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upwards ? How is a man selected for promotion ?—By the Commissioner. Mr. Tunbridge has consulted me with regard to the men in my district. He has called on me to make recommendations. 209. Have these promotions in your district been made on your recommendation, or after reference to you ?—Those of the rank of sergeant have all been referred to me. 210. You are prepared to show what the records of these men are ?—Oh, yes. 211. Men who have recently been promoted to the rank of sergeant have been promoted on your recommendation in your district ?—Yes. 212. Mr. Poynton.] In regard to those of inferior rank you are not consulted ?—The Commissioner has generally spoken to me about them. 213. Can you make any suggestion with regard to the system of promotions ? —No ; I think the system at present in force might be followed. 214. You think that matter should be left to the Commissioner ? —Left to the Commissioner. 215. The Chairman.] With regard to constables who have been promoted to different grades: they have been promoted on your report ? —The Commissioner spoke to me about them. lam not sure about his speaking to me in regard to the whole of them. 216. Can you tell me by what system they are selected for promotion ? —Seniority. : 217. Alone ? —The Commissioner has spoken to me about them, and if there is a bad man he is passed over. 218. Are we to understand, taking it as a general rule, men have been promoted from one rank of constable to another without any report or reference to you? —I do not think I sent in any report with regard to the constables. I did with regard to the sergeants, 219. Is that only recent promotions ?—That is recent promotions, since Mr. Tunbridge came. 220. Colonel Pitt.] I understand you to say that these promotions were made by consultation between you and the Commissioner ?—The Commissioner called on me to submit names of men I would recommend for the rank of sergeant in my district. I did so. 221. The Chairman.] "With regard to the general system of promotions prior to that, has it been by any reference to yourself, so far as promotions in your local Force are concerned ? —I do not think I was consulted before. 222. Never been consulted before ? —I do not recollect being consulted. 223. Have you ever recommended men for promotion before? —I forget. I may have in one or two cases—some special thing. 224. Are we to take it that you have had very little to do with the promotion of men in the Force? —Very little to do with it. I have now. As I have said, the Commissioner has called on me to make recommendations. 225. Colonel Pitt.] Have you any knowledge of any outside influence being used to secure the promotion of constables —influence outside the department, with the Minister—or sergeants, or members of the Force ?—I have very little to do with the people outside. 226. I want to know have you any knowledge of members of the Force being promoted through the influence of persons outside the Force?—No; I do not think I have. It would not come under my observation. 227. lam asking if you know of any such case?—l do not recollect any such case. There may have been, but I do not recollect. 228. You spoke of the Police Force in Victoria being armed. Was there any special reason for the Force there being armed—for bushranging, for instance ?—No; I do not think there was any special reason. 229. What is your opinion as to the propriety of the police being armed ? —ln my opinion they ought to be all armed. 230. With what?— With a rifle. 231. A man could not carry a rifle about on his beat?— They were for a long time armed here —up to the time of Sir George Grey's Government. Then their rifles were taken from them. We had the Whitworth rifle. 232. You mean to say you were drilled ?—Yes. 232 a. But as to an ordinary policeman on his beat: of course, you would not think of giving a man a revolver on his beat—when he is on duty ? —Oh, no. I disapprove entirely of their having arms on ordinary beat; but in cases of emergency you do not know what may turn up. 233. You disapprove of their being armed in the ordinary way of duty?—Oh, entirely. Such a thing would be ridiculous now. 234. Colonel Hume asked you if you had had many cases of undetected crime in Wellington during the last five years. You said, " No." What I want to ask you is, have you known of any cases during that period where a crime has been committed and the offender not apprehended ?— Oh, yes, men have escaped; but there are not very many cases. 235. The Chairman.] Do you attribute the fact that a certain amount of crime is undetected to the fact that the Force is, as you consider, undermanned in the district ?—Well, it is difficult to answer that question, but I have not the least doubt that, if there were more police, the prevention would be better. The great object is to prevent crime, and, if you increase the Force I think it would prevent crime. Prevention is, in my opinion, the principal thing. We have been fairly successful in detecting crime. 236. Colonel Pitt.] Known crimes ?—Known crimes. 237. The Chairman.] Has anything come to your knowledge which you can communicate to us in connection with the promotion, degradation, or reduction of any officer or constable of the Police, as the result of political influence. No, I cannot say that Ido know of any case. Of course, that is a thing I might not know anything at all about. I have no knowledge of such a thing.