THE KAIWARRA CASE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXVI, Issue 9424, 23 July 1889, Page 5

THE KAIWARRA CASE.

(m* TKl.KniiAl'H.— ritKSS ASSOCIATION.] Wri.i.i.NCTON", Monday. Fi'KTUK]'. correspondence between Mr. dellicoo and the Minister of Justice re Louis Chemis ha« taken place. In one of the letters Mr. Jellioe slates. " Von say that every proper facility will be afforded the prisoner to place before the Government any statement or facts that he may consider material to the consideration of this case. For nearly a. week you have successfully prevented him from doing this. very moment's delay is prejudicial to his in terests, and you as Minister of Justice are responsible for it. I am, therefore, compelled to say that I will not, allow these interests to be trilled with further, and unless I receive on Monday absolute authority to interview the prisoner, 1 shall deem it my duty to report all the circumstances to His Excellency the Governor in order that the aid of the Imperial Government may lie obtained by cable. Referring to the petition in favour of the prisoner, the Evening Press states : —'' he signatures received represent members of both Houses of Parliament, medical men, Justices of the Peace, merchants, etc., while among them are also, Mr. Fernandez states, those of most of the grand jury, and one of the common jury which sat on the trial. He furt her informs us that he knows of two other memheis of the convicting jury having signed the petition, and has reason to believe that, still more will add their names before the lists are called in. In connection with this it is rumoured that one of the common jurymen signing the petition in a well-known shop in town, the owner of the shop after the signature was attached asked the owner of the name how he could sign the pet ition in the face of the verdict lie, had returned, whereupon the jurymen replied that had the jury had any idea that public feeling was running so strong in favour of the prisoner hey would never have returned such a verdict —in other words, they would have reversed it."

A curious parallel to the Kaiwarra rase is recorded in Lord Eldou's "Tabic Talk." Lord Eldon was one of the counsel. For a long time 'no evidence did not appear to touch t.he prisoner at all, and he looked about him with the most perfect unconcern, seeming to think himself quite safe. At last the surgeon was called, and after stating that deceased had been killed by a gunshot wound in the head, he produced the matted hair and stud" cut from and taken out of the wound. A basin of warm water was brought, into Court, and the stuff was placed in it. As the blood gradually softened a piece of printed paper 'appeared—the wadding of the gun—which proved to be half of a ballad. The other half had been found in the man's pocket when he was taken. He was hanged.