TOPICS of the DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIV, Issue 3, 3 January 1903, Page 1 (Supplement)

TOPICS of the DAY.

(From Oar Special Correspondent!

LONDON, November 21V LONDON'S PEACE ARMYI

THE POLICE AND THE PUBLIC,

Society is ulways exposed to $ guerilla warfare by its criminals, ever lurking in ambush on the Jookout for an insufficiently protected convoy or individual. No small &xm.s is needed to protect Us from r-ha

social guerillas. 01 the activity of that army in the metropolis last year an interesting account is given, mainly in figures, by the Commissiiaer of Police in his annual report.

The Metropolitan Police District, an area of 688 square miles, extending over a radius of 15 miles from, Charing Cross, exclusive of that square mile known as "the City," has an army of almost 16,000 men in blue to guard it, and pays them every year, close on a million and v half. Between them they ■patrol 2445 miles of streets and squares. Every day 884 are away on leave, and 477 on the sick list. The casualties of this army, are not light. Over 1600 were injured last year, of whom 235 were incapacitated by—sore feet. To 4000 Nature proved a worse enemy than the burglar or the felon, for that number were rendered hors (night I say hoarse) de combat by rheumar tisni and throat complaints.

What has the "bobby" dons for us in the past year? We have all seen with our own eyes how ha controls the traffic. Although his main duty, is to stop it, it is safe- to say that it could scarcely go on without him. We have all, too, asked him the way, and marvelled at his courtesy and accuracy. But of these branches of his activity we only learn by inference from the report, as no statistics on these points could well be prepared. London streets are almost as dangerous as South African battlefields, and last year there were some 8000 casualties from street accidents alone. The police perform no slight labour as bearers, for last year they carried nearly 12,000 people to hospital. Nor is their task as censors and, examiners of carriages ;a sinecure—ll34 would-be hackney drivers had to be tested as to their knowledge of London and their skill with, the whip, and over 16,000 Jehus were licensed to drive vehicles of all kinds, 18 of them to propel motors of sorts. The police campaign against motors was not sufficiently developed last year to warrant special statistics on this branch of police activity which in the outskirts of threatens to divert the policeman from his normal duties. Altogether 16,000 men were licensed to drive, cars", and 'buses. Travellers in these vehicles are singularly beggars," and one of Scotland-yard devotes itself to counteracting the results of their absence of mind. The absent-minded beggars of London "left behind them" over, 40,000 little things in cab or 'bus, 18,000 of these articles were umbrellas, nearly 3000 purses, several containing over £ 10, 223 watches, to say, nothing of v valuable dressing-bags and several live stock, birds, dogs, cats, fowls, and a rabbit. The man or woman who can forget his or her pet must be overwhelmingly absorbed in "The Visits of Elizabeth," "Temporal Power," or "The Eternal City." So well does the police system work that half the lost articles were returned to their owners, who as compensation to drivers and conductors had to pay £3000, several of the rewards for honesty ranging from £5 to £ 75. In tracing the -owners the police sent nearly 30,000 letters to the absent-minded ones, while 43,000 were sent to the Jehus and tbeir attendants.

, But after all these are but subsidiary features of the "policeman's lot." As the result of their daily, drives, the police "bag , " of drunks amounted to almost 50,000, of whom sad to say, 19,000 were women. The "beggars" by no means absent-mind-ed, vagrants and "sleepers out," totalled over 3000. The total bag of criminal "mixed game" was 109,000, about 1000 more than the previous year. The "enterprising burglar" ie responsible for most of the increase in criminal offences, and many, householders must plead t guilty as accessories before the fact, for of 1719 cases of housebreaking, "970 took place in houses left without a caretaker. Felonies relating to property, were 17,000, the largest number since 1895. The total amount of loss, tooy was high, £376,000. This, however, is accounted for in great measure by; the £ 166,000 of which Goudy despoiled the Bank of Liverpool, and the £20,000 worth of jewels which the Marquis of Anglesey's valet "conveyed" to his French temptress. £142,000 worth of the stolen property was recovered. Of the 24 murderers only one remained undetected.

The new ally of the police for identification, the finger print system, which, was in operation for the last six months, has proved invaluable, and soon the detectives ■will have all the professional criminals at their, fingers' ends. Of the 503 identifications, 410 were by anthropometry and 93 by finger-prints, and it 5 s anticipated that the number of identifications by the new system in 1902 will be three times larger than the highest figures hitherto secured by anthropometry. Owing to the greater effectiveness of the new method, it has been found possible to dispense with the attendance of officers from divisions .at prison identification parades, much saving of time and men resulting. ( CONTINUED ON PAGE 4.),