256 TAGE KEMP 



tries, the general educational standard is high and social provident care, 

 also for the adolescent, is well developed. 



The legislation with regard to police supervision of prostitution differs 

 from that of most other countries. 



Police supervision of commercial immorality was abolished by law in 1906, 

 and since that time, the police action against persons practising such trade 

 is executed according to the legislation on vagrancy. According to this 

 law, any one who has no proper means of support or who does not at least 

 endeavour to obtain a legitimate occupation, is punished if there is not 

 certainty that she (he) is sustained without injuring the community. The 

 police is entitled to request her to give an account of her way of gaining a 

 livelihood and to prove the correctness of her statements. If the statements 

 of the person in question are deemed insufficient, the police must order her 

 to seek legitimate employment and report the fact at certain intervals at 

 the police office. Those who neglect this order, are sentenced to imprison- 

 ment or forced labour. The order of reporting themselves at the police 

 office at certain times can only be given after a prior warning. (This law is 

 to be altered from the beginning of next year, not in any essential way, 

 however.) 



In Copenhagen, the morals police after the legislation on vagrancy gives 

 orders of report to about 100 women a year, their number has been con- 

 siderably reduced during recent years; at present, there are about 500 

 women who are compelled to report themselves regularly. 



This investigation is not terminated yet, whence I can merely give a 

 preliminary account of the results derived from the work of the first year. 



The mode of procedure has been, first to examine the information, 

 which the police had gathered with regard to the woman in question; next, 

 to question the woman about her family, the collaterals of both her parents, 

 her siblings (brothers and sisters) and eventually, her children, with special 

 regard to the occurrence of psychic affections, criminality, alcoholism, etc. 

 Moreover, psychiatric tests are performed and, if circumstances are in 

 favour of it, also a general medical examination. Further, information is 

 gathered as far as possible from schools, homes of education, hospitals and 

 other places, where the woman has previously lived and, in many cases, 

 also from her nearest relations. 



The preliminary investigation comprises 300 women, whose circumstances 

 were examined by the morals police in Copenhagen. 



89 per cent of the examined women had received a warning and 79 per 

 cent were moreover later on compelled to report themselves at the police 

 office after the legislation of vagrancy. 



