THE COURT-MARTIAL.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1124, 11 May 1911, Page 6

THE COURT-MARTIAL.

j HEARING ENDED. ", f LETTER AND WARNING. ;' ADDRESSES BY COUNSEL. i THE POINTS TO BE DECIDED. ' The-hearing of evidence and argument in the trial by court-martini of ex-Cap- • tain F. B. Knyvett, formerly officer com- '. nmnding No. 1 Conipanj-, Auckland Gar- "' itlsou-Artillery Division, on n chargo of \ f Shaving, on November 10, 1009, addressed : jto the Minister for Defence a letter crii 'ticising in alleged improper language tho '; Chief.'of tho General Staff (Colonel A. W. !■ Robin, C.8.), was concluded yesterday at : the Wellington Garrison Hall, before Colonel K. S. Heard, Imperial General Staff (President of the Court), and'Lieutenanti Colonel J. T. Burnett-Stuart, D.S.O. (Im- : periaL General Staff), Major D. E. Men- :• Jzio (New Zealand Garrison Artillery), : .Major C. Harcourt Turner-(Fifth Weliliugton Hides), Captain A. F. Koberts '(Now 'Zealand Field Artillery); and Lieu- ! jtenant Thornton (New Zealand Staff I •'Corps,' attached to General Hendquarters). ! iLieutenant-Colonel Heed, Judgc-Advoeate-I General was also present. Mr. T. Neave, I Crown Law Department, was'counsel for ! the .prosecution,-ami.Captain G. H - Daw " i' son, Auckland. Signalling Corps, appeared !.■-■' ior tho accused.. ' ■'■ Asked if he desired to call further on-. t 'deuce Captain KaWsou raised tho question I >*s, to: his right, to call further evidence 1 liu support of the plea that the accused i • Jaad taken all tho-necessary steps: to '■:■ I bring' the letter under- the notice ot his ' ■ -(superior officer (Lieutenant-Colonel Fat- !■" terson)' and that his attention .had not ! .then been directed to the fact, that the i biibject matter of tiio context since com- { plained of was insubordinate. ■' The Jutlge-Advocate-Gcneraly. referred i • " ■ to, did not consider that any further evi- ' deuce' on that point was necessary. _ ' Tho president: Mr. Knyvett; has given i '.his evidence on oath, and I think we my i consider that lie has spoken truthfully. '\ \: . Knyvett's State of Mind. ! , Captain Dawsou tlieir called Colonel G. '<■ (C. 13. Wolfe, aud led evidence as to-cnar- ' aeter. In reply to officer-counsel,, the witness stated that, prior to the unfortunate incident iu question Captain lvnj-Tctt-TOS one of .the keenest officers in his command. When- lie returned, from ! thaf trip to Wellington he was in an ■ excitable state. This might have been '•ieomo excuse-though it could never, be !- .-considered as. an. excuse ion insubordin-. t lation—for his subsequent conduct. ; . Captain Dawsou: Was ho or was he inot subordinate in conduct prior to that. !■ Colonel Wolfe: Up till that time I had ■:. '.found him subordinate. •' I Captain Knyvctt had .been an example i. to his brother officers?-"\es. ' , His influence had been -particularly 1 -helpful in connection- with ths Officers I Club?—" Yes." ! - Personally he was rather brusque—as I n colonial, his- had not the polish of an 1 (English officer? . ■. I "I don't think 1 can. very well answer ;. (that-question," said Colonel Wolfe, ap ; . i ■ ipealing to'the Court.'. . ! ' "It is. certainly .rather a difficult one f , to . answer," • commented tho Jungei •'Advocate.. • ■ ■ ; .. The president indicated that thers was ■ no neccssitv to answer, tho question. / ! Officer-Counsel's Address. i There being no further evidence, the ; president thereupon called upon Officer- : Counsel for tho accused to address the ' Court. Captain Dawson asked for a Tilling as to the burden of proof. They were charged with commenting in im- : proper language. Was the onus of proof upon the prosecution or upon the defence. ,. The Judge-Advocate: The burden of - proving that tho accused wrote the letter ; lies upon the prosecution. . That, howi ever; haS ' already been ' admitted. The I question as to the alleged impropriety now becomes one of fact, for the Court to : decide. . : Captain Dawson: AVe submit that in the i" alleged impropriety thcro wag no guilty ; ' intent. ■ The Judge-Advocate: Where the words I used are ambiguous, the question of in- ■ tent becomes one of .evidence' Where I there is no ambiguity, it becomes (t ' .question of fact. i , . Captain Dawson, continuing, said that, ',; the right to sulunit a complaint having I ;been. admitted, they had to establish their J plea'that the language of tho complaint ' .was not insubordinate, and not improper. ; To appreciate the merit, of that plea, it I .was necessary that the whole of the ciri. tc'imstanci's siirroundiiit; (ho net should be i 'considered. .Captain Knyvett was, while • !in command of No. 1 Company of ! Garrison" A'rtillory at Anckland. easily i the most popular and most enthusiastic ! officer in tho garrison. Tfl'o nominal : strength of his company was 120, but I -when he assumed command it had only ! ia