SENT MOSCOW A SECRET

Chronicle (Levin), 8 October 1949, Page 5

SENT MOSCOW A SECRET

(N.Z.P.A.-

n Reuter .

How Conununists Sell Their Country

Copyright)

Received Friday, 9 p.m. MELBOURNE, Oct. 7, T, C. McGillick, of Sydney, forhier secretary of the South Australian : branch of the Coinmunist Party, told the Royal Commission on Gommunisni today that in 1938 he had taken to Mosqow the plan of an anti-niine deviee. to be fixed to ocean-going shipsVThe plan was given to him by-J. B, Mil.es, thPn general secretary of the Commuiiist Party, and was collected in Aloscow "bw J. D, Blake, until recently leader of the Communiht Party in Victbria. r' McGillick said' he went to Moscow as: official delegate of the Friends of 'th'e Soviet Union, the Sydney Trades and Labour Council and the Adelaide Trades and Labour Council. Money for the trip had been raised by subscription. The plan was contained in . a foolseap envelope without an address. | It became worn and when tranferring ' the contents to another envelope hefound the plan. The convietion fof sedition ofLaurence Louis • Sharkey, general secretary of the Australian Communist Party, was confirmed by the Full High Court today. The case was remitted to Mr. Justice Dwyer for seutenoe.Sharkey was convicted of sedition at( the Central Criminal Court, Sydney, on April 6. He was alleged to have uttered seditious words in a telephone interview which was published in a newspapfcr next day. He was alleged to have said: "If Soviet forces in pur--suit of aggression • entered Australia the, workers wonld welcome them." } The High Court also dismissed an appeal by Gilbert Burns, a member of the executive of the Queensland branch ( of the Communist Party, against his [ convietion for sedition. Burns received six months' imprisonment.