Munro's Resignation

This article pertains to the situation that occured after Munro's resignation, which was due, to the miscarriage of justice related to the Cleveland Street Scandal. Munro wanted all the aristocratic individuals involved brought to trial, but received a huge amount of pressure from Government members. Perhaps they just didn't want the police to find out the exact names of all the individuals involved at the Cleveland Street brothel; as some may have even been Parliament members themselves. It seems that Munro had many supporters within the ranks, though...

England
Corresp. particuliere Journal De Geneve
London, July 10.

The troubles at Bow Street - The strike of factors.

Under the pen of our radical bodies, whose telegraphic agencies have aided and abetted more than would have wanted to respect the truth, the problems with Bow Street was the scene took a turn that seems exaggerated at least as regards the role played by the police. Less than a hundred policemen were dismissed for insubordination and even if these rigorous measures had to be taken, it is the fault of the most awkward maneuver which was given to the higher authorities at Scotland Yard. Do not forget that the resignation of Mr. Munro, given the circumstances and causes that I have spoken of, had naturally created in the ranks of the police an emotion in short excusable. The actions of the leaders of the Radical Party, but above all the examples of the opposition in Parliament, were also incentives that authorities should have considered and they should have foreseen and fought. How do we as men without much education, as are young constables who have been hit, especially when they had before them the examples of Parliament members, one of their chief's retiring because they do not render justice, and they heard that more of their inspectors take their side, were able to resist pernicious advice given them by radicals, then we have neglected to make them see where their interests lie and that they do not heed the voice of discipline and duty? Despite this, there has not been in the ranks of the police a single act of violence, and the body beautiful has kept money in a very calm attitude and very deserving. The disturbances that took place in the street are only the fact of the criminal classes of London, among whom I have seen first hand by the presence of socialist leaders, who, I suspect, worry less about improving the payroll of policeman, their enemy, but to fish in troubled waters and to promote the political chances of their radical friends, causing embarrassment to the ministry today. When the band of thieves who attack cars leaving the Opera, shouting: Look diamonds, it probably had nothing to do with sympathy for policemen. This distinction needs to be done, and which must be primarily focused if we want to give their true face to the troubles in question.

Source: Journal De Geneve, July 13, 1890, Page 2

Postscript.

Dr. R. Anderson has been gazetted Assistant-Commissioner of Police for London in the room of Mr. James Monro, resigned.

Source: The Guardian, August 29, 1888, Page 1274

ITEMS OF NEWS.
HOME.

There is trouble in Scotland-yard. Assistant-Commissioner Munro has retired, and there is friction in respect to other officials. It is said to be possible that Sir Charles Warren will also retire, and succeed Sir Hercules Robinson at the Cape.

Source: The Nonconformist and Independent, September 6, 1888, Page 858

THE RESIGNATION OF MR. MONRO.

In reply to MR. J. STUART and MR. J. ROWLANDS, the HOME SECRETARY regretted to say it was true that Mr. Monro had resigned the Chief Commissionership of Police. The resignation, which had been accepted, was due to difference of opinion between him and Mr. Matthews on questions of administration and legislation affecting the police.

RESIGNATION OF MR. MONRO.

It was announced yesterday in Parliament by the Home Secretary that Mr. James Monro, C.B., has resigned the appointment of Commissioner of Police for the Metropolis, and that his resignation has been accepted. Mr. Monro, who had been previously head of the Detective Department, was appointed Commissioner by Mr. Matthews on Sir Charles Warren's resignation at the close of 1888.
The resignation is attributed to differences with the Home Secretary on points of administration and legislation, similar in some respects to those that led to Sir C. Warren's resignation. It is stated in police circles that since Mr. Monro accepted the post, at the end of 1889, he has done much to establish a satisfactory system of administration and to better the condition of the men. Since 1872 the police have been agitated by a grievance regarding the present system of pensioning an officer, which has gradually developed until it has involved a series of demands which could only be settled by a Government Committee or a Royal Commission, and on more than one occasion the dissatisfaction amongst the men has threatened to culminate in a crisis in the metropolis. Successive Governments have promised to consider the men's demands; but it was not until last year that any definite action was taken, when a committee was appointed at Scotland Yard to consider and advise upon a basis of settlement of the superannuation scheme, the questions of pay and other details of duty being regarded as of secondary importance.
Until then, and even now, no officer receives a pension until he has been returned as medically unfit for duty by the chief surgeon, Mr. M'Kellar. This is the foundation of the pension grievance. To satisfy the men's demands the Scotland Yard Committee recommended that an officer completing twenty-five years' service, or attaining before that period the age of fifty years, should be entitled to his discharge with a pension amounting to two-thirds of his pay. This scheme was submitted and accepted by 15,000 of the men forming the force, and it was understood that his compact would be embodied in a Bill and submitted to Parliament. This and other recommendations which would benefit the men have, it is stated, not met exactly with the Home Secretary's views upon the subject, although on Tuesday night, in the House of Commons, he announced, in reply to Colonel Howard Vincent, that he hoped shortly to deal with the Metropolitan Police Superannuation Bill.

