The Manawatu Herald. Thursday, June 10, 1909. OUR POLICE FORCE.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXI, Issue 462, 10 June 1909, Page 2

The Manawatu Herald. Thursday, June 10, 1909. OUR POLICE FORCE.

News items have recently appeared in this journal in respect to the conduct of certain of our guardians of the peace. Three constables were recently dismissed from the force in Wellington for brawling in the street and assaulting a man and woman, and another was taken off his beat in an intoxicated condition. These incidents have created much comment throughout the Dominion, and a slur has been cast upon the Police Department. It does not follow, however, that because a few constables here and there disgrace their calling, that the police force as a whole is rotten. We think however, that the police department should be carefully looked into. The rate of pay doled out to the rank and file offers no special inducement to our young men who are physically and mentally qualified for such work. If we want an efficient police force we must, in the first place, pay a minimum of ios per day, and thereafter, a grade increase. Apart from physical fitness, every constable should have a certain legal training before he is sent on duty. From the police force under existing conditions, the Dominion gets more than its money’s worth. If we want something better, we must be prepared to pay more than the beggarly pittance that at present obtains. We can’t expect half a crown’s worth of value for six pence. Is it any wonder that some of these men tall under temptation?