LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2819, 10 July 1916, Page 6

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

EARLY CLOSING—A CORRECTION

_ Sir,—ln your report, published 011 July 7, of the debate in the House 011 the. report of the Committee on the above subject, Mr. Olccy (chairman of tho Committee) is credited with saying, in eft'cct, that in Committee, I, as counsel for the Moderate League, referred to a certain paragraph having appeared in a Taranaki paper, and that -Mr. Okey had protested at the suggestion that lie was in any way responsible for such pararnejh, and that I apologised for having made the suggestion. ,/

Jtr. Okey is hardly correct in his statement. Tho facts are that I. brought the matter up, and referred to a Taranaki paper. Mr. o| :c y then expressed the hope that I did not suggest t/iat lie had anything to do with the paragraph. I thereupon stated that 110 thought of connecting hiin with it had ever occurred to uie, and that I did not wish to convey any such impression. Mr. Okey again referred to the matter at the conclusion of my address, when I repeated my former statement.

Politically, it all amounts to what .Mr. Okey is reported to have said, but personally there is this difference, that I said nothing for which an apology could possibly be asked, and furthermore,. I' made 110 apology whatever. It was Mr. Okey himself who made the suggestion, whereas nothing of the sort was in my mind. I assured Mr. Okey at the time that he was mistaken (as I assure him now), and he appeared to be iferfectly satisfied.

T regret .to have to refer to the matter publicly, but Mr. Okey appears-to have brought up my name in the House, and I do. not desire that it should be made to appear that I said anything that could reasonably give Mr. Okoy cause for offence, or that I apologised to him, when such was not the ease.—l am, etc..

Til OS. B. SLIPPER Wanganui, Jul? 8.