ASSAULTS ON POLICE.

Auckland Star, Volume LIII, Issue 192, 15 August 1922, Page 4

ASSAULTS ON POLICE.

CRIME IX SYDNEY. (.From Our Own Correspondent.) SYDNEY, August 10. Hardly a week seems to pass by in Sydney without assaults on the police occur. For the third Saturday in succession the police have been attacked either by drunken men or by larrikins ill the suburbs. Last Saturday's brawl was the biggest that has occurred in the suburbs for some time, and a most remarkable feature about it was that the constables although violently handled and almost overwhelmed by the crowd of men, escaped with only slight injuries. They were on beat duty at the time, and one of the constables arrested a man for riotous behaviour. He was escorting him to the station when a mob -walked towards the constable in mass formation. A bottle was soon hurled at the constable, and it crashed on the roadway near his feet. Another constable rushed to the assistance of his comrade. The mob then swooped down on the police and their prisoner, and bottles and stones, and arms and legs were utilised in the melee. The police drew their batons, and at length fought their way ltd the outskirts of the crowd, and j cleared a space around them. By this method they were able to wait until the crowd came up to them and then swing their batons. In a combined effort the constables charged the "wolves." who dispersed in disorder. The prisoner J escaped, and no arrests were made at the time. On Wednesday, however, several men were detained in connection I with the case. I There has been much alarm in Sydney I over these frequent attacks on the police, and besides the mention that has been made in Parliament on the ouestion. magistrates in the courts have dealt severely with offenders. Long sentences with hard labour have been imnosed. J Incidentally an outstanding feature of ! crime hero is the continued increase' I since the termination of the war. The j I lisnirps ;is piven in the annual polir-e rcri'Tt sunnlied by the TnsnectorOeneral of Pnlico shows n marked increase in | serious f-rimo. The total increase was ] SOOn rases—being from 87,000 to j>4.870 ' ; case?. I