MASSEY LIBEL CASE.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10310, 10 August 1911, Page 5

MASSEY LIBEL CASE.

THE APPEAL. DISAGREEMENT OF JUDGES. f (By Telegraph—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, Last Night. In the appeal 'caisie Massey v. N.Z. •Times, the judges of the Appeal Court were evenly-divided, Justices "Williams and Sdiirt. bjeing an favour of diisimkiscing (the 'appeal, amd Justices Edwards- and Damid'ston, .being in tfav- • our. of alio wring it. ■Mr Justice Williams .aawwranoed • that las' itibe judges were evenly div'ided, according to the Judicature •Act, the judgment of the Court below .Was. .affirmed. The Ck>urt'therefore anade \no order, amd no order as "to coats. . SfirJJ.UiStiioe Wmlliaims isaid tlie jury had found (tlue cartoon was political pure and. simple, land h© .interpreted •that .to mean >tihlatb it was not proved .tlh'at the icaTtoon imputed (that th© •plaintiff Quad beenr eonineoted with'the •distriSbiation) of the pamphlet. He • could not ©ay twelve reagonsibl© men. might mot have- taken this view, and •(tihie verdict of the jury for tie defendant .should be ■• final, unless it - clearly iappeared .that they had been misled or did not ihioniesitly consider "the question) itihey had to dieltermimie. Mr Justice Sim considered the car"toon ambiguous, and isaid the verdict ought not to be dratirrhed. Mr Justice. .Edwards amd Mr Ju.si> ice Deauiiisfton' held rfikat ithe cartoon. -was defamatory, and that* the jury's ;" v©rdiot .was against the weight of the -evidence.. . Mr Bell, K.C., astoed to l>e ulllowed 'to move at next sitting of the Court for leave to appeal •to the Privy f -Council. Leave was gramted.