£5,000 LIBEL CLAIM

Greymouth Evening Star, 7 July 1926, Page 5

£5,000 LIBEL CLAIM

AUCKLAND ELECTION SEQUEL.

P.P.A. CIRCULAR RESENTED.

(Per Press Association.)

AUCKLAND, July 7.

Justice Stringer and a special jury were occupied at the Supreme Court in hearing the action involving a claim for £5OOO as damages by Allred Hall Skelton, barrister, against’ Henry Hastings Seabrook and Thomas Farrell, printers, for an alleged libel during the election campaign last year. A circular was issued by the Protestant Political Association signed by Seabrook, as president of the Roskill group, in which district Potter and Skelton were parliamentary candidates. The circular attacked Skelton for having publicly eulogised Michael Collins, described as a' “leader of a fjing of atrocious - murderers,” and spoke of plaintiff as having manifested sympathy with the enemies of the Empire who wished to secure its overthrow. . The second cause of the action was the alleged matter in the “New Zealand Sentinel,” which/plaintiff claimed set him out as being disloyal, and representative of persons who held murder a s'acred duty. On the first Maim he asked £2OOO and on the second, £3OOO damages. The defence will be a denial of publication ; that tlie words complained of were not intended to mean what was alleged; nor did they bear a defamatory meaning, that the words were not libel, and so far as they state facts, were true in substance and fact; that the opinions or comments were honest criticism in the public interest ; further that the publication was privileged, and defendant had suffered rib damage.