The Evening Star THURSDAY, AUGUST 12, 1920.

Evening Star, Issue 17429, 12 August 1920, Page 4

The Evening Star THURSDAY, AUGUST 12, 1920.

The abortive ‘trial at Wellington this week —the fifth failure in a A Sordid scandalous series in which Scandal. the principles of justice were grossly abused—conjoins the moral character of the country. The case was in detail and tactics a sordid one, destitute of a single redeeming feature, save for the fact, perhaps, that at its ignominious end the principals in it did no* receive either an ovation or a civic reception. It is not necessary to. recapitu- ■ late all the details of the ugly affair. Enough to say that two men were indicted on a charge alleging tie performance of an illegal operation on a young woman. Certain facts were known and on record, but conclusive proof had not been’ secured. Important evidence had been deliberately withheld to such an extent that the Crown’s representatives were compelled to confess in exasperation that the ends of justice were defeated by a conspiracy of alienee. The men were acquitted and set ; at liberty. The unfortunate woman had to return to a prison cell to complete a term of imprisonment for contempt of court in refusing to answer questions during one of the abortive trials. It is impossible to say whether she was or was not-inspired to be mute after once telling s very definite story; most people will s hope that she was ! not betrayed by the exercise of depraved genius into suffering further punishment in a case wherein she ■loa* has had to pay severe penalties. Ob* -only endpree with emphasis- the

wholesome public opinion that condemns the miserable features of a sordid scandal. Whatever else may hare been skilfully obscured in the remarkable case, this is at least clear and certain: the woman has been made the victim of crime, cowardice, and a low monkey cunning. Probably that was inevitable; it appears to bo a fixed custom in most Christian countries. In vulgar jargon, “ the woman pays,” and the man goes forth in search of new conquests. It is about time that the injustice of it all was taken up aggressively by the moralists and the philosophers, and even by the politicians. The practice of a murderous profession is more common in New Zealand than some of the people who scan the horizon for the dawn of th" Millennium are prepared to believe; the practice appears (judging from ci. Mont in trams and trains and clubs) lo have a measure of furtive support, though, of course, it is not openly advocated. Y' it is true that hero and there the u: known abortionists are accepted as daring benefactors, their' high fees being merely incidental to the risk! It is a rank moial depravity that supports such a view of a horrible practice. Its suppression is difficult, as recent disclosures have proved. The Law is more or less helpless, as the public have seen. In certain circumstances, indeed, it may be argued that if one he clever enough one may with amazing success combat the law over a long period of years. Fortunately, the average citizen does not desire to make a hobby of wrestling with Justice. Some definite steps might he taken, however, to make it less easy for offenders iu the future to escape a deserved measure of punishment. The latest case (in which, it would appear, the operator is still unknown!, and may, indeed, have fled the country while innocent persons were being harassed by futile Authority) emphasises the need of a drastic revision of the system of trial by jury. The old gag about the splendid justice of the British jury system been played out. In practice it is often nothing more than a farcical travesty of justice. It is not true justice when and where the balance of advantage lies with the criminal. Surely the time lias come for giving serious consideration to the question of abolishing trial by jury in all cases concerning the secret and sordid destruction of life. If that be too sweeping a change to make, Parliament should certainly make provision without delay for bare-majority verdicts iu such cases. There is no doubt at all that that would lessen the existing scope for escape from punishment for a murderous form of crime. It would at least equalise the fight between clever criminals and the representatives of Justice. Tho rapid degeneration of national morality demands more drastic methods for suppressing immorality and sordid criminal offences. It is a bad outlook for any country that hesitates to fight immorality with all its might and with all its legal resources. And wherever opportunity oners scant mercy should be given to the liars and cowards who are usually involved in sordid offences against women. There was a time when even the roughest class of men considered it unpardonably dishonorable to shirk doing the right thing by a betrayed girl, but the splendid march of civilisation appears to have developed a brazen cowardice which is tolerated if it be backed up by expenditure on illegal practices. The times call for a Cromwell and an Obadiah to put the fear of God into many craven hearts.