CHRISTCHURCH SEDITION CASES.

Taihape Daily Times, 22 May 1918, Page 4

CHRISTCHURCH SEDITION CASES.

IMPRISONED MEN TO BE RELEASED. I 3 THE GOVERNMENT’S DECISION. WELLINGTON, May 21. The Government considered ( the appeals on behalf of Hunter, Flood and Langley, imprisoned at Christchurch for sedition, and decided to advise their release, on condition that each man enters into a bond, with two sufficient securities each, in the sum of £SO, to be of good behaviour for 12 months, and especially during that period to abstain from all acts and utterances having any seditious tendency. The Acting-Prime Minister, in a statement, said the Government considered the observations of the magistrate when pronouncing judgment were entirely justified by the facts proved, and considering the nature and circumstances of the offence, the 1 sentences were lenient. The only clrcumstancc which weighed with the Government in favour of the prayer for remission was that the seditious nature of resolution drafted by Flood, proposed by Langley and seconded by Hunter, Avas not obAdous to the Mayor (Avho presided), to public men on the platform (Avho abstained from protest) or to a large number of persons who voted in favour of the motion when put by the Mayor. If proof could have been obtained of active participation by other persons, prosecution would have been instituted against the others as Avell as against the three prisoners. But proof sufficient for a criminal case was only available against the three. Sir James Allen added; “The Government had not dealt with the case of the Re\’. Chappie, which, he said, Avas not in the same category as the others. He Avould receive no consideration whatver at the hands of the Government.”