Show Woman Cop Has Sense of Humor By ELEANOR RAGSDALE W WASHINGTON WASHINGTON Captain Captain Rhoda Rhoda Rhoda Rho- Rho da Milliken chief of the women's women's women's wo wo- wo- wo mens men's bureau of the District of Columbia police force has three big assets to help her cope with the capitals capital's wartime disciplinary ary problems First is her ready sense of humor deepened by 23 years of service on the Washington hington force Second is her regular staff of 23 experienced policewomen policewomen- she's been vainly campaigning for more since 1933 Third h her r special emergency shock chock troops are the new volunteer police auxiliaries auxiliaries- sworn in for time part-time duty during during during dur dur- ing the past few months after a hour 28 training course in the fundamentals of evidence arrest arrest arrest ar ar- ar- ar rest first aid etc W Washington's hington's smiling crink crink- ly-eyed ly wisp of a cop she cop she likes being called one thinks one thinks that of all her current law enforcement headaches the increase in j juvenile juvenile juve juve- venile ve- ve nile delinquency is the most seri- seri ous p m. m Not that she glosses over the responsibility of seeing that 40 government gals averaging about 20 years of age tread the straight and narrow path Or minimizes the job of eye eagle ing the furlough fun of the hundreds hundreds hundreds hun hun- of soldiers and sailors that throng Washington's streets and hot spots nearly every night But she feels those angles are apt to be overemphasized After all the government girls are being taken care of much better than during thel the thelast thelast l last t war points out the chief We didn't have departmental personnel directors nor as well- well established recreation and welfare welfare wel wel- fare committees housing registries registries registries regis regis- tries or rent control in those days And although the situation is much more acute today Id I'd say that any normal well-balanced well person coming here makes out as well as sh she would in any large city Dont Don t forget she adds dds out of the depth of her experience almost always find the problem girls' girls who turn up here were to some extent problems at home Captain Rhoda has an amusing amusing amus amus- amusing ing anecdote to tell of the eternal eternal eternal eter eter- It nal soldier girl problem seems some worried mothers reported reported reported re re- re- re ported their teen age daughters were off every evening doing what they called volunteer air raid watching but which the mothers suspected was simply keeping the soldiers on the searchlight batteries company Would Captain Milliken please send them home A special policeman accordingly visited the usual battery location the following evening but found only a lone sentry who said the battery had been moved and its location was a military se se- cret When I called the mothers back to report this laughs the police pollee director they retorted Well it Well it certainly isn't a military military mili mill tary secret to our girls girls they're they're out again tonight Needless to say a little police army-police co cooperation cooperation cooperation co- co operation soon put a stop to that kind of war work As for commercialized vice the experienced police captain reports no alarming increase in her native Washington Nor has there been any noticeable influx influx influx in in- in- in flux of new camp followers asfar as M asfar far as current police checkups indicate Amusement a and n d recreation however are direly needed es especially especially especially es- es on week ends when the streams of soldiers and sailors some some strolling happily with girls on their arms others in bored or hopeful foursomes foursomes- turn the downtown parks and glaring show-lined show Ninth street into musical comedy settings The same dearth of recreation recreation recreation tion and supervised leisure isone is isone isone one of the chief reasons Captain Captain Cap Cap- tain Milliken feels for the tremendous tremendous tremendous tre tre- rise in the number of juvenile delinquents With both parents working in many families families fam fam- mes and inadequately supervised supervised supervised super super- playgrounds or club programs programs programs pro pro- grams for school after-school activities for the older children a wave of pf house-breaking house has broken out among the younger boys while during the summer months a considerable number of girls around 13 to 15 have been picked up for shoplifting |