f.T. BAER.

I.—B.

16

7. Here is a copy of the document. [Handed to witness.] Have you seen a similar document to that ?—No. 8. Have you seen the proposed new Education Bill ?—No. 9. Have you ever seen a similar document to that. [Bill handed to witness] ?—No ; I have not seen a similar document to that. 10. Did you get any information from any member of Parliament in connection with those matters ?—No ; I got no information from a member of Parliament. 11. Did you get any information from any official in the Education Department ? —No. 12. Did you provide the written article which Mr. Kelly, the editor, received, and which was published in the paper ?—No. 13. Did you provide Mr. Kelly with any information?— No. 14. Did you provide Mr. Nolan with any information ? —No. 15. Did you provide any one connected with the New Zealand Times with any information ?— No. 16. Are you, as a parliamentary reporter, aware of the existence of a Standing Order which prohibits the publication of matter before a Committee ? —Yes. 17. Were you aware that a Committee on Education was set up dealing with those matters which appeared in the Times ?—Yes. 18. Would you, as a parliamentary reporter, knowing the existence of the Standing Order, and knowing that the Education Committee was dealing with the matter, if the information came into your possession being headed, as you have seen, " Confidential draft " —would you consider yourself justified in sending that on to your chief for publication?—No ; I would rather obey the Standing Order. 19. Then, we understand that you have never seen copies of any of those drafts, that you have never had any information from any member of Parliament, and that you have never had any information from any person in the Education Department ?—That is quite right. 20. Hon. Mr. Guinness.] You noticed that information published in the paper in the issue of Saturday, the sth September?— Yes. 21. When did you first know of the existence of the Bill and the other matters referred to in the article?—l knew of that before publication. 22. On what day —the 4th ?—No. I knew of it shortly before it appeared in the paper, on the morning of publication. 23. Where was that—at the office?—No; it was in this building. 24. The House did not sit very late that night, did it? —It was just before 2 o'clock, I think, when the House rose. 25. At about what hour on the Saturday morning was it that you knew this ? —Shortly after midnight of Friday, between 12 and 1 o'clock. 26. Then you became acquainted with that information in the Parliamentary Buildings ?— Yes. 27. In whose possession did you see that information?—l did not see it in anybody's possession. 28. How did you become acquainted with it ?—I knew from members of our own staff that our paper had it. 29. Then, you were informed by members of your own staff of the information upon which the articles were based?—Of the facts upon which they were based. 30. Did you see anything in writing, or was it simply oral information that was given to you ? —It was just oral information —that we had some educational stuff. 31. What member of the staff gave you that information?— With all due respect to the Committee, I would ask to be excused from answering that question. I submit that inside officework is a fair thing 32. This was inside Parliament Buildings. We must have a straight answer to the question. I see no objection to your answering it ? —lt is from no motive of hiding anything ; but it is only usual for pressmen to answer a question like that in that way. 33. We have it reduced to this : that that information was given to you by a member of your staff ?—Yes; that is so. I was told that we had some educational matter. As I say, I have no desire to cloak who told me that, but it is not usual for pressmen to do that sort of thing. It was Mr. Schwabe who told me that we had some educational copy. 34. You have told us that you did not see any documents in print or in writing from which you learnt that information ? —That is quite correct. 35. Then, some member of your staff must have told you or read out to you what the nature of the information was ?—No. I was told that we had some educational copy. That was all that I was told. 36. Did you know what it was about?—l had no idea of what it was about. 37. Then, how does that statement of yours tally with the one you have already made—that you knew the facts upon which those articles were written, and you became acquainted with that information between 12 and 1 o'clock in the Parliamentary Buildings? —When you asked me if I knew the exact nature of it I said that I did not. I knew that the information was bearing on the educational work of the Committee which was set up. That was all that I knew. 38. Will you give us the name of the person who gave you the information, or do you decline to give it—the personal information that you obtained from a member of your staff?—lt was Mr. Schwabe who told me that we had some educational copy. 39. Hon. Sir W. J. Steward.] Do you know who supplied the information to the editor upon which the articles were founded ?—I am sorry, sir, to have to decline to answer that. 40. You have already stated that Mr. Schwabe informed you generally that he had certain information ? —No; I did not say that. I said that Mr. Schwabe had told me that we had some educational copy.