PUNISHMENT AND AFTER-CARE.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 20090, 20 November 1930, Page 13

PUNISHMENT AND AFTER-CARE.

TO TH® EDITOR OTF THE PRESS. Sir, —In his remarks reported in your issue of Tuesday Air Mosley, S.ftt.. said that ''we could wish that those inclined to express opinions on the subject" of punishment and aftercare "had a little better understanding, and—he did not wish to be unkind—knew a little more of_ what. th_' v wrote and talk about so glib'y." was referring U> "certain societies, and as I know of no other society in

the Dominion that advocates penal reform .except the Howard League, he was presumably dealing with our work. We could, in our turn, wish that? Mr Mosley were a member of the League, for he would then be able to understand what may to an outsider seem rather unqualified statements. Of course he may not be referring to the Howard League at all, and in that case well and good, but there can be no harm in saying that the League's position on the question of punishment and after-care is per-

fectly clear, and is tainted with neither sentimentality in the one case nor unreasonableness in -the other. The question of punishment is far too large to deal with in a short tetter. but, briefly, we do not believe that punishment per se as administered today is either reformative, deterrent,

or protective, and we base our insistence on this on a number of well authenticated facts, one of which is that over 60 per cent, of convictions are recidivist, where ordinary gaol cases are concerned. This alone condemns our present system as lacking in what is jiow recoenised to be the first essential in dealing with delinquency, viz., the reformation of' the offender. If the prison population could be reduced and offenders. reformed would not.:Mr Mosley call .this a ."legitimate reform"? Well, the reforms wo advocate here have been in operation in Eneland.-and'we find that instead of a daily prison 'population of 10 per 10,000, as we have in this T>ominioii, there are only two /per .10,000. And, we further discover that 24 gaols have been closed in 25 years 1 If we could' reduce our daily prison

population to the English ratio we could save over £60,000 per annum! Our system is the old one- of making the punishment fit. the crime, with the result that we have a ''prescription" for the various offences irrespective of the individual -altogether. No attempt is made to employ up-to-date scientific methods of treatment, and examination before sentence is passed, with. the. very natural result that w© have 'instances in New Zealand of persona in gaol for the twohundredth time 1 The whole question of after-car© is of supreme importance, and has been recognised as such by the English authorities, who have adopted. a more i efficient here.' It is.—'however',- useless to add. to the already long ' list of "names", attached to our pertal methods in this • Dominion unless we are' prepared to produce a really efficient system. . No simple after-fcare proposals will be of any practical benefit unless wei har» at th© same: time adequate' expert examination and efficient "in-car®.'-' Uo-, fortunately Mr Mosley did-not '«peciW .'any' of the reformasnggested by tne /'enthusiasts"- to which he has ■ objection, but J do trust that when he ( anticipates the use of his "break" he will .at least refrain from its employ■ment until he can show that the suggested reforms hay®, gone beyond those already tried and been found successful iq other Yours, etc. • O. It. N. MACK lE, . Hon. Secretary; ChristcKurch Branch Howard "League. _ November 19th, 1930. i