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14
Q
the difference in the compare tive merits of the two officers is too great. It is difficult to say exactly in what respect Mr. Wodehouse fails. He has acted as Captain Superintendent of Police for nearly a year and I have no definite fault to find with him but I retain a general impression of mediocrity and lack of grip'. In normal times I have no doubt that he would carry on the adminis- tration of the force without coming to grief but I feel that I could not have complete confidence in him in case of serious difficulties arising. The fact is, I think, that he is lacking in strength of character and is also too easy-going and inclined to take his opinions from his Inspectors.
4.
Mr. Wolfe, on the other hand, is not only greatly superior to Mr. Wodehouse intellectually but is a man of strong and independent character, on whose judgment I should always feel able to rely. This is a matter of importance because there are indications of the possibility of there being a period of considerable difficulty when the older European members of the force retire. The Europeans recruited since the war are not so satisfactory in many ways as the older men. They are impatient of discipline, and have very high ideas of their own merits and importance. Their attitude in connection with the question of their salaries convinces me that they will be a difficult body to handle, when the restraining influence of the older men is removed, and their commanding officer will need a firm hand and a level head. Mr. Wolfe possesses these characteristics: I do not consider that Mr. Wodehouse does.
5.
Mr. Wodehouse is at his best in dealing with the Indian members of the force but the importance of that element will, I hope, continue to diminish. We are not getting satisfactory recruits from India nowadays and I am inclined to think that the Indian contingent has outlived
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