The young men taking the police oath of office typically had no clear idea about what kind of job they were in for. Before joining a police force, most held the common working-class perception that police constables were paid a regular wage for walking around doing little more than keeping their eyes open and collaring drunks. Some even considered that policemen duped local authorities into paying them for ‘soft’ work. Many combined this ‘plodder’ image with impressions from popular stories by Edgar Wallace, Arthur Conan Doyle, and Arthur Morrison with their mostly dull, stupid policemen but also a few cunning police detectives. Despite these cynical views, working-class families encouraged their sons to apply to the force for its regular wages and chance for promotion. Adding to the force's appeal, young women considered constables to be eligible husbands who could provide for families.