MR LEVIEN, S.M.

Northern Advocate, 24 July 1923, Page 8

MR LEVIEN, S.M.

VALEDICTORY REFERENCES,

At tho Whangarei Magistrate's Court this morning opportunity was taken by the Bar, Police, and Magistrate's Court staff to bid farewell to Mr F. H. Levien,,. S.M., on his transfer to a new circuit.

On behalf of .the Bar, Mr W. A. Carruth said that it was with great regret that they were losing the services of an excellent Magistrate. Opinions of the Bar differed on various occasions, but when placed before a Magistrate of the type that Mr Levien represented they were always in safe hands. He was a good arbiter, and all were sorry to see him leave the district.

Senior-Sergeant Hollis voiced appreciation of the treatment that the Police Department had received at the hands of His "Worship. As a matter of fact, they had found a good friend in him, said Mr Hollis, and appreciated the fairness of His Worship's decisions.

Mr F. Bird, Clerk of the Court, in adding Ms testimony on behalf of the staff, sai dit was always a pleasure to Work under Mr Levien. His, staff had always done its best to make His Worship's work ,pWer. Although Mr Levien was to. be established in a dis* trict apart from Whangarei, it was pleasant to iwgjs" that he Would still bo in touch wi'th o f;his centre.

Mr Levien said that he had been five years in the district, but difficulties had arisen, through poor travelling facilities and as a. consequence it had been found necessary to station a resi- ! dent magistrate in Whangarei, Considerable travelling in all sorts of con- [ veyances was not conducive to magis- | terial duties; in point of fact, he had had to sit until 11 p.m. in some places to carry out the duties which devolved upoij his positi.on. This meant hard work for himself, but harder for the members of the Bar. He thanked the va.ridus speakers for their very, kind references. He understood that a resident Magistrate would be stationed in WJiangarei, whose district would include .Dargaville and Helensville. He would himself be stationed, as far as residence was concerned, in Russell, and he would do all in his power to make his successor's term of office easy. For his own part, he could say that in WTiangarei it had been a pleasure to see the police cases brought forward in the way in which they were. He congratulated the Clerk of the Court for the manner in which he transacted his business. When the | Clerk's advice had been apked for it had always been for good. He thanked r.he Press for the manner in which the Court proceedings had always been published. The reports had been fair and accurate.