But identity acknowledged following coincident indelible marks, when height, age, and hair fairly correspond.
That is, Bertillon’s collateral evidence is practically primary evidence for such purposes.
There is used for each man an outline figure card giving anterior and posterior surfaces, divided by dotted lines into regions.
These, showing each permanent mark, are filed alphabetically at the Surgeon-General’s office, War Department.
As a man goes out for cause, or deserts, his card is placed in a separate file.
The cards of recruits are compared with the last-mentioned file.
To make this comparison, a register in two volumes is opened, one for light-eyed and one for dark-eyed men. Each is subdivided into a fair number of pages, according to height of entrants, and each page is ruled in columns for body regions. Tattooed and non-tattooed men of similar height and eyes are entered on opposite pages. Recruits without tattoos are not compared with deserters with tattoos; but recruits with tattoos are compared with both classes.
On the register S T B M, etc., are used as abbreviations for scar, tattoo, birth-mark, mole, etc.
One inch each side of recorded height allowed for variation or defective measurement.
When probability of identity appears, the original card is used for comparison.