The police officers concerned stated, for example, that they cannot
let an accused man be bailed out on their own responsibility if the alleged crime was not committed in their own district. This might obviously entail delays not merely of hours but of days on some uncorroborated or even blackmailing charge ; and it is plainly inconsistent with every man's right to communicate with friends and to be bailed out at the earliest possible moment. He has the right to be advised and represented at a parade for identification (which appears often to be farcical), but in this case the accused was not told of his right. The trouble seems to be due to the fact that the regulations are administered by men who are not trained or qualified to do more than carry out by rule of thumb instructions which they can scarcely know by heart since they have become so long and of which the broad intention ceases to be plain because they are so compli- cated. The best police in the world may slip into a care- less groove in carrying out their often dull and sordid duties, and from time to time they need to be pulled up sharply and encouraged to do better. Such a moment has arrived in London.
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