membership of 12. Colonel li. H. ' JDaries. when in command of the Auck- ; land Military District, .had highly praised ; the efficiency of the company, iind the. I 'zeal of its commanding officer, and praise i 'from Colonel Davits was praise indeed. ■ Captain Eichardson, reporting on the tompany, had noted that the discipline ' of tho company while in camp, when . J there / was an' attendance of 308 •out of lit, had been excellent. : [Officer-Counsel then read out his client's [record of service in Queensland and , ■ Sin South Africa. He had served in jthe.infantry, the mounted infantry; and Garrison artillery, had passed, nil"r/ualiifyi'ng examinations from corporal to major, and had received honourable mention from Colonel TJiimer and from Lord :ltoborts during his service in South '•Africa. "Great Distress of Mind." '■ That Knyvett had a grievance was admitted,: contended counsel, and in stating ■ that grievance, his client had used his ■ ordinary business ..language. Tho letter lhad -been characterised as a "bit strong" by his ■'superior officer, Colonel Pattereon, but there was no suggestion offered that it was insubordinate in tone. He ■. "was not a professional soldier, accustom•ml to thp nicer points of etiquette in such Imatters. What they particularly desired ■.• jto make clear was the fact that they . 'had no' intention of attempting to shift the.responsibility on to Lieutenant-Col-ionel Patterson's shoulders. Had Lieu- ■ tenant-Colonel Patterson considered that . .the letter was insubordinate, ho would havo said so, in perfectly plain and cmi phatic language. Knyvett had in his mind, all through, that a ruling as to ; the propriety of the letter would be forthcoming from Colonel Tuson before it was ; finally committed to the Minister. For eighteen months now, concluded Captain Dawson, his client had been a civilian : and had endured v. period of great distress of mind. He had been a social outcast, but all through he had preserved a proper silence and discretion with regnjd to the knowledge he possessed concerning the Department. When in Wellington, his company had all but mutinied,-but : Tin had kept his men in hand, and later, : when they threatened to throw down ; their arms, had used his personal infiu- ! enc-p, though then » civilian—to induce •; them to play the game. His client felt ': His.position .most keenly, and he (counsel) submitted his case to the Court with every hope that every extenuating cir;nmstauce affecting the chargo would Feigh in its deliberations. Mr. Neave Replies. ( Mr. Neave then rose to reply. Thero ; was evidently, lie began, a deep-seated notion that a chargo had been mado against Mr. Knyvett because lie had preferred a complaint against a superior officer. It could not be too widely known ; that ever}' right existed to prefer charges, tho only requirement, according to tho Army Act and fls rules and regulations, and tho New Zealand Defence Act and its :' regulations, being that these charges ! must he preferred in a respectful niniii 7,' P i ,, nml in moderate! language. In this cafe thn only charge made—that had ever .been made, in fact—was that in preferring hi-H complaint, Mr. Knyvrlt had ! done so in an insubordinate and con- : (p.mptiious nnnnor. Now. c.ontinurri coun- ■ -'f'l 'it liiifl been contended in ex- '- rcniiation, that- Mr. Knvvett h-irl ; . I" sem' , r.-lcnt ijrnor-.nt pf ; . the conduct ordinarily oipcctcd of an

officer. On that point, he would submit, that Ihe Act made lfo allowance- for ign6rnncc. Officers were required to be acquainted with the Act and its regulations. It. was : a perfectly .clear matter, ,as expressed in regulations, .that the niaui-ten;uice-,of^discipline,'.aiuLVot a i/rupcu' respect for authority Was one of the prime essentials to an "efficient military force. Officor-counscl's suggestion that tho -colonial officer, in contrast to tho Imperial officer, was cast in n rougher would, savoured ot excessive -modesty, to his mind. Then as to the wurniug which had been referred to. It was not thp.Jaw that a letter of this kind should be submitted for .opinion to a superior ofheer betoro gohif forward; The writer took upon himself/ when sending it, all responsibility for its contents, and all the risks. "A Most Solemn Warning." But what were the facts in'this particular case? A most solemn aud authoritative wiiriiin!? hud. been convoyed f(, /; ir, Knyvett eoncerniiiß the lone of his letter. Mr. Knyvett wrote his letter on November 10.' It passed on to Colonel \\ olio through Lieut.-Cdonel Patterson, and on November 12. Colonel Wolfo addressed tho following letter to Lient.