PROHIBITED LITERATURE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LV, Issue 16969, 1 October 1918, Page 4

PROHIBITED LITERATURE.

FORTHEft EXPLANATION. TWO BOOKS. SPECIFIED. [BY TELEGRAPH.—PRESS ASSOCIATION.] WELLINGTON, Monday. T>TB Acting-Prime Minister, in the course of a letter to the Rev. A. Doull, Palmerston North, regarding the Government's actions in the matter of banned literature, says:-—"No book or document has been detained ; permanently at the Customs, the contents of which did not exceed the limits of controversy, which the Attorney-General and the Hon. A. M. Myers have attempted to define. Reference has' been "made in correspondence,which has reached me to two works, of which Dr. Alex. Robertson is the author, entitled 'The Roman Catholic Church In Italy," and ' The Papal Conquest.'; As a matter of fact these books have been the subject of most careful consideration,'and their detention was. merely conditional, and hot .permanent, until Mr. Chapman's report on them was received on September 11. The greater pare of the contents of, these books, do r-ot exceed the limits ' defined, but in each of the books there; are grave .charges t- of immorality against persons who have taken a vow of "celibacy in Roman ■■ Catholic 'churches, and because of the inclusion of-that; class of. matter it has been thought advisable to prevent the circulation of the literature. I cannot understand why the circulation during the war of books % which contain such allegations sh6uld be considered desirable by any section of the public." ;, ;*