Mr. Monro, who resigned his appointment as Chief Commissioner of Police last week, held many and various appointments in India with distinction. He became in turn assistant magistrate, magistrate, Secretary to the Board of Revenue, deputy collector of customs, and district and sessions judge. He then developed into an Inspector-General of Police, and, later, into Commissioner of the Presidency Division. It is seven years since Mr. Monro returned to England.

CUTTINGS FROM THE "COMICS."
(From Punch.)

"IF YOU WANT TO KNOW THE TRUTH, ASK A P'LICEMAN!"
As sung by the Not-quite-at-Home Secretary in his Unpopular Entertainment.

Why did Monro resign?
Was it any fault of mine?
If you want to know the truth -
Ask the p'liceman!

Source: The Wandsworth and Battersea District Times, Saturday June 21, 1890

If policemen enjoyed the privilege of making "martyrs," they would certainly have singled out their late Metropolitan Commissioner for that honour, for Mr. Munro, C.B., was a martyr for them. It may be remembered he urged upon the then Home Secretary, Mr. Matthews, certain reforms in the pension system for the police, from which the men suffered injustice. The Home Secretary declined to listen, and Mr. Munro resigned by way of protest, and had the satisfaction of seeing within a few months all he contended for granted. Mr. Munro had formerly been an India Civil servant, and on his retiring he went to India again, for what purpose was not known, as he was long past the age of service. A gentleman lately travelling in India found him living at Kishenagur, a town a little to the north of Calcutta. He was spending his time in teaching the Bengalis the Christian faith, and said he hoped to pass the rest of his life in that manner. Asked as to whether he was not disappointed at the few converts made, he answered he was surprised there were so many. When a Bengali declared himself a Christian there was no more work for him in the workshop, and no more rice for him in the house. He stated that no figures gave the real influence Christianity had in India, every Bengali gentleman had a Bible on his book-shelves, and generally he studied it, and in various ways ordered his life by it. Altogether, he said, there was not the least cause for the gloomy view often taken of missionary work in India.

Source: Blackheath Gazette, Friday September 27, 1895, Page 4

Jottings.

Sir Edward Bradford succeeds Mr. Monro, and he is likely to prove a good man. His career in India is well known. Although as a youngster he performed a good deal of soldiering, the greatest part of his official life has been spent in discharging civil duties. He would consider himself much more of a civilian than a soldier, though he has reason to look back with pride on his connection with the Indian army. Throughout his long Indian career Sir Edward Bradford was always remarkable for his conciliatory disposition, and he was generally regarded as a model Political Agent. He did not seek the Chief Commissionership. It was offered him, and, having accepted the post, he will fill it well. Just at present matters are anything but agreeable at Scotland Yard. The police have a grievance, and Mr. Monro did not object to their airing it. The new Commissioner does not think that meetings of policemen to discuss questions affecting their pay are conducive to order, and he has prohibited these gatherings. The result is that Sir E. Bradford is not the idol of the Force at present, and there is some apprehension as to what is to happen.

The question of the police and their management is one of the topics of the hour. It was hoped that when Mr. Monro succeeded Sir Charles Warren everything would go well; but the Home Secretary is now hopelessly at variance with his own nominee, and Mr. Monro has in consequence sent in his resignation, which has been accepted. Last week Mr. Matthews read in the House of Commons the letter in which the Commissioner tendered his resignation. The reasons assigned by Mr. Monro for this step were that his views on the superannuation of the Metropolitan Police were diametrically opposed to those of Mr. Matthews, as embodied in the Government Bill, that a similar divergence of opinion existed as to the administration of the force, and lastly, but not least, that he received "clear indications" that the Home Secretary intended to appoint as the successor of the late Colonel Pearson, Assistant Commissioner of Police, a gentleman who had "no police, military, or legal training." It is generally asserted, and not denied, that the gentleman thus referred to is Mr. Ruggles-Brise, the private secretary of Mr. Matthews. After reading the letter, the Home Secretary stated that he had expressed no opinion as to the successor of Colonel Pearson, and proposed now to appoint Chief Constable Howard, but that the attitude of Mr. Monro on the superannuation question left him no alternative but to accept his resignation. The difference of view as to administration might, he thought, have been adjusted. Mr. Monro at once intimated through the Press that he did not by any means accept the statement made by the Home Secretary, but that he would defer his explanation as to the matters which led to his resignation until the Government Superannuation Bill was in his hands. There the matter stands. Meantime the Police Bill, which has been published, makes it clear that the Government are not disposed to deal with the police in a liberal spirit, and that pressure must be brought to bear on them.

