New Britain herald., 1916-12-23
z0n'n Topics

what better argument for Mayor l Qulgley's proposal that the safety | board be split into a fire and police commission can be asked than the acton of the present board on Thurs day night? This board has handled the hre department affairs in mas terly way, but as to the police de- partment it has exhibited a woefu1 lack or Judgment and Intelligent Knowledge of conditions The board has ever bungled the police depart- ment affairs, as evidenced bv the mayor having to appear before +ha commissioners to give them sensible :. adVice. AS the latest example of the unpardonable lack of knowledge meeting expressed himself as op- posed to what he said was the exist Ing scheme at night of having Officer tTustaVe Hellberg go out with the pa- Iiol III response to call from a po- llcel1lan making an arrest, and then Have the officer making the arrest accompany him back to headuuar- ters, thus leaving his beat unguarded TOT some time. Had Mr. Steele but taken the trouble to investigate he would have known that this is not so The officer making an arrest turns ms prisoner over to Officer Hellberg and the latter brings him to head quarters, and for the very reason that the patrolman's beat must not De left unguarded. Tnfreouently 1t happens that particularly unruly prisoner makes it necessary for both officers to take him to the station. Another statement of MT. Steele showing a lack of familiarity with a foi i~c
 mended that Officer He1lberg, door man and patrol officer, be required to appear in court daily as a witness. Such a scheme would be utterly inn practical and Clerk Magnel1 stated the case plainly when he explained tht an officer on the beat might re- ce1Ve a complaint, make 8, private in- vest1gation and then make an arrest and call for the patrol. He would simply turn his prisoner over to Off, ficer Hellberg. What would the lat ter know of the facts in the cases were he called as a witness? The commissioners should know that hearsay evidence is not permitted in court
 Likewise, certain members of the board seem intent on "getting" De- tective Bamforth by making the de- tective sergeantship a position to be shifted quarterly. If this goes into effect 1t will make New Britain's po- lice department the laughing stock of the country. It will provide material for cartoonists. The plan is absurd. The mayors cry is for greater police efficiency. Certainly the shifting of the detective bureau every three months does not tend toward this: FIII should be changed is when it is proved positively inefficient and the aim of the commissioners should be to make the bureau efficient and per- manent, rather than disorganizing it by doling the job to various men for three month periods. Far better would if be to dispense with the de- tective bureau entirely, than subject it to. such humiliation and genuine Reorganization.
 These are acts that show need of separating the two departm ents, since it seems impossible to secure a single commission to handle both branches effectively.
 Mayor Quigley's special m essage to the common council relative to the need of better protection at railroad
 
 trolley service was we'll balanced comprehensive and intelligent one: The salient points in the condemna- tion of alleged. lack of protection and service were forcibly presented, yet his honor noticeably refrained from making any snap judgment sugges- tions. Suggestions without careful thought and legal study of the ques- tfons involved are impossible if they are to bring the desired results. In making appointm ents to the special committee the mayor should see to it that he names men whose stand ing Is such their statements will carry more weight than those of the ordin- ary 1ayman. careful analysis of the message shows the yelled threat that if the railroad does not grant the reasonable requests made the city government will seek to have them compelled by recourse to law.
 While it did not come within the province of Mayor Quigley to touch upon the subject. 1t is a fact that in connection with insufficient trolley service the residents Of Elm Htll, Maple Hill and Newington have as justif1able a complaint as any. At no time of the year. summer or winter, during the hours of the day or night when there is a, general desire to use the trolley service, particularly to Hartford, are these people given proper accommodations During these rush hours the cars are completely filled before they leave New Britain and those who board them at the other stations have to stand up or walS-fOr as the next car is just as crowded it does no good to wait. New Britain is not the only place with a real grievance against the trolley company, but it is hoped that as soon as the local management secures the new and larger cars promised, bet