The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1878-05-28 00:00:00

THZ BOROUGH POLICE FORM
To Me Editor.

Sir,—l have read carefully and deliberately the letters
which have appeared in the Egress relative to the
" handing over" the conduct of the Borough to the County
Police, or in other words, the surrendering of one of the
few remaining relies of self-government that we posse.;
and I have wOted egpectantly to oge corns one on " Vother
side." ea Ilditorially invited, take up the cudgels, or, to
speak more appropriately, the truncheon, in behalf of a
threatened institution. As no one more able than myself
has thought et to do this, humble individlal as I am. I
will endeavour to the best of ray ability to accept the
challenge that hoe been thrown down, and give • fen
resaons againet any inch change.
First of all, I would, b r, remark that there appears
to me, and I. think every unprejudiced reader will concur
with one, there runs through those productions • hardly
latent vein of somewhat spiteful personality, bat, of
occurrences in which the writers have had either a direct
or indirect interest. Under the mask of tilting at •
system individual animus is gratified, and I am much
mistaken if any reasonable doubt con be entertained as to
who is the object.
The writer who first started the controversy "A
Ratepayer: although he is complimeoted by "Another
Bolen qer upon his foree•iide language, appears, I
cuosider, In the ardour of his attack, to have not only
overstepped, but to have made a clean jump over, the
bounds of decent controversy, awl to have ruthlessly
smothered argument in vituperation. He first of all falls
foul of the Corporate body whom he designates an bigots
and wiseacres. And for whet f Why because the gentle-
men who constitute the Council do not got up a coon 1
robin, sign it, and imploringly kneeling as the feet of the
Chief Constable, present it with the plaintive admission
"Oh, pl.age we are such • set of ignoramuses and dullards
that we cannot manage our own affair., and if you would
kindly favour is. with two or three of rout men and a
sergeant to look alter fAmsea to look after us, we shall be
happy, and having kicked out our cspital body of police
will ever pray, gm"
Does "Ratspayer" believe what he writes when he says
"It is a system of which happily now only a limited
section of the C iuncil are slivuoured r ws he eon-
icientiously in his own heart entertain the slightest hope
that were the question put before the Council tornorrow
there would be found • majority no unpatriotic as to
advocate the annihilation of the little power that remains
to them and baud it over to outsider..

giod you I am ant sating one word again t the eounty
polics—a is the principle of "giving up the reins. I
protest against. Bt let me tell " itetayer- and
"Another Ratepayer,"
tad any "this reepectable and
lair-abiding community who join in their tirade, that I
have hut little doubt if the result they seek were lorouelit
about they would find themselves like the frogs who
exchanged King I.e for King Stork—out of the frying-
pan into the tire. Fifth ol N member disturbances would
not pus ud quite as painlessly fur the chief actors : tuany
w-ntlemen who about twelve at night are rather uncertain
ao to the exact width of to road, grout lb. taught chalk-
boo in way, perhapi, they would not relish;
and the vagart• • ot ctn.t bar clocks would not be
accepted as sudicieatly excusable quite as readily as,
perhaps, they may he now.
But why sin I holding out this sort of in terrorest argu-
ment I It is perfectly needless. Is there one of your
readers who for one moment fails to see that this
antagonism to our Borough police has arisen because some
three years ago they discharged • paint.' duty firmly,
unalully, but leniently, and carried out the orders they
received as they were bound to do; and ha, beau fanned
and kept alive ever since by • few recent casu But
what would thus walountents have I That the superin-
lenient and his men should sit quietly down in their
station and smoke short pipes. Parham an certain
instances. But let either of them loose a two-year-old
rooster and they'd hare the entire force toll off on special
plain-clothes duty to search their neighbour.' larders.
If one of those ent'ouitiasts for guyed celebrations had
halfpenny squib come through his window on to the
carpet haw eager he would be to set the machinery of the
law In motion, asil bow he would "go on" if the mis-
chievous small boy who perpetrated the outrage nimaged
to slip away utpletected. And, again, how your corm.
pondent, tho champion of injured inn.unce (I will Unlit
It was a bard cave, but still, as the Bench said, somewhat
self-brought ahout) would fume it he aim a pair of his
we-mention-'em's kluging up outaidn • second-hand
clothes shop, and how they gat thine was all" unbeknown
to lased.- %Vouldn't "the helmets- be introduced to the
proprietor of this establishment in a very few minutes;
and wouldn't the said C. 0. I. I. go from fuming to raving
if the said helmets declined to "hinterfere. . .

- - -
Of course the other side will say well you are simply
using arguments that would apply as well if we had
Csetsin Brown's n.yriuidons es our present force. To •
certain extent j will allow this, bat still cm arguments for
the purpose for which I have adduced them, via: to
show the animus and the art of feeling which. I
believe, prompt your correspondents, I maintain they
serve coy norpose.
This sudden outcry, sir. against • respectable well-
conducted body of men no more arises from a desire to
save the pockets of the rstepayers than the Tskgrepa's
dirty abuse of its former idol, Gladstone, is =animated
by selfish and mercenary objects I
Now, sir, let me turn to the monetary aspect of the
question. This mine may consider the chief point of view
Irons which it should be regarded. I do not. I take my
ground upon the surrender or noneurrender of our rights.
But even the financial arguments, if each they can be
called, of your correspondents, afford good food for
criticism. _

-11stapa.yer in his letter selects Bridport for &comparison
with Dorchesaar, sad ba says,

