THE WRONG MAN

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLII, Issue 2179, 21 September 1920, Page 1

THE WRONG MAN

FEDERAL MEMBER’S UNPLEAS ANT EXPERIENCE.

Sydney, Aug 1 . 3.1

A case of mistaken identity which occurred in Melbourne during the past week caused much amusement in Federal Parliamentary circles — although it seems to have been regarded with anything hut amusement by the gentleman most concerned, writes the Sydney correspondent of the Christchurch Press. It appears that a tailor named Hall, wlto lives in a Melbourne suburb, had reason lo suspect (he fidelity of his wife, who keeps a boardinghouse at St. Kilda. So lie employed a private detective lo watch his wife. As a result of what the detective told him. Hall and I he detective paid an unexpected visit to the boardinghouse about midnight on August 18th. They got into the place,-crept upstairs, and hurst into Airs Hall’s room. There they found a man. The irate husband grappled with the man, and there was an excited sort of scene. The’ man said his name was Foster, hut would give no other particulars. They ascertained, however, that his mime was really Poster, am! that he was a member of the Federal Parliament.

A few days later, it was announced in most of (he daily papers of Australia that Hall was suing for a divorce from his wife on the ground of her misconduct with Richard Whitty Poster, who is a South Australian member of (he House of Representatives. Everyone who knows the Federal .House simply gnsped. If one hud searched the whole Parliament for someone who looked like a co-respondent, Mr Poster would have been 1 lie first rejected, lie is a man of serious mien and obvious respectability. One could imagine him the superintendent of n Sunday school, but never a man of Lothario habits, lie is popular in the House, and generally respected. So members whistled over the announcement. and then shrugged their shoulders. “One never knows,” and “Still water runs deep,’’ were some of the unoriginal comments. If the Parliamentary circles were astonished, Mr Richard IN hilly Poster was simply paralysed. The paragraph came like a bombshell-—-it was (he first he had heard of it. (It turned out afterwards that the papers had not yet been served on the alleged eo-respmidenl.) He came frantically into the city, mui .-wemed inclined to tear down (he newspaper oltices with his hare bunds. After some trouble the legal gentlemen interested in the case were located, and explanations followed rapidly.

It appea rs I hat Ihe pn vale dejeelive had erred tragically. 'I here are two Posters in the Federal Parliament. and the Postin' lie was niter was Senator Oeorge I’osier, a recently elected Tasmanian, who look his seat only a month ago. Within twenty-four hums every paper in (he Commonwealth, more or les-. was humbly apologising to Richard Whitty Poster; while application was made lo Ihc Victorian ( our! to amend the divorce petition by substituting the name of the right Poster. The judge threw out the whole petition, and curtly I old the lawyers lo file another one if they wanted to go on with the mailer.

Meanwhile a very worthy member of the House, of regular habits and serious outlook, is having life made rather a hunten lo him.