MAGAZINES FOR JULY.

Murray's Magazine opens with "St. Marina," a touching poem by Mr. Lewis Morris. Mr. J. Hall Richardson gives us in "Scotland Yard" a somewhat clumsily framed article, which begins with a description of the new police-offices, but quickly diverges into a history of Mr. Monro's administration, from the point of view of an ardent supporter. The all-important subject of "Technical Education" is ably discussed in two papers by two competent writers. Mr. P.E. Matheson, the secretary of the Oxford and Cambridge School Examination Board, treats of "Technical Education for Boys and Men," while Miss Selina Hadland, late principal of the Milton Mount College, is concerned with "Technical Education for Girls." "The Empty Compartment" is a railway ghost story of a peculiarly gruesome nature. Mr. Jon Steffanson asks the question, "Why not Iceland?" and gives so fascinating an account of his native land as a summer resort that we feel inclined to start at once for that strange volcanic isle.

Source: The Guardian, July 9, 1890, Page 1106

RESIGNATION OF MR. MONRO.

Mr. Monro, Commissioner of Police, placed his resignation in the hands of the Home Secretary on Thursday morning, and the same was immediately accepted. Mr. Matthews, it was stated, sought to appoint his private secretary to the position occupied at Scotland-yard by the late Colonel Pearson, in opposition to the strong recommendation by Mr. Monro of Mr. A.C. Howard, Senior Chief Constable, who had spent many years in the police service immediately under Colonel Pearson. Mr. Monro would not agree to the Home Secretary's proposal, and determined to resign.
After tendering his resignation on Thursday, Mr. Monro called a conference at Scotland-yard of the superintendents of the 21 divisions, whom he informed of his decision. The announcement was received with surprise and regret, and some of the officers expressed themselves strongly on the matter, and would have gone in a body to the Home office and lodged a protest, had not one of Mr. Monro's subordinates reasoned with them. When "a general information" acquainted the men they were even more dissatisfied.
The Pall Mall Gazette of last night says that previous to Mr. Monro's resignation Mr. Matthews had as good as appointed his private secretary, Mr. Ruggles-Brise, to the post. The appointment had not, of course, been actually made; but Mr. Matthews had conferred with Mr. Monro on the subject, and had left no doubt on the mind of the latter that he intended to appoint Mr. Ruggles-Brise. Mr. Monro, while strongly advocating the counter-claims of Chief Constable Howard, appeared to be perfectly well disposed towards Mr. Matthews's nominee; and there was considerable surprise on the part of the Home office authorities when the succession to the Assistant-Commissionership was dragged into Mr. Monro's letter of resignation. This changed the situation, and Mr. Matthews thereupon appointed Chief Constable Howard to the post.
We are informed that a requisition has been signed by every inspector of the B division of police, without exception, and forwarded to headquarters, praying that they may be permitted to call a general meeting of the men of the division to consider the present position of the superannuation scheme. This step has been taken in consequence of the strong feeling excited in the division by the resignation of Mr. Monro, the general opinion being that he has sacrificed himself in endeavouring to promote the interests of the police force.
Yesterday afternoon a conference of superintendents and chief officers of the Metropolitan police force and Criminal Investigation department was held at Scotland-yard. The proceedings were, of course, strictly private; but it is understood that amongst other questions regarding the service touched upon was the present crisis in the force resulting from the differences existing between the Home office and Scotland-yard and the resignation of Mr. Monro. It is stated that Mr. Monro had appealed to the men to withhold agitation regarding their grievances until they are acquainted with the proposed basis of settlement of the superannuation scheme embodied in the bill which Mr. Matthews introduced in the House of Commons.
On Friday night the Metropolitan police orders contained the following notification with respect to gratuities: -

"The Commissioner notifies to the service that the Secretary of State has, by letter dated 12 inst., approved of the payment of 100 pounds as gratuities to the police who performed extra duty in connection with the meetings of Sept. 22, Oct. 20, Nov. 10, Dec. 15, and Jan. 19 last, and during the strike of gas workers in South London from Dec. 15 to Jan. 12 last.
"The Secretary of State" having granted 100 pounds only to meet the claim made for 138 pounds, the rate of allowance cannot be charged on the usual refreshment allowance scale, but must be calculated as follows: -

For each inspector.....................1s. 7d. instead of 2s. 6d.
For each P.S....................................9d. instead of 1s. 2d.
For each P.C....................................9d. instead of 1s. 0d.

"Forms 54 claiming the above gratuities for the numbers of police given by superintendents in their returns furnished Sept. 24, Oct. 21, Nov. 20, Dec. 18, and Jan. 22 last, and the weekly returns furnished pursuant to memorandum dated Dec. 11 last, are to be forwarded to this office 16th inst."

