REV. HOWARD ELLIOTT'S CHARGES.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LX, Issue 17065, 18 August 1917, Page 5

REV. HOWARD ELLIOTT'S CHARGES.

THE INQUIRY RESUMED.

(Per Press Association.) .. . AUCKLAND, Aug. 17. JJie inquiry into the charges by tbm ; Rev. Howard Elliot against"the Auckland Post Office, was resumed to-day. . Ah- Ostler, for tiie Rev. Elliot, said ho wanted to wake: it quite clear that neither* he nor .the party he represented had the slightest desire to attack tlie dogma oi; the Roman CathoiioUuirch. They claimed tnat it was tm» political inllueiico of the organisation and the power j.u tins direction ex»». c-isud by tnat church, that the Protest-j ant political.Association was fighting' Jlio issue was purely a political one! Jlio Roman Catholic Church was ono elutrch all over the world, and probably the biggest vested interest in the world, ikr Ostler then icier red to the recent events in America in connection with efforts to suppress a paper Started to countenict the influence or the Cath'oucs. kei erring to the chai-ge relating •to box 'a 12, Mr Ostldi- said it was taken 'ear y in 1915 by the Loyal Orange Lodge, and used by the Committee of Mgjlanco, consisting of men alarmed at tio political activity of the Catholic Church m New Zealand. The committed published a pamphlet headed "Bid•UOiis Guilt of Home in the European Carnage." That pamphlet had no connection whatever with-military matters and did not infringe on the right that eiill obtained in this country of fret speech, yet the premises in "which the pamphlet had been published had beer ftwded by .the police, and the pamphlei seized. He would like to know midei what authority the police did this? H« understood they claimed to havo acted under some war. regulation, but h« knew1 of no- regulation that would authorise them to do this. Various branCWes; of the Catholic Federation in thi' country began to pass resolutions anc to. send them to th e Government, ji an endeavour to get the publishers cV the pamphlet prosecuted. The Hon. Herdman absolutely refused to prose, cute, and said, in so many words, thai 'they had a perfect right to publisk ;thft --[iampUlet, and that in doing s<: they "did not commit a breach of anj war regulations. Orders for the pamphlet commenced to come in to Box 912, but at the very time, that the ■Attorney-General refused to prosecute, 'a' 'military censorship was established over the box. If they could not gee sin assurance at the present inquiry, the public would be convinced that therewas* something wrong, and would set up an agitation that would never t-ease;; until they got to the bottom of the./ Matter. He submitted that it was absurd to /say that the Government had not'the power to say that the censorship smniid cease. If it had not, there was virtually no Government m this country. Wlien the Committee or 'Vigilance found that letters were be-ing-censored they wrote four letters, addressed to the Vigilance Committee. These were posted by the Rev Howard Elliot in Box 912 on April 16th. They dealt with no war subject at all. One oh these letters was delivered, and the other three held up by .the censor, irud they had not received them yet.. Three letters dealt with matters connected with the Roman Catholic , Church. Was it any wonder, he asked, that under the circumstances the committee concluded that the military censorship was established over their correspondence in the interests of the Roman Catholic Church? Counsel skid thatjin March last an order was placed in the order-book at the Auckland Post Office to the effect, he alleged, that letters, addressed to the Vigilance Committee were to be submitted to the censor, 'the letters being identifiable by being marked with a request for return to the box if not delivered. After a meeting of the Protestant 'Association in duly was advertised, new orders we r« < issued that all correspondence to Bo^ 912 should be held. By whose authority was thifi done, and for what motive? Jf the answer was that it wa« done, by the military censor, the} wanted to know why ? Moreover, he '. asserted that the military censor was riot consistent/as on the following Sunday, on counsel's, advice, • four more letters' exactly similar to th e others, and ■•dealing, with the same matters, were addressed to Box 912 and posted, and all were delivered. Dealing particularly with the charge regarding forty letters posted to Protestant ministers in connection with the Association's meeting, he said only one was delivered c-h Saturday, although they bore the Post Office stamp, showing that they.were in the hands of the officials at 5 a.m. on Saturday, in plenty of time for early delivery. Two wero never received at all, and the others were delivered on Monday morning, and some orr Tuesday, The envelopes had pieces of paper on the back, which wore certainly not there*when posted, tir.d seemed to indicate that they had been opened by someone. Not one bore the words "Passed by Military Censor," or any mark to show that they had been subject to censorship. Apparently'the cdnsor had power to open correspondence without giving any indication that he had done so. . Mr. Gray, for th^ Department, here said he did not deny that the letters had been held by the censor. Concluding;'counsel said that no local authority had been given by the Government over the censorship of letters in New Zealand, and the opening .of such was absolutely illegal. " As to the question-of Imperial control, he. submitted that it was absolutely absurd, as the fact that an Order-in-Council- had been passed appointing censorship over telegrams showed clearly that the whole matter was in the hands of our Government. The Rev. Howard Elliott, in evidence, stated that when complaint was made to the Postmaster-General about th e non-delivery of letters, the Minister replied that the censorship was not ■ under his" jurisdiction, and representations should be made to the' Minister of ■ Defence. The latter replied to the letter stating- that citizens must of necessity suffer some ineonveneince at such times as the present. He gave instances of the non-i*eceipt of letters to and from the committee. The inquiry was adjourned.