-Colonel Patterson, for perusal by Captain Knyvett:— With reference to the attached com- • munication making specific charges against a superior officer, I feel it my duty to' call upon you to inform Cap-; tain Kuyvett a* follows:— (1) This letter should havo been addressed to tho Officer Commanding Division, with a request that it bo forwarded thron?h the- propel , channel to the Eight Hon. the Defence Minister. (2) The tone- of the letter is not such as should be used, according to military discipline and the usages of tho service, when referring to any officer, and especially one of superior rank. (3) The letter contains matter which! . is irrelevant, for, besides dealing with the affair in connection with the visit to AV'elliiigton, it calls into question and criticises the administration ot the Defence Department, expressly forbidden by General Itegulation 17r>. ' (i) Captain Knyvett's alleged grievance should be made iu accordance with General Kc;ulation 176, and (should at this stage deal in general terms with the acts .which occurred and which he requires to be investigated. (5) Without first cautioning Citptaln Knyvett as to the gravity of 'the action he is taking, and calling upon him to couch the language of his ler- ; ter in more moderate and general terms,-I do.not feel justified in forwarding this communication. (6) It pains me to receive an official communication of such a character. ■ G. C. B. Wolfe, Lieiit.-Colonel, Commanding Auckland District. Lieut.-Colonel Patterson, on November 13, forwarded the letter on to Captain Kuyvett, minuted: ""Forwarded for your information and reply."—G. ./W. S. Patterson, Lieut.-Colonel, Commanding Auckland Division', N.Z.G.A.V. Colonel Wolfe's letter, with Lieut.-Col-oiH'l Patterson's ininnte appended, was received and returned to Lieut.-Colon.el Pat terson on tho same dat-3 by Captain Kuyvett," with his minute': "Noted, and regret unable to alter letter." —ii'tank Knyvett, Captain. ■ . ■ An "Act of Grace." . If, continued Mr. Neave, any question of'warning was entitled to consideration— and this' was not necessary—then Colonel Wolfe's letter and Captain Knyvett's minute, disclosed an aggravation of the offence. It Was clear that Colonel Wolfo fully appreciated the gravity of the position,. and'in his desire to save Captain Knyvett from the inevitable ignoininy attendant upon the latter's course of action, had given him the opportunity of reconsidering his Utter. Colonel Wolfe was not bound to do this. His duty was to forward the letter to the address,, though ho was within.his riffhts in directing, us he did, the attention of the writer to the seriousness of the position. By thai .act of grace Captain Knyvett was placed under the deepest obligation to his superior officer. Strictly'speaking, the offence was complete when the letter had been written and handed to Lieut.C'olonel Patterson. If any excuse could be admitted on" the score of accused's state of mind when he Wrotej'the letter, that excuse whs absolutely dissipated by tho events which' followed. ! ,",Thf letter was written deliberately. The object of Section 40, under .which the chargo was laid, was not to punish an offender, bur t'o inaiutaiu discipline. Tho. question of intejit - Was not relevant, said counsel, who quoted, the legal principle underlying prosecutions for breaches of ths Pure Foods 'laws. - Wlipther'.'tlicre. existed or did not exist air intention to sell adulterated milk, ho instanced, it sufficed for the prosecution if tho act of selling was proved. Ignorance was no defence. Tho only'question for the Court to decide was .whether the words complained of constituted an offenc? to the prejudice of good order and military discipline. Mr. Knyvett's letter was bristling, with evi-dence-of .deliberation. It was not tho tattle of a camp, but the considered production of ail officer in a responsible position. If, therefore, the question of intent was worthy of any consideration then the evidence of guilty intent was overwhelming.

. The Judge-Advocate Sums Up. The Judgc-Advocate-General then summed up briefly. It wa.s not necessary, ho said, for him to add to what had already been said by counsel for tha prosecution and counsel for the defence, friret of all. the Court had to be satisfied that the letter, which was the subject of tlie charge, was written by the accused. On that, point there was no dispute. The f-econd question for the-Court was whether the language used in the letter was improper or insubordinate. That was purely a question of fact, to be decided by the Court. Thero was also the further question as to whether the words used constituted an act to the prejudice of good, order and military discipline. All other considerations, concluded tho .Tudgc-Advbcate-General, could only be regarded in the nature of extenuating circumstances, to be reviewed by the Court in determining sentence in tho event of. a conviction. "The Court" is closed to consider die finding," said the President. This ended the trial. Tho finding of the Court will in due course be forwarded to the confirming authority before being announced to the public. .