H.—ife

The amounts of fines in the various districts are as follows :— £ s, d. Auckland .. .. .. .. « .. .. 157 8 0 Hamilton .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1,111 0 0 Napier .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 65 0 0 Wanganui .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 265 0 0 Wellington .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 295 0 0 Greymouth .. .. .. .. .. .. .. M ; Christchurch .. .. .. .. .. .. 130 0 0 Dunedin .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 41 12 0 Invercargill .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 184 0 0 Total .. .. .. .. .. .. £2,249 0 0 The direct cost to the Department in detecting and prosecuting sly-grog sellers during the year was £322, this being £1,927 less than the amount of fines imposed. Gaming Offences. There were 257 prosecutions, resulting in 216 convictions, during the year under the gaming laws, against 214 prosecutions and 181 convictions in 1915. Criminal Begistration Branch. During the year the finger-impressions of 2,590 prisoners were received, classified, searched, and filed, and 166 prisoners were identified as previous offenders 'in this Dominion, Australia, England, &c.; 710 photographs were taken by the photographers attached to this branch; the portraits of 1,811 prisoners were dealt with ; and 439 photographs of discharged prisoners were reproduced in the Police Gazette. The Police Gazette increased in volume by 47 pages of printed matter. On the 31st March last the finger-print collection consisted, of the impressions of 19,508 offenders, being an increase of 1,374 over the previous year. The total number of finger-impressions received during the year shows a decrease of 382 compared with the previous year, and the number of prisoners identified shows a decrease of 52. The finger-print collection, now containing nearly twenty thousand sets of impressions, in its present state of classification requires too much time when searching for corresponding prints, and the work of further subdividing it has been commenced. This is a long and tedious task, as each set of impressions has to be dealt with separately and reference made on index cards, criminal histories, correspondence files, &c. The work will take some months to complete, as it can be done only in spare time. The following table shows the increase of the finger-print collection since the introduction of the finger-print system of identification in March, 1903.

Candidates for Force. Forty-two men were taken on during the year, their nationalities, religions, and occupations being as follows : —Nationalities : England, 2 ; Scotland, 2 ; Ireland, 8 ; New Zealand, 26 ; Australia, 4. Eeligions : Church of England, 13 ; Presbyterian, 13 ; Boman Catholic, 10; Methodist, 6. Occupations : Asylum attendant, 1 ; baker, 1 ; blacksmith, 1 ; boilermaker, 1 ; bootmaker, 1 ; bricklayer, 1 ; builder, 1 ; bushmen, 2 ; butchers, 2 ; carpenter, 1 ; ex-constables, 4; ex-soldier, 1 ; electrician, 1 ; farm labourers, 4 ; fireman, 1 ; fisherman, 1 ; labourers, 12 ; milkman, 1 ; miner, 1 ; prison warder, 1 ; railway porter, 1 ; sawmill hand, 1 ; tailor, 1. During the year 17 probationers presented themselves, at the conclusion of their course of training at the depot, for examination in "first aid to the injured," the examinations being held under the auspices of the St. John Ambulance Association. All passed the examination, the average number of marks gained being 85-6 (maximum, 100; bare pass, 50). The lecturer was in each case Dr. Henry, Police Surgeon, and the examiners different medical men appointed by the association.

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Year. Number of Prints in Collection. Increase on Previous Year. Prisoners traced as Previous Offenders. 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 # - * ' 3,500 4,200 5,000 6,151 7,622 8,718 9,919 10,905 12,097 13,552 15,302 16,682 18,134 19,508 3,500 700 800 1,151 1,471 1,096 1,201 986 1,192 1,455 1,750 1,380 1,452 1,374 117 72 88 104 123 138 140 148 178 183 230 270 218 166