Lady Chatterley’s Trial

Press, Volume C, Issue 29501, 1 May 1961, Page 12

Lady Chatterley’s Trial

The decision of the Customs and Justice Departments to allow the sale in New Zealand of the transcription of the trial of Penguin Books, Ltd., for publishing an obscene article—an unexpurgated edition of “ Lady Chatterley’s “ Lover "—4s the more welcome far being unexpected. A transcript of the trial will necessarily include what have come to be known as Jiose “ tour-letter “ words ” which to many distinguish between the expurgated (to which no exception is taken) and the unexpurgated editions. The emphasis they received in evidence, and especially in cross-examination, leaves no room for doubting that these words in print were expected to shock an English jury and influence them to find for the prosecution. The jury could acquit on either of two grounds—that the book was not obscene, or that, even

if it was, its literary and other merits justified its publication. New Zealanders are not allowed to form a judgment on the whole book as the English jury was when it acquitted Penguin Books—the Customs Department has performed this service for them. New Zealanders may, however, suffer the sight of “ four-letter ” words divorced from their literary context. This invetsion of what appears to be common sense will surely attract New Zealand readers to the transcript of the trial to discover, if they can, why their Customs Department sets its judgment above that of many eminent figures in contemporary literature, and ah ve that of an English jury of nine men and three Wi men who were enjoined by the judge not to get lost in the higher realms of literature, education, sociology, and ethics, but to keep their feet on the ground.