The above order, which is said to have come direct from the Home Secretary, has greatly incensed the men. "It's most disgraceful and provoking," said a constable, "considering that men had to travel from extreme points in the northern suburbs and provide themselves with victuals and refreshments in a strange neighbourhood on 9d. a day."
The Central News says: - The majority of the divisions of the Metropolitan police have resolved not to accept the small gratuity given by the Secretary of State in recognition of extra duties.

AMONG THE MEN.

Our special correspondent for some days has given careful attention to the undoubted disaffection quietly smouldering among the Metropolitan police force. He reports: - For years the police have been moving for an improved pension scheme. Every man in the force - of whatever rank - contributes two-and-a-half per cent of his pay towards a pension fund, in which he does not, under present rules, participate unless certified as physically unfit for further service. What is wanted is that after twenty-four years' service a man may, as of right, retire with a pension of two-thirds of his pay. This is stated as forty-sixtieths, because it is desired to put back this right of retirement to 15 years' service, at which time a man is to receive twenty-sixtieths, or one-third his pay; that for every further year's service the pension is to be increased by one-sixtieth up to 20 years, and by two-sixtieths beyond that, with absolute right of retirement on due notice. It is understood that Mr. Matthews' bill grants this right on three-fifths pay after 25 years' service, and does not recognise any claim to pension at earlier date unless under medical order. The police force are very earnest as to this point of fiftieths and sixtieths, and they have the advantage of Mr. Monro's self-sacrificing support. A large number of men retire after 10 or 12 years' service. They see little chance of promotion, and are tired of their perpetual tramp - heel and toe - over their dreary beats. Very, very few men on continuous outdoor duty last for 25 years, and the agitation is really on behalf of those who, from weariness or other opportunities in life, withdraw before being legally entitled to a pension. It is also claimed that when from any cause (other than bad conduct) a man leaves the service before being eligible for a pension, he shall be at liberty to draw out such sums as he has been compelled to pay towards the pension fund. Financiers well know that as this money is invested at interest, the suggested withdrawal will inflict a comparatively small loss.
As to pay, the initial wage, 24s. a week, is, it is claimed, too low - particularly as there is 6d. deducted for the pension fund. Besides this, a self-imposed but absolutely binding rule compels every constable to contribute one halfpenny to every man retiring from the force, and one penny to the representatives of every one that dies. With a staff of nearly 15,000 men it is not surprising that this payment averages 5d. to 7d. per week, so that a new hand rarely can net 23s. during his first three years of service. In the City the men begin with 25s. net, and after one year's service advance to 28s. The Metropolitan men want to begin at 27s., and after three years jump to 30s., while a first-class constable of six years' service is to have 33s. Probably they are not tied to these figures, and if an initial wage of, say, 25s. net, rising gradually by increments of 1s. per week per year, were instituted, it would satisfy all reasonable demands of the men. The gradual rise would act as a constant incentive to good behaviour, and would ease the ratepayer's pocket, for it must not be forgotten that a shilling added to the wages of 15,000 men means 39,000 pounds a year added to the rates. The police further maintain that they, like other working-men, are entitled to overtime. Their beat is calculated at eight hours a day, but under the best circumstances two hours a day are occupied in going and returning from home to the station - for pay and uniform - in addition to drills. But beyond this, in times of popular tumult, if in town there is no extra pay - sometimes a gratuity - and even the men who are sent down to race meetings only receive a refreshment allowance of 1s. 2d. The question may be considered a small one, but much of the trouble over the Trafalgar-square demonstrations in 1888 would have been avoided if the police had not been hungry and unpaid. A satisfied police is the greatest benefit to law-abiding citizens.

CITY POLICE GRIEVANCES.

Colonel Sir James Fraser, the Chief Commissioner of the City of London police, has received a petition from the members of his force. They respectfully ask him, through the Court of Common council, to grant the men a rise in wages of 15 per cent per week, and the document has been signed by the whole of the men. The commissioner expresses his entire sympathy with the movement, and states that he knows that many of the married men with families have a hard job to make both ends meet, and had to pay very heavy rent. He, however, is of opinion that the matter had better stand on one side until the Metropolitan police petition has been settled. Mr. Samuel Lewis, one of the candidates for the Court of Common Council, is of opinion that the council should give the matter their most careful consideration on Thursday next. He maintains that the City police are worse off than the Metropolitan, inasmuch as they can look forward for a good pension bill, while the City policeman's lot has been marred by the new Superannuation Act, 1889, which has reduced the scale of pensions from 21s. to 12s. per week after 20 years' service, and from 15s. 9d. to 9s. 5d. per week after 15 years' service, if returned medically unfit. The men in the force have expressed their satisfaction at the manner in which Colonels Fraser and Smith and Chief-superintendent Foster have received their memorial, and have decided to leave it in their hands.

Source: Lloyd's Weekly London Newspaper, June 15, 1890, Page 11