RENDING THE VEIL OF SILENCE

NZ Truth, Issue 1247, 24 October 1929, Page 7

RENDING THE VEIL OF SILENCE

Elsie Walker Case Inspires Private Bill and Animated Debate In Parliament

STRONG MOVE TO AMEND CORONERS' ACT

'■-V :/■;■../ (From "N.Z. Truth's" Special Investigator.) .. J.T-ha*sea of polities is a vasty, deep beneath whose surface wiggle and glide the finny fascinations of red herring 7 *, thousands of which are yearly. flung across. the course of uncomfortable question and discomforting argument. Mr. C. E. Macmillan, the member for Tauranga* found the Minister of Justice particularly adept to this red herring ambuscade, but he managed to have his private bill to reform the Coroners' Act read the first time, nevertheless. From the aspect of sane judgment alone, he will have the support of the whole m his endeavor to adjust the slackness of the present Act. __ «•,

THE public wonders what reasons . Mr. Wilford can have at the root of his adamant attitude not to ! recommend the reintroduction of the Elsie Walker proceedings, or 1 whether he holds some irrefutable cvi- • d.ence that the justification for another hearing is non-existent. 1 This phase apart, there seems but 1 little warranty for his gibe that the • Bill introduced into the House by Mr. Macmillan' is nothing more than a i subterfuge to revive the tragic narration.of particulars relative to Miss ' Walker's unaccounted death. As the member for Tauranga rightly avers, the projected measure is an earnest of the shortcomings of the Coroners' Act as it stands to-day, made retrospective to the Elsie Walker "case simply because the major section of New Zealand people is not at all satis- . fied with what purports to be the "result" of a long inquiry. At best, the coroner's verdict was indeterminate, which, m plain terms means: "This unfortunate girl died, but we dp. know not how." Suppose a similar set of circumstances recur within, say, the next five : years; is it not right that fresh cvii dence shall establish the just claim of interested parties to have the case revived ? Mr. Macmillan when introducing the Bill said: "I would like to take this opportunity of explaining to the House the reason for the introduction of this [ Bill. lii October of last year, it will be remembered, Mr. , Frank Bayly, of Papamoa, reported to the police that his niece, Miss Elsie Walker, was missing from his household, and also that his motor-car had disappeared. I"The1 "The car was found abandoned on ; the Great South Road, near Panmure, several days later, over 100 miles from where it disappeared at Papamoa, and 1 Miss Walker's body was found m the gorse scrub some miles from the car. i "The most searching investigations were made, but up til| now it has not been discovered how or where Miss Walker died, and who conveyed her, dead or alive, through the night, from Papamoa to where her body was found. "The inquest was closed, but no verdict whatever was given as to the cause or place of her death. : "I took the matter up with the Minister of Justice, and pointed out to him that there was considerable public uneasiness, and to appease -this uneasiness the Minister ordered an investigation into the actions of the police. ' ' ij JWK«.«rp]jf 0 pp2t|e Sere exonerated, but the I feelimj was not removed. X #4tßS*mce then, it is believed tliat fresh pdWdence bearing ori the case has been ■ found. I "This, mmy opinion, and I think m the opinion of a majority of the members of the House, disclosed a weak**ness m the judicature, arid^we consider that some steps should b.e -taken to remedy this. "In fact, I think the country, and certainly I, myself, as member for the, district and particularly interested m the matter, has been, waiting, for some time past for the Minister to make a move, because l believe a simple Act, amending the Coroners' Act, would meet the case, and would pass this House without , a great deal of difficulty." .It is permissible here to interpolate that from the atmosphere of the discussion m the House, and conversa-

tions which "N.Z. Truth" had. with' I various members of all parties, there is no doubt that Mr. Macmillan's assumption of support from fellowpoliticians will find ample affirmation. Mr. Macmillan continued: "However, as no Bill was forthcoming, I waited oh the Minister, and he advised me to put. an urgent question on the Order Paper about it — which I did— asking if it were tne Government's intention this session to make a move m the direction of amending the Coroners' Act. The Minister of Justice: Is that a fair way to put it? Did you not ask me if I had any objection to your putting a question on the Order Paper? Mr. Macmillan: To be absolutely correct the Minister of Justice asked

|me to put a question on the Order Paper. That is how I understood it. 1 Mr. Wilford: The honorable gentlejman asked me if I would reply to a question if he put one on the Order Paper. Mr. Macmillan: I then submitted a draft Bill to the Minister, but he did not quite approve of it — The Minister: A very badly drafted one, too 1 — "At any rate, he would not adopt it," said the member for Tauranga, "and the position now is that I would like to find out — and I think I am speaking with a large body of public opinion behind me — what the Minister's intentions are . ....'. ". . . Public feeling is running high m the matter, and I do think that sooner or later an amendment . of the. Coroners' Act will have to be put on j the Statute Book. . ." I Mr. Macmillan did not exaggerate when he said he thought he had strong backing. The whole, of New Zealand will watch closely the processes through which this Bill must pass to i its final stages. ]

