The Shadow of Great Britain

13: Chapter 10 The Strongest Voice from Scotland Yard_2 13: Chapter 10 The Strongest Voice from Scotland Yard_2 I was also unfortunate, having started this job the moment I graduated from university.

Like all my colleagues, I earned a weekly salary of twelve shillings, worked seven days a week, fourteen hours a day, and patrolled over fifteen miles.

I don’t want to deceive anyone here; this job is extremely exhausting and can’t be considered respectable, but these are not the biggest challenges I face at work.

I completely understand why the gentlemen and ladies present here harbored such great hostility towards me at the start of the trial.

Because even in our daily work, we are faced with such malice, even more naked and directly expressed.

In the half year that I worked at Scotland Yard, the Greenwich District where I was stationed experienced a total of sixty assaults on police officers,

yet ironically, we didn’t even have thirty constables in our area.

There were many colleagues who joined at the same time as I did, but now fewer than one-third remain by my side.

Some of them left because the salary was too low and the workload too high.

But the vast majority did so because we felt absolutely no respect in our work; we even felt more criminal than the criminals themselves.

The whole world is hostile towards us, looking to give us trouble at every turn.

But I don’t blame those people, just as today I won’t blame the gentlemen and ladies present here.

Because if someone were always at risk of sending me to the gallows, I probably wouldn’t be too friendly to them either.

But is it really true that all police officers want to send criminals to the gallows?

The case of young Adam today is laid out before us; I don’t wish to send him to the gallows, but my duty does not allow otherwise.

Just look at our laws.

Destroying roads, capital punishment.

Chopping down trees, capital punishment.

Stealing envelopes, capital punishment.

Retrieving sunken ship treasures, capital punishment.

Going out at night with a blackened face, capital punishment.

Stealing goods worth more than five shillings, capital punishment.

Unmarried mothers concealing a miscarriage, still capital punishment.

If I were to list all our capital offences, I estimate that it would take until nightfall to list them all.

This odd phenomenon was not merely discovered by me; Lord Samuel Romilly had already proposed the need to reform our penal code in Parliament as early as 1808, but unfortunately, his efforts were to no avail.

In 1808, we stipulated more than 160 capital offences, and after more than 20 years of efforts, we have now added over 70 more.

But has the rapid increase in the number of capital offences effectively improved the public safety environment?

Regrettably, I must report another set of data to everyone.

In 1805, in England and Wales alone, there were 4,605 arrests for criminal offences.

And last year, just last year!

Gentlemen,

Ladies,

Do you guess this number decreased?

No!

Of course not!

Last year, criminal cases in England and Wales reached an astonishing thirty thousand, which is six times the previous count!

This means the increase in capital offences not only did not help us improve the situation but caused the crime rate to skyrocket.

Of course, when I say this I do not mean I am for the abolition of the death penalty, but I hope to measure minor offences with a more suitable scale.

I don’t understand our society, I don’t understand why stealing five shillings should result in a death sentence.

In 1825, we had over seventy banks collapse, causing numerous depositors to suffer significant losses.

Those bank partners stole sums far exceeding five shillings, yet I saw not one of them hanged on the gallows.

I don’t understand, I don’t understand this society.

I also don’t know what I am working this job for, I clearly enforce the law, adhere to my duties, but always feel like I am committing a crime!

For fuck’s sake, I don’t understand, and no one tells me, why this has to be!

Why does my friend have to die over five shillings, while others who caused a loss of five million pounds are living well!

When I first joined the force, I often recited the “Police Order”, which told me:

Police should always keep a good relationship with the public, respecting the historical tradition that “the police are the public, and the public are the police”.

But now, the public tells me I’m not part of them.

And though I am clearly a police officer, I often find myself wanting to make statements that don’t align with my duties.

I’ve been confused about this until recently, when I read a passage in a proclamation.

And it’s because of it!

That I’ve decided to appear here today!

I’ve kept this proclamation to myself but also wish to share it with everyone.

No man is an island,

Entire of itself,

Each is a piece of the continent.

If a clod be washed away by the sea,

Europe is the less.

As well as if a promontory were,

As well as if a manor of thy friend’s or of thine own were.

Any man’s death diminishes me,

Because I am involved in mankind.

Therefore,

Never send to know for whom the bell tolls,

It tolls for thee!

Thank you, everyone,

Thank you for being willing to listen to a patrol officer, who is about to resign, give this trivial, inconsequential speech here.

Because this is probably the last time I’ll be appearing in a Magistrates’ Court.

Thank you,

I really thank you.”

Arthur’s chest heaved as he gasped for breath, sweat soaking through his white shirt, revealing his broad, open chest.

Although he knew he would be emotional due to the speech, even he was surprised by the extent of his reaction.

The courtroom was silent, every pair of eyes focused on his face.

But after a brief silence, scattered applause began in the courtroom.

Soon, everyone stood up from their seats.

Quickly, the applause merged together, exploding with the force of thunder throughout the Magistrates’ Court.

Amidst the cheers and shouts of approval, Officer Tom, tears streaming, knelt before Arthur, hugging his thighs.

“Arthur, it pains me, deeply pains me.

Why do we have to lose such an outstanding colleague?

I don’t understand, I really don’t…”

“Well done, Officer Arthur!”

“Brilliantly said!

Why obsess over a mere five shillings instead of punishing with five million pounds?

I can’t make sense of it either!”

“This law needs to change, I do not endorse hanging Adam!

It’s irresponsible towards the life of the public!”

Even the Magistrate couldn’t help but offer an admiring gaze toward Arthur, applauding as he addressed everyone.

“Please allow me to reintroduce, Great Britain’s finest police officer, a public role model, the strongest voice from Scotland Yard, Officer Arthur Hastings!”

But upon hearing this, Arthur first paused, then slowly bowed his head.

“Officer Arthur Hastings?”

He touched the badge on his uniform, revealing a somewhat bitter smile.

“I’m sorry, not any longer.”

In the midst of the jubilation, a gentleman seated in the gallery, wearing a black top hat, suddenly gestured to his servant.

He whispered commandingly: “Go to Scotland Yard at once, I need the personal file of this Officer Arthur Hastings immediately.”

The servant bowed slightly: “As you command, Sir Peel.”