THE AUDIT INQUIRY.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 8280, 23 October 1905, Page 5

THE AUDIT INQUIRY.

Sitting of The Commission.

The Order of Procedure.

Skirmish Between Counsel And

Commission.

Mr Jellicoe And The Judges.

Counsel Has to Submit.

(By lelegraph —Press Association.)

Wellington, This Day.

The Audit Commission resumed its sittings this morning, in Chambers. All counsel were present except Mr Jellicoe, counsel for Mr Fisher, who says he had no application to make in Chambers, and therefore had no call to be present.

Their Honours decided the order of procedure as follows:—The three Government Departments—Audit, Treasury, and Defence—to open; Mr Jellicoe for Mr Fisher; Mr Willis, late of the Christchurch Post Office, then to be heard ; Dr. Findlay to come next on behalf of Captain Seddon. They also decided to have no opening address, but to take evidence at once.

The opening of the proceedings of the Commission were enlivened by an encounter between Mr E. G. Jeliicoe and the Bench.

After Mr Cotter had stated the order of tho procedure which had been determined on, Mr Jellicoe said he desired to ask what order of reference they were working under, and if the original order had been amended, and by whom ?

Mr Justice Denniston said they were proceeding under the order ol reference read in Court which he had already intimated any party to the case was at liberty to inspect.

Mr Jellicoe endeavoured to argue the matter, but the Court refused to hear him.

He then asked to be allowed to make an application in regard to the interruption of the order of reference. The Court ruled that any such application must be made in writing. They had fixed all these matters in Chambers. Mr Jellicoe had been notified, and did not choose to be present, and they would not have them argued now.

Upon counsel persisting in his objections he was ordered to sit down, and he did so, saying he might as well leave the Court altogether if the Bench declined to hear him.

Mr Skerrett was proceeding to call the first witness, when Mr Jellicoe asked that all witnesses should be ordered out of Court. After some consultation, the Bench agreed to this. Mr Jellicoe thsn asked for reasonable time, to enable him to put in writing a notice of motion of urgency before Mr Skerrett proceeded with his examination. This led to another skirmish between the Bench and Bar, which ended in the Commissioners positively declining to accede to Mr Jellicoe's request, and then the first witness was taken.