"THE DOWNFALL"

Evening Post, Volume CIV, Issue 8, 10 July 1922, Page 8

"THE DOWNFALL"

LECTURE ON CAPITALISM

LABOUR CANDIDATE ANSWERS

SERIOUS CHARGES

ALLEGED INCITING TO VIOLENCE.

A3 a. sequel to a lecture at tho Communist Hall, Manaers-streot, on 4th June, 1922, Alexander Galbraith, the selected Labour candidate for the Napier seat at the next General Election/was charged at the Magistrate's Court this afternoon with inciting violence in an address on "The Downfall of Capitalism." Mr. F. K. Hunt, S.M., was on the Bench, Mr. P. S. K. Macassey appeared on behalf of the Crown, and the defendant was represented by Mr. J. F. B. Stevenson.

Mr. Macassey said that the proceedings were taken under Section 2 of the Police Offences Act, tho penalty under which was three months' imprisonment or a fine of £100. The address was delivered by the defendant before 50 and 60 people. Detective-Sergeant Lewis and Constable Watts were present at the meeting and made notes. The Crown relied on the defendant's attack of capitalism and his advocacy :>£ force, as would be shovra by the evidence adduced. Detective-Sergeant Lewis said thai the defendant said that the workers could not be expected to draw a straight line and walk it. like a tightrope. Force was necessary, and that was the only way a, change could be brought about. Workers -were offered a ballot box, but what good was that? Religion was the enemy of the workers. Parsons talked of the brotherhood of men, but all that was rot. Peacefill methods were no good at all. Angels said of the Paris Commune: " We must break, shake, and burst the whole system." Referring to Russia, Galbraith said that they had not stuck to constitutional methods there, and they got what they wanted. The capitalist class there had been corrupted, and they would have to corrupt them here before they could succeed.

The Minister here, GaJbraith had con< ] tinued, had granted permission for the workere to say anything provided they did hot advocate violence. That was no use, and the only remedy they had was to go to the ballot-box and put in a party that might be termed the excretion of tho working class. Ho said that it was not likely that the capitalists were going ..to say: "You take it, I've had a good time," and then hand it over. Recently a friend of his had been speaking to him about what could be gained by constitutional methods, and he had told him that very little had bien gained' that way. When h« spoke like that he did not mean them "to grab a sword and go down the street looking for Bill Massey," because people would only say the Cqmmunists were causing more trouble. There would be a street rabble, and that would do more harm than good. . , A blind man in; the audience, said the witness, rebuked Galbraith, and said he should not speak to the people there in the hall, but should go out into the street and speak to the people there. The blind man said Galbraith should speak to the people in a language they could understand. , (Proceeding.)