PRAISE FOR POLICE

Evening Star, Issue 20983, 23 December 1931, Page 6

PRAISE FOR POLICE

MINISTER’S EULOGY [Pee United Press Association.] WELLINGTON, December 22. The Government’s appreciation of the services of the New Zealand Police Force during the present year were expressed by the Minister of Justice (the Hon. J. G. Cobbe) in an address to the officers and men of the force at the Wellington Central Station this afternoon. He spoke to a largo gathering in the station yard, and he paid a high tribute to the work of both the uniform and the plain-clothes branches. The Minister said he had sought an opportunity of addressing the force entirely on his own initiative, having been invited by no one, for he was anxious that he should express his appreciation of the loyalty and the efficiency that had been shown by the Police Department throughout the year. He fully realised that the year had been a difficult one, for crime was apt to flourish during times of depression. As a member of the Government he considered it his duty to to state officially that the force had given the utmost satisfaction. It had gone about its work with the idea of giving the least possible amount of trouble to the public generally. It was gratifying to know that there was A spirit of loyalty and satisfaction throughout the force which, in common with other branches of the Public Service, had been subjected to the salary and wage cut. No finer police forces than those throughout the Empire were to be found in the world, and they were known for their honesty and efficiency. It was gratifying to know that the people could turn to the police of the dominion for assistance when it was needed., The navy was often referred to as the silent service, but the term could be well applied to the police force, for it did its work and said nothing. Another important consideration was that the force did its work cheaply, a fact that appealed to the Minister at a time like the present. The upkeep of the force cost the dominion 6s OJd per head of the population each year, whereas the cost in Australia was 10s 4d, or about 71 per cent. more. Mr Cobbe paid a tribute to the work of tho police in Napier and Hastings after the great earthquake of last February, when Inspector D. J. Cummings and his staff were responsible for carrying out their duty in the face of fearful odds in a manner that should be an inspiration to every man in the force in New Zealand. _ The force was well aware of the action of the constable who carried on in spite of tho fact that his wife and child had both been killed, and his loyalty to his duty was worthy of the highest praise. In addition the work of the detective force was worthy of mention, and it had been responsible for the carrying of many difficult cases to a successful conclusion during the year.

The Minister wished the members of the force the compliments of the season, and he expressed the hope that the work of the coming year would be attended by that show of loyalty and initiative that had for so long marked the activities of the department.