THE POLICE COMMISSION.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 11090, 18 April 1898, Page 2

THE POLICE COMMISSION.

I (Per Uniteb Press Association.) ' ! Tisiaeu, April IS. The Police Cotamission sat here to-day unft 1 completed their work in one day. The police officers made ft few complaints about pay und : promotion. Mounted Constable Crawford, 16A ! years in the force, said hu was still ia the i second' clasfl, though he had a clean conduct , sheet and a good record for meritorious service aud was promised promotion years ago. The ; gnolkeeper, Weathered, complained that his promotion had been checked by aa undeserve4----1 black mark given him by Inspector Bulleu itx Hawke's Bay years ago, aiid demanded aa inveetigation. He submitted a long list of sug jes-. tions for the improvement of the conditions oi service, which he wag asked to put into writing. All spoke in favour of a pension scheme and giviug up the long-service pay towards it i{ necessary. Mr Taylor investigated a charge against the constable at Fairlie of being unduly friendly with one of the publicans there, but the_ charge was oofc sustained. The Rev. W.Giliies complained of the las administration of the iieensicg law, and gave several instances io support. In the case of a raid on an illicit still a man rode out shead of the police and warned the parties. He must have got the information from the police. Constable Parker, Wai mate, attended the commission to deny the imputation cast upon him at a southern sitting that when stationedjn the \ Clutha, district he gave ex-publican Sirnmonds information that a raid was to be made on sly gtpg-sellerg. He gave this an emphatic denial/ Colonel Pitt: Can yon gire os any information how the knowledge travelled about Clnlha ' that detectives were coming from Dunedin ? ■Witness said he could as to the flret raid. Five or six congtablea^the inspector, and detectives ifitt Dunedin together by one ordinarj train for three different points. That was just after the Dunedin races, and there were three publicans returning from the races by the same train. When they got to Balclatha and saw all the police they thought there was' something •■ wropg, and so they set the wires to v?prk,'and when the police got to the districts there was nothing to be found. It was common talk that that was what happened. How information got about respecting later raids he could not •ay." ' ■ ■ ■• ".'■■■■. ■■ . Some evidence was given about the alleged drunkenness of two officers in Timara within s * few years past. •".'..' ~ . The commissioners left for Christchurch in ibt evening. N .