Reformers, lions of Labor, 'and units of --the United, are seemingly one m opinion against the Minister of Justice, for • that appears as the virtual "position, just now, where the equation of Party is dissolved before the more commanding issue of national import and welfare. Mr. Wilford was urged to declare himself upon the question of whether the proposed Bill would be given its second reading, but as Mr. M. J. Savage, the member for Auckland West, averred, something more than the second reading were necessary. "That is a very desirable end, of course, if the law is weak, but on the other hand if the public mind is a little disturbed over what has taken

place and the absence of legislation for the re-opening of the inquest, it appears to hie that it calls for something m the nature of action by the,. Government itself," 'he said. "It should not be left to a private member to take his chance amongst the winds of Parliament. He might get blown on to the rocks at any time. , "If the Minister takes the matter up and finds his hands are tied, or the legislation weak, surely it is. a fair thing that something m the nature of legislation on the subject should be introduced by the Minister himself. Mr. Savage: Of course, I have seen, like other honorable members, suggestions m the newspapers that other things have developed, not necessarily perhaps as to the cause of death. •The Minister: That. is what a coroner's inquest is for only. . Mr. Savage. That is all. right. I do not want any red herring to be drawn to take me off the track. "What I want to get at," he added, "is the . cause of death, and also the persona responsible for it. . ,

"If there is some evidence bearing on the whole case that -was not submitted, to. the. coroner, I want the coroner to have an opportunity to hear it." Red herrings — equivocation, evasive argument, subtle, misleading rejoinders — this was the political pabulum served to the country's representatives when they stated the case on behalf of this Bill; but the issue has now gone beyond the pale of prejudice — it is nationwide m application, and as such it should be made the subject of a , Government measure. At least, the political colleagues of Mr. Macmillan, and those who supported him throughout the initial reading, should see to it that the Bill achieves the object of its sponsor. For instance, they should encourage Mr. Wilford to forsake generality, and inspire him with the necessity for specific statement. He said to the member for Tauranga: "Will the hon. gentleman believe me when I tell him I have a written statement by one of those two women who made certain statements to newspapers, stating exactly the opposite to the statements made to the newspapers?" Mr. Macmillan probably reflected the opinion of the whole House with perhaps one exception — Mr. Poison— when he said: "That is merely a red herring intended to. draw the attention of the House away from the Bill, the object of which • is to provide for the reopening of every inquest after January 1, 1928, resulting m an indeterminate 'verdict. "I am not here to argue the Elsie Walker case. I have probably as .much information or evidence regarding it as the Minister has at his disposal, but that is not the point at issue. "The point is that there is a weakness m our Act which ought to be amended, since there may be .cases similar to the one m question where innocent persons may remain under suspicion for the remainder of their lives. . ." Could anything be more reasonable, more reasoned than that statement? Mr. W. Hall, member for Hauraki, suggested that despite the Minister of Justice saying what he did concerning the police and the facts m their possession, there was more than a suspicion that 3a good deal more could, nay should, be done. In the succinct tabloid phrase coined by Mr. H. M. Campbell (Hawkes Bay) : The Minister should either say "Why not!" or else get on with the job. ■ - i ' This comparatively brief discussion m the H6use of Representatives comes as an unqualified testimonial to the soundness of the premises advanced by "Truth" * throughout the past few months, and is an affirmation of the national policy followed by this paper. Similarly, it is impossible to place the tenets expounded at some length by the Minister alongside the inherent argument of Mr. Macmillan's new Bill, without observing a wide valley between, particularly as the proposed measure has received aifnost universal endorsement from members. It now remains for the activist section of our political sectors to ensure the Bill becoming a fact. Until that is accomplished, the public mind will be filled with unquiet— and even the Minister of Justice ; will not be proof against that.