225 815
POLICE
J
(Contd.)
the subterranean storm water drain as the basis of their operations and drove upwards from there tunnels by which they undermined the floors of treasure stores. The Central Bank was in this way robbed of $63,000 in notes and £11,000 in gold ingots. Unable to carry off the whole of their booty, the robbers left some of the notes and even the gold ingots strewn about the streets.
From September 12 to 14, 1864, the police were called upon to deal with a most deplorable series of riots, resulting in the murder of two soldiers, three seamen and a boarding house clerk. The excitement was intense and armed clashes occurred between groups of Malay seamen, the men of the 99th Regiment and the Police.
When the Hon. Mr. W. T. Mercer was Officer Administering the Government, following the retirement of Sir Hercules Robinson, he despatched a long report to the Home Authorities, in which he stated inter alia, that the Indian contingent of the Hong Kong Police Force had proved a failure. Mr. Mercer favoured the idea of dismissing the entire Indian personnel, but they found a champion in the Superintendent, Mr. May, who believed they had not been given a fair trial. The result was that the Indian police stayed on, and are still with us to-day.
When Sir Richard MacDonnell took over the Governorship of Hong Kong, he found the Police Force rotten with corruption and bribery. All this he traced to the gambling evil and it was he who introduced a licensing system and aroused such an agitation as a result, that he was eventually forced to rescind the measure.
During the period of Sir Richard's Administration, the Police Force was subjected to the closest scrutiny it ever received and to severe criticisms on the part of both the Governor, the Chief Justice, and by the community in general. Having satisfied himself, by personal investigations, of the inefficiency and corrupt character of the Force, Sir Richard attempted, in 1866 and 1867 to purify and reform the Corps by disciplinarian measures, and failed. In October, 1867, he assured the Secretary of State that he did not remember ever seeing, in any Colony, a body of men so ineffective in proportion to numbers, and so corrupt generally as the Police Force which he found in Hong Kong. There were at the time 89 Europeans, 377 Indians (chiefly Bombay sepoys) and 132 Chinese.
The licensing of gambling houses resulted in a marked improvement however, and still further efforts were made by the Governor to purge the Force of corrupt elements. Measures taken included the substitution of Scottish for English and Sikh for Bombay constables; the appointment of a deputy Superintendent of Police conversant with Hindustani (C. V. Creagh); the classification of the Chinese contingent, opening up to Chinese constables the prospect of promotion; the increase in the number of police stations and their inter-connection by telegraph; the establishment of a Police School (1869) and the encouragement thereby given to Sikhs and Chinese to learn English.
A definite improvement was soon noticed, but that it was almost entirely due to Sir Richard is evidenced by the fact that when he left the Colony on furlough in April, 1870, complaints of the demoralisation of the police recommenced, both on the part of the Chief Justice and the public.
When the Police Report of 1869 was published declaring the establishment of a detective force to be impracticable, the public read it as indicating that bribery rather than any other difficulty stood in the way of detecting crime.
The unofficial members of the Council also expressed dissatisfaction with the Police Force and asked that a Commission of Inquiry be appointed. The Chief Justice immediately laid on the table of the Council a Memorandum, inveighing against the inefficiency and corruption of the Force and suggesting that, in order to avoid constant friction between the Superintendent
225 815
POLICE
J
(Contd.)
the subterranean storm water drain as the basis of their operations and droveupwards from there tunnels by which they undermined the floors of treasure stores. The Central Bank was in this way robbed of $63,000 in notes and £11,000 in gold ingots. Unable to carry off the whole of their booty, the robbers left some of the notes and even the gold ingots strewn about the streets.
From September 12 to 14, 1864, the police were called upon to deal with a most deplorable series of riots, resulting in the murder of two soldiers, three seamen and a boarding house clerk. The excitement was intense and armed clashes occurred between groups of Malay seamen, the men of the 99th Regiment and the Police.
When the Hon. Mr. W. T. Mercer was Officer Administering the Government, following the retirement of Sir Hercules Robinson, he despatched a long report to the Home Authorities, in which he stated inter alia, that the Indian contingent of the Hong Kong Police Force had proved a failure. Mr. Mercer favoured the idea of dismissing the entire Indian personnel,,but they found a champion in the Superintendent, Mr. May, who believed they had not been given a fair trial. The result was that the Indian police stayed on, and are still with us to-day.
When Sir Richard MacDonnell took over the Governorship of Hong Kong, he found the Police Force rotten with corruption and bribery. All this he traced to the gambling evil and it was he who introduced a licensing system and aroused such an agitation as a result, that he was eventually forced to rescind the measure.
During the period of Sir Richard's Administration, the Police Force was sugjected to the closest scrutiny it ever received and to severe criticisms on the part of both the Governor, the Chief Justice, and by the community in general. Having satisfied himself, by personal investigations, of the inefficiency and corrupt character of the Force, Sir Richard attempted, in 1866 and 1867 to purify and reform the Corps by disciplinarian measures, and failed. In October, 1867, he assured the Secretary of state that he did not remember ever seeing, in any Colony, a body of men so ineffective in proportion to numbers, and so corrupt generally as the Police Force which he found in Hong Kong. There were at the time 89 Europeans, 377 Indians (chiefly Bombay sepoys) and 132 Chinese.
The licensing of gambling houses resulted in a marked improvement however, and still further efforts were made by the Governor to purge the Force of corrupt elements. Measures taken included the substitution of Scottish for English and Sikh for Bombay constables; the appointment of a deputy Superintendent of Police conversant with Hindustani (C. V. Creagh); the classification of the Chinese contingent, opening up to Chinese constables the prospect of promotion; the increase in the number of police stations and their inter-connection by telegraph; the establishment of a Police School (1869) and the encouragement thereby given to Sikhs and Chinese to learn English.
A definite improvement was soon noticed, but that it was almost entirely due to Sir Richard is evidenced by the fact that when he left the Colony on furlough in April, 1870, complaints of the demoralisation of the police recommenced, both on the paft of the Chief Justice and the public.
When the Police "eport of 1869 was published declaring the establishment of a detective force to be impracticable, the public read it as indicating that bribery rather than any other difficulty stood in the way of detecting crime.
The unofficial "embers of the Council also expressed dissatis- faction with the Police Force and asked that a Commission of Inquiry be appointed. The Chief Justice immediately laid on the table of the Council a "emorandum, inveighing against the inefficiency and corruption of the Force and suggesting that, in order to avoid constant friction between the Superintendent
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