"PEOPLE'S VOICE"

Evening Post, Volume CXXXI, Issue 37, 13 February 1941, Page 7

"PEOPLE'S VOICE"

TWO MEN ON TRIAL

CHARGES (^SUBVERSION

THE CROWN'S CASE

, (By Telegraph—Press Association.) *

' CHRISTCHURCH, February 12. The hearing of subversion charges against Harold Alexander Ostler and Travers Burnell Christopher Christie was begun in the Supreme Court today before,, his Honour, Mr. ' Justice Northcroft. -The two accused elected to conduct their own cases. ' The accused were jointly charged that they published a subversive statement, that they attempted,to publish a! subversive statement, that they had, in their possession certain copies of the "People's Voice," with a view to facilitating the publication of a subversive statement, and that they had in their possession typewriters, paper, and ■' material with a- view to facilitating tlie publication of a subversive statement. They pleaded not guilty. ! "These two men are charged under the Public Safety Emergency Regulations with offences arising from the publication of the weekly paper, 'People's Voice,'"said Mr. A. T. Donnelly, who conducted the.Crown's.case. "The charges are based on the allegation that the accused were concerned in preparing, publishing, and distributing an underground publication called the 'People's Voice.' There was . at one time an ordinarily printed weekly of that name, but during the early months, of the war the Attorney-Gen-eral ordered that publication should cease. The issue ; of .the publication involved in the case was a cyclostyled copy produced, distributed, and sold, in a secret, underground fashipn >'ih, Christchurch. Some time before August 8, 1940, copies of this weekly were in circulation in the city. * TRACED BY TYPEWRITER REPAIR. "The case for the Crown is that both men were jointly concerned in typing, cyclostyling, publishing, and distributing copies of the 'People's Voice' of August 8, 1940. A copy of the 'People's * Voice' of August 2 had this peculiarity —some accident had occurred to the letter 'r' in the typewriter and it was missing. The police assumed that the person who had the typewriter would want it repaired, and traced it to the firm whore it had been left by Christie, Under a false name, for that purpose. Another machine was borrowed while the repairs were being made. The police saw Christie obtain the repaired typewriter from the firm and take it to Ostler's ropins. A large parcel was also carried in and this was subsequently found 1p contain a large sfjTiount of typewriting.material. • '"Latev .on . that evening the police went ■: to,\Ostler's room .in • • Kilmore Street. The-repaired typewriter, was on a-.t^ble in a room in the back of ■ the premises. Ostler told the police he had'received the machine from a friend. In Ostler's room was found a brown paper parcel containing typewriting paper and necessary material, it Avas suggested, for'the publication of the 'People's Voice.' A tracing paper with a 'People's Voice' heading on it cmd-60 copies-^vf the 'People's Voice' of August 8 'were also found. r ."They ; police,yjye.nt.,tp. Christie's rooms in his parents' home and found an-, other typewriter and .six copies of the 'People's Voice' of August 8 as well as a quantity of material which : it was suggested was, nee^ed^for the cation of the 'People's Voice.'. . ] "There ■'■ were three ■ typewriters found in.,the possession of one'or both Of the accused," continued. Mr. Don- • nelly. "It will be proved by the evidence of experts thatb.'the earlier copies of the. 'People's /Voice' '__ were typed on the machine with the missing letter, and which was taken to Ostler by Christie .after'ihe.' repairs. It will be proved beyond all doubt that the two accused" were publishers of the 'People's Voice. mentioned in the charges, and, were responsible for the printing and/distribution as well." Witnesses for. the' Crown gave evidence on the lines indicated by Mr. Connelly. •