VETERAN MAGISTRATE.

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 79, 3 April 1928, Page 5

VETERAN MAGISTRATE.

STILL AN OPTIMIST. REFLECTION'S OF MR. CUTTEN. HUMANE METHODS SUCCEED.

Twenty-one yeara have elapsed since Mr. Ernest took the oath of allegiance as a magistrate. Now, as senior S.M. of the Auckland province, he looks back over a period which has been made'notable for the more humane treatment of criminals (particularly juvenile delinquents), and looks forward to still greater progress in the realms of reformative and preventive treatment.

Despite Tiis long acquaintance with the seamy side of Police Court work, and a sad knowledge of the weakness and frailties of human kind, Mr. Cutten is still an optimist. "It is impossible to live in a city like Auckland and not be optimistic," lie said to a "Star" representative to-day. ."I have seen Auckland grow from a town of 60,000 to its present dimensions, and I believe that the future holds even greater growth in store. I have seen harsh and brutal punishment replaced by wise and humanitarian methods, and I believe that public interest in the prevention of crime is growing year by year. Yes, you may certainly write me down an optimist." •

How Children's Courts Began. In interesting fashion Mr. Cutten indicated the growth of the present-day system of dealing with juvenile delinquents. "Years ago," he said, "we attained many of the objects now achieved by the Children's Court by hearing charges against juveniles in the magistrate's room, and by instituting a system of control under which the case was adjourned, and the offender placed under the control of one of the social welfare workers of the district.

"That was the basis of the presentday Children's Court, and the success which attended our early reformative method was sufficient to justify its development," he said. "The proportion of children who are criminally inclined is infinitesimal, and there are few cases which fail to respond to proper treatment. It is very encouraging to realise how whole-heartedly the public is supporting institutions which have the good canse at heart. The League of Penal Reform numbers many thinking and influential people amongst its members, and there are many other organisations which are doing excellent work. I need hardly mention the value of the services rendered by the Salvation Army in the cause of reformation and-crime prevention, and the work of the City Mission on behalf of those who are unfortunate in the battle of life is also well known and deeply appreciated." Only Two Magistrates Then. Some idea of the growth of the Auckland province during the last quarter of a century will be gathered from the fact that when Mr. Cutten was appointed to the magisterial bench the whole of the city and district work w »« done by two men. Mr. C. C. Kettle, who was senior magistrate, and Mr. Cutten himself. They covered an area extending from Whangarei in the north to Pukekohe in the south, and including the whole of the city of Auckland. The Court was then held in the old building, which is now the stamp duty office in Courthouse ■ Lane, and a move was made to the present Police Court building in 1913.

Mr. Ciitten was born in Dnnedin in 1867, a son of Mr. W. H. Cutten, who was proprietor of the "Otago Witness," <ind with Sir Julius Vogel, of the "Otapo Daily Times." After serving in the office of Mr. B. C. Beckett, Crown solicitor, of Dunerlin. he became secretary to Sir Joshua Williams, one of New Zealand's famous judges. He was made magistrate in 1907, and, after serving at Napier, and later in Hamilton, he was appointed to Auckland in 1909. Work for the Young. The welfare of the young and work amongst the young people, apart altogether from police work duties or the punishment of crime, is a subject which 1 the veteran magistrate has always had closclv at heart. He said it was an encouraging sign of the times that a deeper interest was being taken by all classes of the community in the welfare of young people. Anything which affected their interest made an immediate appeal to the general body of the public, and signs of an increase in this beneficent work were unmistakable. In conclusion, Mr. Cutten referred once more to the good work done by the Salvation Army, mentioning in particular the services of Major Annie Gordon. Little was known, he said, of what the Army accomplished in the way of reformative and preventive work, and the city owed them a deep debt of gratitude. Excellent work was also being done at the inebriates' institutions on Rotoroa and Pakatoa, and the Prisoners' Aid Society and other charitable aid bodies continued to operate with most beneficial results.