POLICE AND SHIP DESERTERS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1054, 17 February 1911, Page 6

POLICE AND SHIP DESERTERS.

(V ■ .—- • A. COMPLAINT AND AN EXPLANA- - ' Tiox: ' m Jfr - officer'of tho R.M.S ■ Tongnriro, states that ho applied on Tuosday morning for tho issuo of a warrant • arrest of- two firemen who had dev wrtcd from, the ship, and that tho .warrant in the hands of tho polieo nt ll A.ni. Som© time Inter tho sccond cngi* j- ncer niw on® of the men in tho street, and i questioned a constable concerning his >arI Tw i. i IS ®Med that tho policeman said t that ho knew nothing about the warrant, t\ , 811,1 co «'u not arrest the deserter when ho i was off his beat. Subsequently-Mr. Bevis t Approached a constablo on tlio wharf the, matter, and he, too, f,aid t»rJ!,f <ild if ,9t^ no . w -nuytbing about tho r . ¥■'• Beyis then rang up tho r chef detective, and was told that the doj tcctno staff had tho matter in hand. .Mr. f }f VI ;, mßlnta '"s that tho system regardI ; n « „ t !" ? u ar ," ,st ,. of ) «™»en it this port is I v «-l i f ,, !*• for during the hours ( elapsed between tho time tho warr rant was issued and tho time the second ; was approached the men eouid get clear away, niid m Ills opinion tho i- , f' 1 ' ! | 0r i t ' e5 .: ,ul »ot seem concerned in the . least, for they had apparently not given 1 ' wnrrant" 1 " 3 pollccm<!n «Sarding ' tho I Inspector Ellison, when shown tlio above statement, informed n reporter that im- | mediately a warrant is issued for tho nr- . ■ s rest of anyone, every detective and every [ nonstable is informed of tho facts con-cM-ning such. warriot, and each has to I note and initial a book to show that ho I is acquainted with tho matter. Thus all r aro on the look out for the wanted man. j In the ciijo of a ship's deserter something ; inoro is done. Two officers aro detailed >■ specially to go round tho hotels and other , j places where such men are likely to r«i pprt. Jf n constablo on tho beat is given j definite, information by n ship's officer as j to where a deserter can'be arrested. then.' ( > of course, he would leavo his bent and f arrest, the deserter. But n constable, for i obvious reasons. ha« no rinht to leavo his j V'nt .unless the information is definite; I .-. The most ho ean do is to at one« neouaint !: ' ' his sereemt. by telepbono or otherwise, of what he has henrd. It appears that a reward of ,E2 is offered for tho arrest of deserters, and fo the police officers are penerollv;anxioiis enoucli to find them,-and • ppnstnbk-s have been known logo on the .lookout'for them even when off duty. , Naturally. however, tho task is often a difficult,one, as tho deserters aro not known., except by .the description given, nnd police officers might miss them in some niece by a couple of minutes, and thereafter Id going in tho. opposite direc-' tion in the city.