NO REPRIEVE.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1157, 19 June 1911, Page 6

NO REPRIEVE.

TAHI KAKA TO DIE. 4LL-DAY SITTING OF EXECUTIVE, CASE REVIEWED. The Executive, after reconsidering tho question ofi remittirig.-'tho. .death .sentence--paised upon tho Maori youth Tahi Kaka for; the murder of John Freeman, has adhered to its former decision, and will allow the law to take-its course, ■ Tho meeting of tho Executive Council, which was opened on Friday, was resumed at 10 o'elock on Saturday morning.' His Excellency tho Governor was not present, but all the members of tho Executive, with the exception of tho Hon. DJBuddo, woro in attendance. The evidence taken at : the trial, and the Judge's notes were again examined. All"'the petitions that had been sent in were read and considered. The letters and telegrams' received • by the ActingPrime Minister and other Ministers, and a uumbe;- of messages received by Mr. Carroll in his capacity oi Native Minister were all perused. Tho meeting continued until 5 o'clock, and the Acting-Prime Minister (Mr. Carroll) announced yesterday that tho Executive had'decided to reaffirm its previous decision. This means that Tahi Kaka must pay the':'fnll penalty for his .crime. He will be "hanged'at Mount' Eden Gaol, Auckland. FEELING IN AUCKLAND. OPINION EVENLY DIVIDED. (By Telearanh.—Sjjccial Correspondent.) Auckland, June 18. The fato of .Tahi Kaka.has been almost th» main topic of conversation for days, and especially since Cabinet met to reconsider its original decision that the Maori,youth should die. Ever, since.Friday night -the- newspaper offices havo been besieged by inquirers as to tlje final edict. The telephone has rung with ques-tiomaftor-question,-'and, indeed, tho peo-. plo havo become obsessed to a'• strange degree by an overpowering desire to hear the verdict of the highest and last Court of Appeal in the land. The sympathy of those who favour a reprieve for Tahi Kaka has been constantly worked upon by reports to the effect that ho has collapsed, and other stories of a like -nature-.; -It must, how«ver, by no ni«aus be imagined that the advocates of reprieve are unopposed. On the contrary, public, opinion ,is largely divided, and the views of those who consider, that Kaka's death sentence, should be carried out are typically expressed in the following letter from a correspondent 'in. Saturday's "Star." He writes:—. ,

"May I say a few words in reference to' the burial oT John Freeman, who .was Telehtlessly. riiurdered'iby a young-mis-crenrit, in whoso favour a largely-signed ftition for reprieve:is -being pushed'on?.should like to know, if those peoplo who are sympathetic enough 'to attach their names to a plea for mercy for Kaka feel inclined to subscribe towards a monument td-'bo erectedover the 'grave,of; .the man who was buried as'a pauper, simply because he had been murdered, and then Tobbed of his savings? Why- did. not some of. our clergy, turn their attention to'.the burial, of ihis man instead of. trying to upset what is only jv just and fitting end for a man of Kaka's type?",

' ,THE GOVERNOR'S POSITION, .... I ''},;,.. IN. .CAPITAL CASES. , ' It is-interesting in connection with the case of Tahi Kaka to quoto exactly, the, position of his Majesty's representativein regard to tho pardon'or'reprieve of a prisoner under ; sentence of 'death. • The. instruction under which Governors of selfgoverning colonies act is as follows:— "The Governor shall not pardon-or reprieve s; any.. offender without first "roceiv-j-; ,'.ng i'ft>.capital;-, cases the., advice of,'the' Executive Council, and in other cases the advice of one, at least, of his Ministers; nud in .any case in which such pardon;>r reprieve might directly affect ..tho in-, terests of our.Empire or of any country', or place beyond the jurisdietibn of tho, Government of the colony, tho Governor, shall, before deciding' as to either pardon; or .'reprieve, take those interests specially into his personal consideration in .conjunction with such advice as aforesaid." ' This instruction should be read with' the general instructions, •in ■ which the, following occurs:—- ~ ... "In tho execution of the' powers and; authorities vested in him, the. Governor, shall be guided by the advice.of the -.Executive Council, but if, in any case, he shall see sufficient cause to dissent from, tho.opinion of .the said council, ho may act in the exercise of his said powers: and authorities in opposition to the opinion of the council, reporting the matter to Us, without delay, with the .reasons,for his :s'o acting."' Tho above instructions differ a good deal from thoso under which Governors acted a quarter of a century ago. The; oldunstruetions were vigorously assailed: in 1887 .'by- the : Hon. Geo. Higinbotham,' once Attorney-General of Victoria, and afterwards Chief Justice of that State. The old instruction regarding pardons and reprieves was as follows:— . .■. i "Whenever any offender shall have bfen condemned to suffer death by the sentence of any Court, the Governor shall call upon-l the' Judge who presided at.the trial to jnako him a written report of the case of such offender, and shall cause such report, to be taken into consideration at tho first,..meeting /thereafter which may bo conveniently held of the Executive Council, and he may cause the &aid Judge to be specially summoned, to. attend at such meeting and .-to;'produce his. notes' thereat. The Governor; shall'not' pardon,or reprieve any such 'offender''unless it shall .appear to him expedient to do so upon receiving tho advice of,the said Executive Council thoreen; but in all such cases ho is to decide either to cxteijd or to' withhold a pardon or'a reprieve according to his own deliberate-judgment whether the members of the' Executive. Couucil concur therein or otherwise 'Centering nevertheless on the minutes of the said Executive Council' a minute of his reasons at length in case ne should decide such action in opposition to the,'judgment of'the majority of members thereof." • ,

This the Hon. .Mr. Higinbotham stigmatised as ah unjust, crnel, and illegal order, and one which could not be obeyed by any Govcnwr in the only cases to ;which it would apply.