GRIERSON INQUIRY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 16205, 15 April 1916, Page 8

GRIERSON INQUIRY.

COMMISSIONER'S FINDINGS.

REVIEW' OF THE EVIDENCE.

CONVERSATIONS AND PAPERS.

The' text ci the finding of the Royal Commission which inquired into the case of Lieutenant Alexander Hugh Grierson, an officer in the New Zealand Expeditionary Force, has been made available for publication.

After stating that the evidence showed "that Grierson's family on both the father's and the mother's sides had been British for many centuries, and that thero was no suggestion that Grierson himself had at any time acquired any other nationality," the commissioner, Mr. A. D.. Thomson, proceeds to deal with the main allegation, namely, that of disloyalty to the Crown. The following is an extract from the text of the report, upon this subject:— ' "The allegations are founded partly on various actions and conversations of Grierson before and after the outbreak of war, and partly on a number of documents found in his box, and admittedly in his handwriting. They may be specified as follows:—

Summary of Allegations. "(a) Entering the employment of the German Consul in Wellington at the end of April, 1914, as secretary, and remaining there until discharged through the closing of the office about August 10, 1914. " (b) Applying for an appointment with an export firm in Germany about May, 1914, and obtaining from the German Consul in Wellington a testimonial in both English and German to forward with it. " (c) Again on August 26, 1914, applying to and obtaining from the same Consul a further testimonial in English and German to assist him in obtaining employment in Auckland- " (d) Discussions and conversations with various peoplo which led them to believe his sympathies were with tho German nation and even in some cases to believe that he was a German or partly of German descent.

" (e) Documents admittedly his which showed he had been in Germany on two occasions and had personal friends there, and one document in particular which is alleged to be a 'code.' Also a packet of postcards depicting memorable incidents in German history and the wrapper of which contains an application for membership in a German Deience League." ,

Alleged Code Discussed. Tho commissioner's finding on the documentary evidence is as follows :— "I do not consider that any of these documents, either taken singly or as a whole, justify a charge of disloyalty. The postcards exhibited are interestine as showing German methods of propaganda. I am - satisfied that no attempt was made to use them in any way. One exhibit is the alleged code. Mr. Grierson's' evidence is that it is an unfinished grammatical exercise, and at the inquiry he supplied its, completion. It is suggested that the words' in ink are connected with the code, although they have been written with the paper turned tho .other way up. Mr. Grierson's evidence is that they are an address, and have nothing whatever to do with the rest of the Writing. The sentences on the reverse side of the page— in pencil— lam satisfied, mere phrases and sentences written down for practice, or as an assistance to memory. Any set of words could by arrangement form a code, but this paper itself and the place and circumstances under which it was found satisfy me that it has no significance whatever.'

Orlerson's Explanations. i The commissioner made the following remarks:—"lt will be observed that all the incidents relied on as affording grounds for suspicion occurred before the end of August, 1914, and that they are all admitted by Mr. Griorson with explanations. He admits that he was called ' The German' by his fellow-lodgers; that they believed his sympathies were with the Germans; and that some of them, as well as his landlady, believed him to be, at any rate, partly German in blood; but he asserts that this was a wrong impression, to which they were not warranted in coming. "I am satisfied that they came to a wrong conclusion, but I do not agree with Mr. Grierson that his conduct and attitude did not give them grounds for" forming it. I cannot, for example, accept his •explanation of his reply to Miss Murphy, 'We have an Emperor,' nor can I conceive that experienced business men could have so misunderstood him if he were merely endeavouring- to make British people sensible of the danger threatening them from Germany. There remains the question whether the facts as found by toe constitute ' enemy connections' within the terms of the Order of Reference. I think they do not, and I therefore make no further comment on them."