here li L Ithe the motor vehicle bureau of ot the tar tary of st states state's lc's office In Salem esclay a brief blie examination of kept well kept r records cords quickly red red reid re- re d id the missing cars Just as we ii suspected the they had been driven the state and sold here to Inno- Inno purchasers The fact that their tJ r numbers were registered In InI I with the issuance of Oregon es enabled us to trace them at f course e this wouldn't have been ble If Ie the motor vehicle depart depart- did not keep Its records in such that numbers of oC this sort could und and at once But it has not only list of oC cars cara b by makes maltes list by owners rind and a aI I bf 1 license numbers but J also alsto a areal real list in order of motor a r ers That made it very easy to the he numbers we sought sous The Theu J u motor vehicle vehicle- department is efficiently conducted and I canay cani cansay can- can say ay i y too much for the Ute condition of cords fM I Oregon Car Cor nC Recovered o ose are arc two Instances The third wed ened ed almost at the saine same time will result rosult in cr recovery of a stolen on n car I received a telegram the he California motor vehicle chich de- de nent ent at Sacramento that the num- num of r this car had turned up when cation atlon was made for a California s' s se so number The car a a. Ford had stolen from the Burlington mills It is now at Yreka and have already been tak taken n to toK K lIt it back to Portland his lis just shows how much can be through h operation co-operation of or state stater r rl vehicle departments in tracing n cars ears California has the most fete liete system In this regard of any In addition to Its Us motor vc- vc department California has a I bureau of or Identification and In- In with which a description Very ry article of stolen property rod ro- ro t I d to the police departments and France nce companies Is listed It does C Confine Its Ita work to automobiles rince t is doing a a. remarkable work in ng possible the recovery of oC stolen s IB Is bureau Is in charge of or Mr fr 11 ll who has devised a wonderful m m of ot keeping records So comIs comi com- com Is i his check that he ho has haa tho the 1 liters era ers of or all stolen cars within a n ne e short time of ot tho the report on them t takes steps for their cry Not AIT AU no Ro 0 A Well Veil en n organized d e motor vehicle department is 15 ee ce notified and a a. green breen card the tho motor number placed In nuI nu- nu I 1 order in its motor number When an application for forI I m is made mado for this car the fact t is 15 a stolen vehicle Is instantly ed S ts ho efforts of ot his bureau arc aro to California Ho Ito sends fiends 1 Inscriptions and stolen car numo num- num o Oregon Oreon and othe otho The Ther r tin n department Is now placing 1 pd d cards in its numerical index licato stolen cars i r big bib problem that confronts us fer er Is the tho fact tact that very cry few mo- mo departments are aro BO so well ord orr or- or r fd d as in California and Oregon it t of ot the eastern castern and middle west west-I on Following Page Pac l r I INCREASE IN AUTO PREDICTED Continued From Prom Pro Preceding Page Pale ern states no records of or motor numbers are I kept c pt or If It kept leep are aro not In numerical numerical numer numer- ical leal order making It next to Impossible to locate ICat a car by number when I application Is made for tor a stolen license Wo We cannot make mako real progress ogress until every state has reformed Its methods In this respect Thero must DC oe op co-op- op co-op- not noC the closest kind lelnd between tho various state motor vehicle depart depart- before even oven a n. b beginning inning can cnn be bo made mado toward curbing t this is business of oC stealing automobiles Tho The argument may be bo made mado that thieves thle alter automobile motor num num- bers They do in some cases But nut In 85 SS per cent of ot automobile thefts tho the numbers aro are not altered And where they aro altor altered d an efficient record system would make detection In man many cases almost as ns certain Reform N edo l Here Rere again Is a n big need for tor re re- re form And this reform must start from the bottom at tho automobile fac tac- tories It Is a very vel curious fact that the automobile factories which should bo Do more interested than any one ono are aro not yet operating co-operating In the theft anti campaign Tho factories put their motor numbers number num num- ber bers and other Identifying marks in all kinds of or places so that only an expert knows where to look for them thom Th The result Is that man