Informations_. This is a sheet about foolscap size, and its publication
is confined to the Metropolitan Police. It is printed four times a day,
except on Sundays when it is issued twice, and distributed by brisk
little motor cars among the various stations. Some idea of its contents
may be gathered from the headings: "Wanted for Crime," "In Custody for
Crime," "Property Stolen," "Property Lost or Stolen," "Persons or Bodies
Found," "Persons Missing," "Animals Lost or Stolen."

Apart from these papers, which are purely confidential, there are other
papers issued. There is the "Black List" issued to publicans, with
portraits and descriptions of persons to whom it is an offence to supply
liquor, and the "Pawnbrokers' List and Cycle List," which has to be sent
to those persons to whom stolen property might be offered for pledge or
sale. These latter are distributed from each station by hand.

It is at the Statistical Department that many of the riddles are fired.
It has the record of each man in its files, knows his official
character, his medical history, and so on.

Now and again some one wants to know how many street accidents occurred
in London during a particular week. The department produces a carefully
prepared table showing the number and details in each case.

Figures may be unattractive things, yet at any moment the statistics
collected in that quiet, methodical office may have a direct effect on
any one of London's teeming millions.

When the order went forth that all cyclists in London should carry rear
lights it was probably a string of figures put together in that
department which was responsible--figures which showed the number of
accidents that had been caused in the absence of any such precaution.

It keeps track of everything done by the police, individually and
collectively. Ask how many charges were preferred by the police in one
year. You will learn at once that there were 133,000, that 26,000
summonses were issued by police officers, and 63,000 were served on
behalf of private persons.

There are about three hundred mounted police in the force, and these, as
a whole, come under the control of the department, although at ordinary
times they are attached to divisions.

They used to be attached to the outer divisions, but it was found that
they were too far away when an emergency arose, for, after all, the
mounted man is of most use in controlling unruly crowds. So now they are
with the inner di