POLICE REPORT.

Te Aroha News, Volume VII, Issue 393, 14 August 1889, Page 6

POLICE REPORT.

Wellington, August 7. The annual report of tho police force of the colony has been presented to both Houses. JVlr Gudgeon, the Oommiseioner, in this shows that the strength of tho torce is 484, exclusive of district and native constables, as against 487 for the previous year. There aic 14 district constables, being an increase of one j and 11 native constables, being a decrease ot ten in this class*. Two new stations have been opened during the year; one at Mahakiwawa [Mahakipawa] to afford police protection to the goldHeld ; and feho other on the line of the Otaeo ( entral Railway to replace the late , Noiithovii Station, whicli has been closed. The casualties in the force for the past year have boon 25, against 28, 53, and 24 in the three previous years.

1 CRIMINAL STATISTICS. The criminal atatibbic^ for the year ending Decembei 31st, ISBB, show the U3ual decrease in bho gros« total of offences for thi* North Is and, theie being a decrease oi 680, and for the South if-land 93. There has, however, been an increase in the following serious oft'ences :— Breaking and entering phops or houses, 35 ; burglary, 7 ; cattle and horse stealing 16: murder and attempted murder, 4. On the other hand a decrease is shown in arson, 5 ; assaults of all kinds, 23 ; embezzlement. 9 ; false pretences, 7 ; larceny, 60 ; malicious injury to property, 113 : cases under Police Ollencud Act, 174; perjury, 15. The Commissioner attributes the increase in houfeebreakinjr and burglary to t>he fact that the police have now to deal with a well - organised gang of cxpcit thieves, who aie technically known as " speelcrs." Theso men, ho" says, are the lculfc of the nunieious. f-ma.ll race meetings of the colony, in which places they congregate ioi the purpose oi swindling the unvary. They generally atall other times lead a dibhoncsi and criminal life.

RETRENCHMENT AND AMALGAMATION. It is pointed out, that bho police have now been reduced to the lowest limits consistent ■with efficiency, and mv"l be increased to meet any future demands (or police protection. Such demands are, however, not ikely to occur immediately, except perhaps in two instances, for ordinary and new stations have been provided for without a coi responding increase in the foice. j The result of tho lato retrenchment and I amalgamation ot police districts has I been that the department has. gained I in economy without having sufiered appreI uiably in efficiency. The&tuflfe of the reduced ' distuctb have become available for ordinary j polico duties, and therefore increa&e of (strength and new stations have been provided tor without a corresponding increase in the force. Pleasure k*> expressed at the growing popularity ot the force in the colony with young colonists, for during the last 12 months nearly one halt of the recruits have been of colonial birth ; who, while physically equal to any membeis of the force, in education and intelligence aie superior to tho ordinary class of candidates. Our detective system is shown to be very j unsatisfactory ; for although theie are many p,ood officers in that branch of the {service, theie are also many useless men. To remedy this Mr (.-ludgeon snygests that instead of appointing a man detective ior life, as is practically done at present, in iutuiomen should simply be employed as plain clothes constables, receiving detective allowance while t-o employed. By this means ho consider-- we should obtain all the advantages ot the detective system without its detects. Arrangements have been made by which a system of examination foi the New Zealand police will bo instituted and held tor the hist time in Januaiy, 1890, at the head office of each police district. Tho examination will be divided into two paits?, junior and .senior. A pass in tho former will rend?r a man eligible for promotion to iirst-clai)3 constable ; in tho latter, the rank ot sergeant. This system has, been instituted with the twofold object ot preventing inferior men from reaching important positions, whether by force of seniority or interest, and of raising the general efficiency of the men so as to make them read up tho theoiy of police work and the criminal statute law of the colony, as the only possible method of at; taining to a lesponsible position. " It is now generally admitted by all competent authorities," says the Inspector of L'risons in his report, '• that to make prisons deterrent and refcrmaLorVi inmates must be entirely separated from one another when not at labour, and located in separated cell* instead o£ in association. This it is. to be regretted cannot at present bo carried out at Auckland, Wellington, or Dunedin, and as it is of Ihe utmost importanco that the prisons now building at Auckland and Mount Cook should be pushed on to a state of completion with all possible speed, and a new prison building be started at Dunedin at once. It has been more than once said that Mount Cook is not required, bu f . if any one has misgivings on the subject he is invited to Terrace Prison to ascertain for himself whether s>uch buildings and appliances as exist t-hcro are fitted to hold tlic class and number of piisoncrs for whom accommoda] tion has to be found."

Dr. Leger Erson, writing to the JVlelbourne " Daily Telegraph " ot a recent date, put Mr Parnell's withdrawal from the Commission very fairly before the public. He says : — Although the voice of the Melbourne press — as of one man — is against Mr Farnell and the cause of Home Rule, your indulgence of my brief remarks on the subject recently encourages me to think you will give me a snin.ll space now. On that occa.sion there was a general howl against the Irish delegates because theie was no publication of the accounts of funds contributed for carrying forward the Irish cause. I then pointed out that if an account was rendered of the expenditure of "secret service money " by Dublin Castle and the Tory organisation, for the furtherance ot their " plan of campaign," and in the maintenance of Lo Caron and his like as spies- and informers, or as instigators of Kiel's rebellion and Chicago murders, then it would bo fair to demand that the funds on the Irish side, which are used to fight the ''secret service money," should also be published. But while the " secret service money " is a secret, so should the other be. A parallel case has just arisen. Mr Par noil was ordered to produce the books of the National League (bank-books, chequebooks, and all), and ho did it. Now he asks that tno books of the rival league, the Landlords' " Patriotic Union," be produced, in order that he may show conspiracy against him in their employment, and payment of the infamous Pigott, and the author of the article on " Parnellisin and Crime." The president of the commission has refused, and Mr Parnell'e counsel have accordingly withdrawn. Is there sufficient manliness of spirit in Melbourne to pass a iair judgment on these things? Or can party feeling so blind the human mind that even John pull in the colonies loses hie sturdy sense of fair play ?