many motorists In re ls- ls PA I V- V A ft u 11 UC U bers the they see which which ma may bo be only onh tho the j I manufacturers manufacturer's calendar numbers Just I l for tor example In a n few fow minutes minutes' Inspection Inspection Inspection tion of ot Ford car numbers on file with the Oregon Ores motor vehicle department I picked out a n. couple of ot dozen numbers up in the tho and There Thero aro are no Ford numbers over about 2950 as yet So these numbers didn't exist Whore hero the owners got get them I dont don't know Tho They aro are utter utterly useless as records But tho fact tact remains that the tho factories must standardize on location location location loca loca- tion of oC their numbers and on other Identification marks so eo that absolute check ma may bo kept of ot ever every car Few persons parsons realize how hon really earlous ee- ee se serious rious the motor theft situation is Is Let mo me cite a n few figures In Los Angeles automobiles stolen in 1916 worth more than all an other property stolen that year put together In 1917 1017 automobiles stolen were ere worth more than all stolen ston property and In 1918 1318 J ore mare Yet only two men were detailed by hy the tho Los Angeles Angeles An An- geles police department to motor car thefts The Tho whole detective department department department depart depart- ment was working on thefts of at other kinds of ot property In Portland I find that Chief Chic Jenkins JenkIns Jenk Jenk- ins Is la alive to tho the situation though decidedly de decidedly decidedly de- de handicapped b by lack of ot men man and anti that ho he has somo some constructive Ideas for tor the tho organization very soon of or a thoroughly efficient well equipped auto mob lt 11 i I A A. A i n c PIC ont ant only three men are arc on this detail here but his plans will change e this if It he can carry them out After Arter all It Is tho the public Itself that must ultimately solve tho the automobile I theft problem There has hns been too much of ot a tendency duo no doubt to the tho fact that it was considered a n great reat joke Joko In early days of ot the tho automobile Industry when a a. mans man's car was stolen to look lightly US at automobile thefts Judges were lenient A A. man can steal a n. shirt or a n. few dollars and be severely pun pun- shed He steals an automobile worth hundreds or thousands of or d dollar nn and Is rebuked and turned loose or perhaps per per- haps sentenced lightly and paroled Natural Naturally ho he goes out and ami repeats Many fany men are aro making tho the theft of oC automobiles au au- a business Needless to sa say every automobile parked anywhere In tho the streets should be locked Any good tood lock Is a preventive pre pre- of theft theet a Of course an automobile auto auto- mobile thief of or the tho professional proCessional typo type can beat any lock tock If It f ho sets out to do It but he would a hundred times rather avoid tho the risk and tako take the tho car that Isn't locked lIe Ho Is too likely to bo bl caught when hon he tackles the tho locked car And very few good locks aro are ever picked When a n man In my position urges that all automobiles should have hao locks Locke somebody is likely to rise riso up and cry that propaganda Is being put on foot toot in behalf of ot lock manu manu- But I will tako that risk rl for tor It Is salt evident to any thinking person parson that a a. car car- that Is locked Is la far tar safer sater from being stolen than ono left leCt unlocked so 80 that any person can cnn drive It 8 away a Y The Tho insurance companies have havo no Interest in any special make of ot lock or In any lock Jock manufacturer But they do want to prevent thefts Another very ery necessary step In the campaign to curb automobile thefts ID I I enforcement of ot local ordinances such ouch as tho the one In Portland requiring all dealers In second-hand second cars to re report rop ro- ro p port rt Immediately they thoy acquire such ouch sucha Bucha a car Its motor number and any other records required Such ordinances will be bo enforced when whon public demand requires reQuires re- re Quires their enforcement And by making It Impossible for tho the thief to dispose of or the tho car locally ouch en enforcement en- en will i prevent a a. great many ninny thefts theU Mr McCay says that Lo Los Angeles has more automobile thefts than any other Pacific coast city comes next th then thep San Francisco then Portland and finally Oakland of ot tho the bl big cities with tho the best record of ot them all in n low number number num num- ber of ot thefts and high percentage of or recoveries |