SEMPLE V. M'CURDY

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 142, 11 March 1920, Page 6

SEMPLE V. M'CURDY

PUBLICATION OF DKFAMATOM STATEMENT DEFENDANT FINED £5 Jlr. E. Pace, S.M., heard an interestintr ease at the Upper Ilutt Court yesterdav. when, on the information of Robert Semple, ex-member for 'Wellington South, Angus J. M'Curdy was charged with having published in the "Ilutt Yallev Independent" an untrue statement defamatory of Semple, and calculated to influence the votes of electors. The following was the statement complained of: "'I am a German, and proud of it,' said Semple at Auckland during the 1914 strike. But at Upper Hutt tho other night lie posed ns an Australian: but he is not the only Red Fed. Australian with Hun blood m his Veins."

Mr. P. J. O'fteg.in npppnrcd for tho plaintiff, and Mr. H. F. O'Leary for tho defendant. A ploa. of not guilty was entered. Mr. O'Reean. in opening, said that thcro was no strike in 19H. There was one in 1913. but during that time Semple made no reference to Germany. It was admitted that public men had to submit to manv things, but untrue defamatory statements were breaches of law. _ Itobert Pemple, at present orgnniserfor the New Zealand Labour Tarty, said that at one. of his meetings a man bad thrown the remark at him that he was a German, and lie had been told that tho rumour was being circulated in tho crowd. A copy of the paper was posted to him after tho election. He never made the alleged statement at Auckland or elsewhere. Ho was an Australian by birth. His father was a Scotchman, and his mother came of Irish parents. ITis children were either Australians or New Zealanders. " v To Mr. O'Leary: He did not know whother copies of the paper in which the statement appeared wero circulated nmonir Ms electors prior to tho date of tho election. Ho only knew of the circulation of tho statement at tho meeting spoken of. To the Magistrate: There was no Ger. man blood in his parents' veins. Mr. O'Leary submitted that M'Curdy had offered to correct the statement. Since plaintiff had declined to accept the offer the defence would have- to show that words similar to those quoted as the cause of action had been used by Seniplo in Auckland during the 1913 strike. M'Curdy would prove that the paper in whicli the statement was published did not come out until the day before tho olection, and after 'Six o'clock. The last train ha<l gone, and he believed no papers got to Wellington. Evidence was given by William Morrison, a* painter, who claimed that once in Auckland he heard Semple use words like those attributed to him by M'Curdy. •To Mr. O'ltan: Tho statement in the paper was not quite what, he told M'Curdv, Ho heard Semple say "Ho was of German extraction, and proud of Angus John M'Curdy, editor of the "Hutt Valley Independent," said that he was responsible for tho paragraph, his informant being Morrison. His impression was that the words told to him were as printed. He set the type from memory, He had another person in mind when he made the reference to Semple not beine the only man with Hun blood in his veins. He learned the words from Morrison on the 13th. and the typo was not set. until the 14th. Mr. O'Kegan was granted leave to call a witness in rebuttal of the evidence of Morrison. • ~ Ernest Edward Canham, watersider worker livinir at Wellington, and formerly of Auckland, said he was president of the Watersiders' Uniou and another labour organisation. He attended all Semple's meeting in 11)13, and he never heard tho words complained of or reference to Germany. He would not swear that Morrison had committed perjury. His Worship thought that a conviction should be entered. The statement was proved to be untrue, ami calculated to influence the electors. Tho deiomlaut took a risk in publishing a statement onoted bv a maji who said he line. heard it some years before. Counsel tor ! the informant was not pressing tor a heavy penalty, and tins and .the fact that the miner had a limited circulation, influenced iiim in fixing the amount of the fine. . , i M'Curdv was fined JS. with ' costs amountim: to M 10s.