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Westport Times, Volume V, Issue 801, 13 April 1871, Page 3

. Somebody said to Jerrold, " I have m had some calf s tail soup }V when m wit replied, «Well, extremes do smittmes meet." ' It seems to me I have seen your physiognomy somewhere before," said a ™P to a stranger whom he met, "but I cannot imagine where." " Verylikely" spiled the other;" I have been the yelrsT ° f a P risonfor thela st 20

THE DUNEDIN TELEQEAM CASE.

During the progress of the great telegram libel cases at Dunedin it transpired that Mr. Lemon, the General Manager of the. Telegraph Service, had been in the habit of transacting business in grain on commission for the firm of Sumpter and Lemon, of Oamaru. In his defence of Mr. Barton his counsel, Mr. Maccassey, said:—"We must all feel that the Telegrapb Department is one in which we are interested. We must feel we are interested in maintaining its credit, its honoti, Ht3 integrity. The moment that any donb't may fairly be raised regarding,its management, that moment its usefulness and influence ceases. The moment there is engendered in the public mind an idea that any telegram addressed to one person is liable to be handed to another, either for private or political purposes, from that moment will the Department justly cease to hold the slightest influence in the public service. The disclosures which have been made during the present inquiry show that a necessity existed for drawing public attention to the administration of the department. We have had disclosed the transactions which took place between Mr Lemon, the G-eneral Manager of the Telegraph Department, and Messrs Sumpter and Lemon, of Oamaru. It seems that for one or two years Mr Lemon, of Wellington, acted in the capacity of private agent for those gentlemen, for his own private reward and emolument. Now, I ask, is that the position in which a public officer ought to be placed P Certainly not. The public are therefore indebted to Mr Barton for having exposed the abuses existing in the department presided over by Mr Lemon. I do not say that the Government were cognizant of the relations existing between Messrs Sumpter and Lemon and Mr Lemon of Wellington ; but I think the Government is fairly open to blame for having exercised so lax a supervision over the department; that there was no regulation in force by which that system of things could be prohibited. But whether they were to blame or not, that circumstance entitles me to say that the management of the department was fairly a subject inviting public comment, public scrutiny, and, if necessary, Btrong and decided censure. The next point upon which I rely in support of the general accusation is the wilful act of misconduct committed by Mr Lemon, of Wellington, in handing the telegram—the exclusive property of the " Otago Daily Times"—to Mr Gisborne. It appears that the " Otago Daily Times" sent two reporters to Timaru to report Mr Stafford's speech. The speech was reported for the " Otago Daily Times," and it was forwarded as a telegram to Dunedin for that paper. Mr Gisborne, at the suggestion of Mr Lemon, agreed that the same message should be telegraphed to Wellington, although Mr Gisborne was not prepared to say that any express instructions were given that it should not be so telegraphed. But it is plain by inference, from the evidence, that express instructions were given that this telegram should be forwarded to Wellington. In fact, express instructions must have been sent to Timaru before the telegram was sent.