LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1761, 28 May 1913, Page 3

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

MR. M'CULLOUGH'S INDISCRETION

Sir,—By quito an accident my .attention has been called to a sub-leader m your columns of i week ago-"-! 1 rulaj, May 1G in which you «iraw attention to the tact that in another column of tho paper you publish uliat you term "nn exposure ot a misrepresentation of mine. You also accuse mo of making slanderous imputations" and of being exposed in.his inaccuracies/' You publish, extfsicte front tho correspondence wiicli has passed between Mr« Macintosh and. mysolf to provo those statements, lour exposure consists of quoting such extracts ns suits your purpose; ami will create tho impression that I liavo been guilty, if all tho serious charges you mako against me. This may he good "Reform" journalism, but will not, I sincerely trust, ever become general or popular with (hose in the, profession, or with our 11 nth-loving community. May X do permitted to surest that your methods bear a much stronger resemblance to "slander" of myself than does my bavin" made tho mistake about Mr. A. Macintosh being a. director of your company. My ono mistake iu a letter of over a column consisted in my confounding Mr. A. Macintosh with another Mr. Mackintosh, who is, or was, .1 director on The Ijomin"ion. Your sneer that I had tlio deccncj to admit my error I take as a compliment, cmiing from such a source. X don t expect you to admit having made an error. But will you explain why nnd for wliat purpose you dragged Mr. Hesking, K.C., into tiie matter, if not to create the impression that I had also made E f" n ® ■ untrue statements with respect to ( that gentloman? In my letter 1 stated that Mr. Herdman and Mr. Bell, K.C., together had interviewed Mr. Hosking, K C„ in. Dunedin before that gentleman left that city to sit .as Commissioner. Mr. Kosking lias admitted more than I said,-because bo has -mnounced that all three were living together in tho same friend's house for two days. He declares, and I accept his statement, that they did not discuss the Public 1 rust 0 - fice, and all that passed between them was that Mr. Herdman asked him when ho should ba able to start work. I am enclosing yon a copy of raj let!:er af. np pearing in tho New Zealand TimeWill von publish that, and then piove. how fallacious my contentions are J. reiterate wain my belief (and I tone nm inoro justification than ever for belicvin this) that "the whole thing appears to mo to bo an impudent attempt to exploit tlio community (especially that portii n of them that are poor and ignorant) for the benefit of a few hundred solicitors. The Massey Government, it is claimed, can bo made the instrument to accomplish this great wrong; it remains for those who believe that it 19 possible tor this attack to succeed to indicate wi some unmistakable manner that so far as they tire concerned it shall not do so without protest." Tho commissioners agree that much ',i the legal work now done m the Public Trust Office should be given -over to private practitioners. Do you approve of this finding? Tf so, then say so with whatever emphasis ..nu may. But pleaso don't try and make it appear that 1 agree w*itli such an absurd and atrocious am, eta, A jrcuLLOUGH> Biccarton, May 23, 1913. [Mr. M'Cuiloupfn is quito welcome to our space to make his explanation, but, wo do not consider his views as published in our contemporary of sufficient interest to warrant departure from the oustomary practice respecting correspondence which has already appeared in another journal. As to our exposure of Mr. M Gullougli s ieckles9 inaccuracy wo quoted his own. admissions and apology, concerning whiciii the public are well ablo to form their own opinion.]