VI

H.—2

It is absolutely necessary for efficient police supervision that the heats should not he too large and L 'they should he occupied, and to secure this there ought to be a reserve S at le-t ten men and oae sergeant at each of the four chief towns ; and to meet the lur m ,t of The smaller towns* and country districts not less than ten Sid Teat the disposal of the Commissioner to be located as he may deem ad v -ble. There are some suburban districts with from five hundred to a thousand inhabitants having no COnB Ce £": VZ» are fairly capable men, but their number at some stations is insufficient. Infirm Members. There are in the Force aged and infirm men who have reached the stage at which they are no longer efficient, but who are apparently retained because those m command of them nl be n unwilling to take action which would result in their being removed from a position 7 which they defend for their living. The regulation, No. 10 by winch officers were ouTred to reLe at the age of sixty-five, and other members of the torce at sixty, navTg been revoked in 1888, retirement at a given age is not now compulsory, and m Sβ aWee of any retiring-allowance men hold to their office as long as possible A com- £££**£* is »£ in cases of men declared in the Force, and also under some special circumstances, but no right to it exists. Comparative Strength in Australian Colonies. The proportion of police to population in this colony, compared with that of the udghbouring colon.es, as e#bited in the following table, gives we lg ht to our opinion that the Force in this colony is below efficient strength :— y .i, ... Ito 1,435 New Zealand ... ■•■ I,\OQ South Australia ... •■■ ••• •• \ " '702 New South Wales ... •■■ ••• ■•; g33 Victoria ... ■■• ...... 1" n 578 Queensland . ■•• ••• "' '" 1 " 335 Western Australia ... Prom the fteure, given of the strength of the Force from 1891 to 1898 it will be seen .tat m/of Jge.nt, was gradu.Uy reduced fron, .ixtv-.wo in 1891 to forty*. in 1897. Promotions. The return of promotions, which will be found in the Appendix, shows that during the years 189 o 1897 only one constable was raised to the rank of sergeant, while promotion years lMai t> . motion was barred by reC ords upon the 's det Iter' Zt of trivial offences committed many years before, the result of nau rtes condu ted in a manner which placed the constable at a great d.sadvantage. The effect of tS has been to greatly discourage the men, produce discontent, and reduce to a minimum the esprit of the Force. Transfers. While there has been so little promotion, there have been necessarily many transfers from Ttation to station, many of which were not acceptable to the men concerned, while others had been eagerly sought for. Outside Ofices. Many oftices under the Government and local bodies which impose duties outside those I- a ooHce office" are held by constables at out-stations, the emoluments of which vary 1 iJer b V a do aso the conveniences and expenses of life at different station,; conseefforts are made to secure the better stations, success m the obtaining of wliicfgivcrie to jealousy and dissatisfaction, founded on a that unfair means have been resorted to to obtain them. The holding of these offices puts the constable in the position of having to serve many masted wht The work interferes at times with his police duties. These offices are as follows : —