static points, had the desired effect on would-be hooligans last night as Hallowe'en passed without a major incident.

Close to 200 officers blanketed the Island starting around 3.30 p.m. yesterday afternoon. All of them were called off duty at midnight.

Many of the Island's streets resembled a "ghost'' town as many people simply chose to stay home.

However, there were pockets of young men seated on cycles in the vicinity of Port Royal golf course, the Royal Naval field in Somerset and Friswell's Hill.

One quarter of the 20 reported incidents as of 12.45 a.m. -- all of which were minor -- came from the east end.

There were five incidents of eggs and other missiles being thrown at cars and buses in St. David's and there was a report of a fire on Mount Road around 8.30 p.m. which is believed to have come from a Molotov cocktail being thrown.

There was also a report of men breaking bottles on Malabar Road, Sandys just after 11.15 p.m.

The Royal Gazette drove along with a Police patrol and, apart from two motorists being pulled over and warned -- one was a taxi driver who disobeyed a traffic sign at Southampton Princess and the second was an auxiliary cyclist who failed to stop at Lane Hill -- there were no other incidents.

The taxi driver told a Reserve officer that he had been counting his money while driving and this accounted for the erratic manner in which he was driving.

Since he did not appear drunk nor was there any sign of alcohol impairment, the taxi driver was let off with a stern warning.

A visit to the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital emergency department around 10.30 p.m. found that there had been no major or minor incidents that required their services.

Meanwhile, Police spokesperson Evelyn James Barnett said that the Police Service, working in tandem with parents, proved to be an effective deterrent for would-be hooligans last night.

She said many parents heeded the public pleas from National PTA president Anthony Steede and parent Nadia Shakir, wife of Muslim Imam Ameer Shakir.

Mr. Steede called on parents to be more responsible for their children's behaviour while Mrs. Shakir took her appeal directly to the public.

Yesterday morning Mrs. Shakir, a nurse in the Extended Care Unit of the Kind Edward VII Memorial Hospital, stood at the round-a-bout at East Broadway holding two placards.

One banner said: "Wanted Parents: Job description, common sense.'' The other said: "Have a safe and fun day. Remember eggs are for omelettes.'' Mrs. James Barnett praised the actions of parents like Mrs. Shakir and others who attended at CedarBridge Academy yesterday and said that these measures were responsible in a large part for the relative quiet last night.

She said: "The relatively quiet night can be attributed to a number of factors such as the very high Police presence, a serious and concerted effort on the part of the community at large, especially from parents, and the good behaviour of the Island's young people, specifically school students.''