40

We may here notice two changes which have been intro-duced into the tables in the appendix, and in those of thenative army and gaol population as well as the British troops.’The first is a line under each table of the causes of deathsshowing the ’- composition of 100 deaths," and a column in"each table of the causes of admissions showing the 11 com-,position of 100 admissions," and the second, an alteration inthe mode of calculating the proportion who have " died out- of each 100 cases admitted." In the latter they exclude- deaths out of hospital and deaths of cases admitted in theprevious year. We can understand the omission of the’first of these because they were not " cases admitted,"but we fail entirely to see why the second group should beso treated. It will of course show a more favourable resultof treatment, but an incorrect one. If they are for anygood reason to be omitted, a deduction should be madefrom the cases of one-half of those remaining under treat-ment at the end of the year as being on the average only’half treated, and as having therefore yielded only a portion ofthe deaths which they cause. Bat surely it is a much more- reasonable method to caiculate the total deaths on thetotal admissions, the overlapping of cases at the beginningof the year being compensated by a similar overlapping atthe end carried into the next year. On the system nowintroduced a certain number of deaths must always be- omitted in the calculation of the results of the cases. Itreally amounts to this, that because the deaths have notoccurred before Dec. 31st they are to be counted as

recoveries!

THE METROPOLITAN POLICE.

THE grievance respecting which the Metropolitan Police- are agitating at the present is a matter of much more than- class interest, since not only is the public peace very prin-,cipally dependent upon the smooth and successful workingof the police organisation, but the force itself has, by a long,course of public service admirably rendered, become highlypopular with all classes of citizens, and hence any remon-strances which its members may address either to the’Government or to the Legislature are sure to be consideredwith a large measure of sympathy by the public, andeven with a strong prepossession in favour of the objectors.It will, therefore, be a matter of interest to many of ourreaders to learn what, from the point of view of themembers of the force, is the ground of complaint whichthey find in Mr. Matthews’s superannuation scheme.The strength of the feeling which has arisen hasIbeen markedly manifested by the resignation of Mr.Monro, and it will probably appear at first sight as

’if the feeling were disproportionate to the substance of the,dispute. The police, in their representations to the Govern-ment, have asked in substance for a superannuation allowancewhich will secure to a constable, after twenty-five years’.-service, unconditional right to retire upon a life pension oftwo-thirds of his full pay, and before the completion of thisterm of service, will provide for his retirement upon a scaleof allowance varying from half pay up to the two-thirdslimit if he has seen not less than tifteen years’ service. TheBill which the Home Secretary has introduced adopts thetime limits of fifteen and twenty-five years as defining thetperiod within which retirement may take place at the option<of the constable, but provides a somewhat less liberal scaleof allowances than the police have asked for. Thus theminimum pension is to be three-tenths instead of one-

half of full pay, and the maximum pension of two-’thirds pay is not to be granted until a qualifyingage (of fifty years) has been attained. These abate-ments, from their full demands, have given occasion-for the very strong feeling which has been manifested bythe police in the course of this discussion. It is easy to’understand that a question of this kind is of extremeinterest to the men, and the difference of about 10 per.cent. between their demands and the Government proposalat service periods varying from fifteen to twenty-five yearsis one which they cannot be expected to regard as a matterof small moment. There is no manner of doubt that avery considerable proportion of the applicants for super-annuation will be driven by force of circumstances to retire’before the expiration of the full qualifying period of twenty-five years, and on them the disadvantage of this deduction

will fall with all its weight. But we are inclined to thinkthat a somewhat exaggerated impression of the proportionof men who will fall short of full term service hasobtained currency. The men in their manifesto statethat it has been shown that out of a strength of between14,000 and 15,000 men the metropolitan force can onlyshow some 329 individuals who have completed so longa term of service. If the ratio of 329 to 15,000 were a trueexpression of the probability which measures a constable’schance of qualifying eventually for a full pension, it would,no doubt, indicate that the Home Office scheme is littlebetter than a delusion and a snare. This, however, ismanifestly an inaccurate figure. The present strength ofthe force may be about 15,000 men, but it contains a verylarge proportion of new comers, having, indeed, been aug-mented by about one-third of its whole number within thepast ten years. The proper way to test the merit of thescheme would be to calculate the proportion which these329 survivors of twenty-five years ago bear to the numberof men recruited at and about that date. For this test nomaterials are forthcoming at the present moment, but ifanybody who has access to suitable statistics-if, indeed,such statistics are in existence, which we doubt-willgive the public the benefit of research into this matter,we think that he will be able to exhibit the Govern-ment proposal in a much more favourable light. A man’schances of benefiting under the scheme are measuredby the proportion which the number completing the giventerm of service in any given period, say a year, bears to thenumber recruited in the same period, the strength of theforce being assumed constant. To attempt to test it by acomparison between the number qualified and the numberunqualified at any given time is an error which it iseasy to expose, but far less easy, we fear, to exterminate.The adverse opinion which the men have formed appears torest in some measure upon a belief that the conditions oflife of an ordinary constable, especially in the metropolis,are exceptionally arduous and trying to the health. Wethink that probably there is some misapprehension, or atleast some exaggeration, here. No doubt they are verymuch exposed to weather, and the slow movement whichthey habitually maintain on beat is not of itself a desirableform of exercise. But these are not very serious disadvan-tages, and in the constant supply of fresh air and freedomfrom worry which they enjoy there are very substantialcompensations. Still, it is not so important to refute thearguments of the men’s manifesto as to convince the forcethat they are being fairly treated, and we trust thatthe strong case which Mr. Matthews made out for hisscheme upon the second reading debate will do somethingto remove misapprehension, and, above all, to satisfy theconstabulary that their case has received not only a fair, butalso a friendly, consideration at the hands of the Legislature.

THE ELECTION AT THE ROYAL COLLEGEOF SURGEONS.

THE second election of three members to the Council ofthe Royal College of Surgeons under the new regulationsand voting by means of proxy papers was held in the

library of the College on the afternoon of Thursday, the3rd inst., from 2 till 4 o’clock, and resulted as follows :-Mr. W. MITCHELL BANKS 378 (including 58 plumpers.)Mr. MARCUS BECK...... 237 " 13 13

Mr. JOHN LANGTON ... 185 " 4 "

Mr. R. Lawson Tait ...... 160 " 12 "

Mr. R. Brudenell Carter ... 145 " 3 "

Mr. Walter Rivington...... 131 " 3 "

Mr. Edward Bellamy ...... 74 " 3 "

Last year Mr. Rivington polled 180 votes, including 3

plumpers, and Mr. Lawson Tait 177, including 8 plumpers.The largest number of votes (out of the 600 recorded)obtained by a successful member last year at this electionwas 397. Altogether 446 proxy papers were sent out bythe Secretary in response to applications. Of these, 372were returned, of which 1 was invalid and 12 arrived toolate. About 150 Fellows attended in person and voted.

HOME FOR LEPERS, BOMBAY.-Sir DinshawManockjee Petit Bar has munificently offered a lakh ofrupees for the erection of a new home for lepers in Bombay.