NEGLIGENCE ALLEGED

Otago Daily Times, Issue 16506, 5 October 1915, Page 7

NEGLIGENCE ALLEGED

.. i , " :,- INFORMATION ABOUT CAPTAIN HOULKER. , (Fbom Oub Ow.n Cobbespondent.) WELLINGTON, October 4.

Gross negligence on the part of somebody was alleged in the Legislative Council tonight by the Hon. Mr Maginnity, in connection with the advice received regarding the death of Captain James Houlker, of Nelson. Somu reference lias already been made to the matter in the press, and Mr Maginnity said he proposed to ask-A question with regard to the Intelligence Department at the front, with a view to eliciting some information from the Defence Department. He said, lie was speaking'wjth some feeling of grief, and also some feeling of. anger against tho Government. _ Captain James Houlker, who was the junior partner in his own firm, left for the front in October or November of last year, in command of a. company of the Canterbury Battalion. On August 7he was wounded in battle, and .on the following Wednesday they got information from the Defence Department that he was killed. He was a, very popular young fellow in Nelson, and the news caused-extreme grief, and on the following Sunday a memorial service was held in tho cathedral, The. next day they received information that, he was not killed, but only, wounded. That was on-August 36.. They had made every endeavour to trace him since then, had communicated with the Government more than once, and had had cablegrams despatched, yet it was not till Friday last that they were able to ascertain that Captain Houlker, who must have been an officer- of some prominence because ho vas doing a field officer's duty, had died on a hospital ship-on August 10. The first information they got was on October 2, two months later. All that he could say was that there was gro3B negligence on the part of somebody. It wasabsurd to say that they could not; get information in any period less than two montlis, and he was going to request the Leader of tho Council to ask tho Government to mate some close Inquiry, especially into this particular case, and also to' ask the Government if some _ar-. rangoment could not be made for advising relatives in the firing line.' He*would ask that the' Government should have inquiries made regarding the fatal injury to Captain Houlker. and the serious delay in advising his relatives of his ultimate death.