ELSIE WALKER MYSTERY

Evening Post, Volume CVIII, Issue 118, 14 November 1929, Page 10

ELSIE WALKER MYSTERY

JttE. COONEY'S CHALLENGE MINISTER'S REPLY A reply was made by the Minister of Justice (tha Hon. T. M. Wilford) to-day to the challenge of Mr. Cooney of Te Puke, to prosecute Mrs. Margaret Thomason for alleged blackmail tery. The challenge was made by Mr Cooney on Monday last, the text of his statement being published in "Ths Post".on Tuesday. v in'f^rf 6/ haT6 not the police files in fiont of me, some «f which are in Auckland, and <T~sequently cannot reply to the whole of Mr. Cooney's statements," said the Minister to-day "I feel that I should not wait in replying to his challenge. . "Mr. Cooney issues a challenge to me to prosecute Mrs. Thomason for alleged attempted blackmail (under, of course, the proper section of the Crimea Act). I can hardly believe that Mr. Gooney is serious. The word 'blackmail' does not appear in the whole of my statement. I will re-quote from my statement the only passage upon which I think Mr. Cooney can rely for his ridiculous challenge. Here is the quotation :—

" 'By arrangement she (i.e., Mrs. Bayly) then went to 'Wangamii where according to Mrs. Bayly, Mrs. Thomason asked from Mrs. Bayly a large sum of money. Although Mrs. Thomason. denies to the police making any demand for money, it is significant that she names exactly the same sum of money mentioned by Mrs. Bayly, namely. £10,000, as being discussed between them. It is quite clear that at this interview the payment of money was discussed between tho women.'"

"That must be th,e exe«tpt from the statement made by me upon which Mr. Cooney challenges me to prosecute Mrs. Thomason for blackmail. There is no other that could possibly apply to it. "Mr. Cooney, dropping all the discussion on the discrepancy between the statement made by upon which Mr. Langdon, fastens on to the paragraph mentioned above and says, 'I challenge the Minister of Justice to prosecute Mrs. Thomason for blackmail.'

"Surely Mr. Cooney knows as a laywer that there is no evidence which would justify such a proceeding. I can hardly believe that he is not aware of that."

"In conclusion, I would'like to ask Mr. Cooney, as Mrs. Thomason admitted mentioning a sum of £10,000 as being the amount discussed between herself and Mrs. Bayly, what were they; talking about?" '