CHARGES AGAINST POST OFFICE.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LX, Issue 17061, 14 August 1917, Page 5

CHARGES AGAINST POST OFFICE.

REV. HOWARD ELLIOTT'S ALLEGATIONS.

OPENING OF INQUIRY.

SOME IMPORTANT POINTS

..(Per Press Association.) . . AUCKLAND, Aug. 13. The inquiry ordered by the Government into ciiarges made by the Rev lost Ofhce oftcals, opened this morn(cliSrc,^ H' W- **<*, S'Mnn™' A\ A- !Gr aT' K- C- (Wellington) and Ir Sd °n i, Bh' d[i <* the Government ;J d F r- P °f er the Rev. Elliott tion M w teSisa^r Political AssoCla~ ton Mr W. R. Morris, Secretary of the Postal Department, and Mr J. C Williamson, Chief Postmaster at Auckl land, were present. thJt ha* been decided by the Cabinet tiiat matters connected with P.O Box i*l2, regarding the non-delivery of mail matter m regard to which complaint was made in- the House by Mr J S Dickson, shall be included in the invesl tigation.

follows?-? 61" then read tW° char 2es> as

(1). That of 20,000 envelopes posted containing printed circulars and cards or application inviting citizens to a meeting, a grea.t number were delivered empty to. the addressees, circulars and cards having been, it was alleged abstracted or lost in the course of the

(2) Envelopes containing notices to 1 rotestant clergymen, which were posted on Friday night, July 6th, at 11.20 p.m. at the Dominion Road Post Office were improperly opened in the course of post and were improperly detained in the post ofhce, so that none of these notices reached the addressees until after Sunday, July Sth, and ministers were thus prevented from notifying the congregations of the intended meeting, at tne Sunday services. Mr Bishop having stated that he had received, no instructions regarding inototl^tlon mto matters affeeting^Box i.v, Mr. Ostler obtained permission to read that charge, as follows :— That the Loyal Orange Lodge and the .Protestant Political Association had tor some time past been renting a private letter box (No. 912) from the Post Uince, and that military censorship had been established over correspondence addressed to tins box, in the interests pi the Roman Catholic Church All letters received by the Lodge and the Association addressed to this box have borne the superscription 'Passed by Military Censor,' and many letters adaressed to tii.e association, containing ihe address of this box, have been improperly retained and not delivered at alj, altnough these letters had no con. nection with military matters or the war, and dealt exclusively with the subject of Roman Catholicism." Mr Bishop read extracts from a telegram, forwarded by the Prime Minister and handed in by Mr. Gray It stated: (3) "As to charge No. £' this in .part relates to the improper detention and to the non-delivery of letters addressed to Box 912, and in part re, n?? t0 c actions of the Censor. The Cabinet has no objection to the Commissioner investigating any charges relating to improper retention and to non-delivery of letters to Box 912, and relating to the-suggestion that a system of censorship had been established over correspondence addressed to Box 912 in the interests of the Roman Catholic Church, but inasmuch as the existence of a state of war has made the establishment of the censorship necessary, and as matters connected with and arising out of the censorship are, for reasons of State, obviously secret, the Cabinet cannot agree to allow the Commissioner to call upon any Censor officer under the control of the Chief Military Censor to do anything more than explain what was done by him with any letters and documents referred to in your charge which may have come into his hands. The Censor officer can give no information and no reasons for censoring any document or correspondence within New Zealand, or as to the scope and extent of the censorship established in New Zealand upon the outbreak of war."

Mr Bishop stated that he was in a difficult position regarding charge 3. "I. understand," he said, "that the Chief Censor is appearing. Most vital interests of the Empire may be in his nands. I expect he will plead privi-

Mi- Ostler submitted that the Censor is a New Zealand officer, and as such is under the control of the Minister of Defence. Mr Gray: I am instructed that the Chief Military Censor is appointed by the War Office, and that he acts according to war regulations. There are also his deputy officers. The Post Office, however, is willing to give your Worship any facility ■to enquire into any regulation in reference to the third charge.

Mr Bishop: Is the Military Censor here directly responsible to the Post Office ?

Mr Gray: No; he is directly responsible to.the Chief Military Censor. Mr Bishop said he was going to insist upon having absolutely definite and exceptionally particular 'instructions as to the powers of the commission. "I must not be in the position of not knowing my powers in relation to the Censor, otherwise there must be difficulty, and I may be misjudged by the public. 2 am not going to be placed in a false position. I intend to throw the onus upon the Government. It may be very difficult to define where powers commence and end. I must be very careful not in any way to trench upon Imperial matters which may be of the utmost importance to the Empire." Mr Bishop continued that for that reason it would be better for him to have his commission in full, in order to know exactly where he was.

The inquiry was consequently adjourned sine die.