POLICE COURTESY
SIR,—Starbuck recently complained in 'A Spectator's 'Notebook' that the police had taken an off-hand attitude towards a burglary of which he had been the victim. In the interests of fairness, will you allow me to record a somewhA different experience?
A few weeks ago I wrote to our local police station complaining about Ito oliganism on Barnes Common. I received a formal acknowledgment within forty-eight hours, and a few days later a constable called at my home. I happened to he away, but he left a message saying that 'the man on the beat' would look out for such misconduct and do any- thing possible to suppress it.
I would have been satisfied with that (the Common is not at all easy to supervise)" but soon after my return the constable called again to assure me personally that the police were trying to check the nuisance, and to encourage me to telephone at once, instead of writing, if I had further occasion to complain. And a fortnight after that again, he tele- phoned to find out if there had been any more trouble (as far as I knew, there 16dn't).
The constable .did mention several times that I had written 'a nice letter,' and did so in the tones of a man confronted with a novelty. Of course citizens ought to have protection whether they ask for -it nicely or nastily; but police are people, like the
rest of us, and it is just possible that some members of society on the Spectator level are seduced by their own fluent wit into an approach that does not bring out the best in the Force.
JOAN BRYANT
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