• - -
" I learn that the expendqure on account of the police
. amounted to no lees • 111 than £617 16s. 641. I I and, so I
can And no return of any portion of this having n
refunded from Government, I am bound, in justice to the
treseurer, to accept this as a true recent of the Aetna cost
of the force for one twelvemonth. To my great astonish-
ment on refining to Bridpott (here the' have the county
police), with a populotion nunitunng considerable more
than that of Dorcheoter, I find the annual contribution
foe Police purposes—the force consistine of one sergeant
and five constables—amounts to only £l, the balk of the
population at the same time being of a widely diffeient
class to Oust of Dorchester where the inhabitants have
invariably proved themselves to be • respeemble and law-
abiding rem mustily."
Now I believe the writer will admit that in each case,
be ha; to forth, his own argument; taken the outside
Ginn.; and in a Jesuitical nay, namely—the full amount
for Dorchester and the smallest balance to be discovered
In favour of Bridport
Now let oases how Bridport has beneetted by the
change. The first thing I believe Bridport upon lie
amalgamation had ti de was to build • station ler the
county official; and although • certain rent is paid for it
by the County, yet the Borough still finds cost gas, c.
At Bridport the force consists of a sergeant and five men
only, and if the bulk of the population is of • totally
different class to that of Dorchester, I preappme your
correspondent does not write in a complimentry seam as
regards Bridport, why it only shows that if the
superintendent, sergeant, and six men of the Dorchester
fovea have all their time employed, Bridport to most
inadequately served. That this is so think cannot he
doubted when we glance amigo after mum at the Bridport
robberies which figure on the calenlers. Your readers
should remember that prevention Is better than cure, and
the ;present peaceful state of the B 'rough of Dorchester is
not due to an absence of crime or an apathetic indifference
on the part of the police, hut rather to their unPrelaged
activity sad keen supervision.
Let your comae indents out. to Boroughs in neighbour-
ing counties and me how amalgamation works. I will
undertake the simmers shall somewhat alter their Haws.
But even supposing we should save £lOO a year by the
! &sage. which I deny, are we to cruelly oust faithful
servsnts just because is doing their duty they are unable
to -please everyone; and are we to gratify a little private
feeling as the County town to drift into the humiliating
I position of a grd clam Borough
! probably other crrrespoudente more abie then mrsatf
will deal with the question.
I beg to subscribe myself
Air ADTOCATI OP Sny-Goviamonr.
Dorchester, May ST, IV&

To lA. Editor.

Sir.— I reel deeply grateful to " Another Ratepayer"
ertang in your last weeks issue for his kind pretentious
towards the borough police. He endeavoured to show Uzi,
great and material benefits to be derived by the Constables
of the Borough by the introduction of the County police,
the greateet strew being laid on the huperanuation
ansetiou. He very plainly sets forth the benefits that
certain individuals were receiving. trying to shoe unr
Borough police that the beautiful presents were for them
if the county polio, was introduced, but, these things
are for those who exhibit honest hard perseverance and
wpm impartiality In discharging their duty. It appears
that about .4.500 a year is peiii to euperranuated officers of
the county, and the expenditure is steadily increasing,
meld ....wiper ratepayer" inform the public if the fund is
1101,11111 t if it is now, whether it will be in 10 years time,
essing that there are in the county form HO member.
with service as follow,: 14 under 1 year 919, over land
..grr 5 ~an, N over land under 10 years, 10 over 10 and
under 15 years. 33 OVVT 15 awl under 20 years, es over
sad ...dier 15 mat lover 15 and under 30 years. Ibis
table shows that there are at to 21 constables who have
pm an average of about 24 year: service. lf I am rightly
Informed it is not the intention of the county to me the
principle which unmet, to about £7.000 odd, hut to make
• county rate in the event of the interest of principle not
/Waving the outgoings, and would not, under these
circumstances, the borough ratepayer, liirdeued wjlb
do county rate toward. amp.gaanuatlea land. Another
Hipiesames iierteilat ems n t Ithoigt there
good iaLs2
mipermumenee find in colin with the
polies form quite capable of def an egie-siair
proportion to the present expense the ClUlity suppress,
motion. The proportion to be paid by the
seputaitanation fund would be about LW per yearim.nt
MOW balm of thebC.ol4ll gliferellailltiell had ter

She last seven years has been ZS per Tem, and every
prootext of its continuing to iftereues shove what it has for
the last ...welt Yeast. Plane that amount in ...me invest-
ment with gosh tawdrier at 5 rar c. I o fti
leirough cundebtea ore uot in a. a to 4 0 p autem no the
county as to *intent. nu .ti.n funda
Does the friend .4 the h rough police think that the
superannuation fund would he handed utter t. the county
treasurer. ant the Wen w o have coutributen for yeses
turned out of doom "That twits to ma very much like
wolvep in cheeps elothinc." If the friends of Ii ItOrOUgh
paliee think that it wi'.! take .CIDJ • yea, to maintain the
county police. I must them to 'take their savitut of
£lOO and divlde by four, t Me the CS caved cud chow the
Fr otion of sC saved uta the rateahlod value of the berough,
thee the Pni'lle will he able to understand what their
individual ...tine will he, and what the re:muse of the
honout of rieinc their non roach. I ow not so
ennneneed 'ilk 'en' ktt.eith 'once friend's pretentions,
and no to the great I,nelits he speaks it much about,
ctn.:tally the cuperann.:it inn, I hap' MM. MOM able Pen
will give further inform ition.
LicarLar.
Dorchester. May, ut-s.