Mr. Jolly, who said he would call n0 evidence for the defence, declared that if this prosecution were right this section of the Act of 1920 gave to the police a right of interrogation reminiscent of the procedure of the Star Chamber and involved an infringement of the liberty of the subject which one had been accustomed io regard as a corner-stone of the Constitution. The Act, he submitted, was limited to matters. relating to spies and spying.
He submitted that the magistrates must before convicting be satisfied that Parliament ever intended such a case to be covered by the two Official Secrets Acts; that there were reasonable grounds for suspecting that an offence had been cómmitted; that for the purposes of the prosecution Mr. Lewis's informant was w be regarded as in the service gf the Crown; and, most crucial point of all, that by receiving the information in the circular Mr. Lewis was committing an offence under the Act of 1911. According to the prosecution the police could go to any journalist and demand the source of his infor-motion, If he complied he would be laying himself open to prosecution under one Act for receiving that information, and if he refused he could be prosecuted under another Act for refusing. Any such interpretation of the Acts would be directly contrary to the fundamental principle of the administration of criminal justice in this country, After a retirement the chairman said the Bench found (1) that a police officer was a servant of the Crown; (2) that the document in this case was a confidential document; and (3) that there was reasonable grounds for suspecting that this was confidential document and, therefore, they found that the defendant did unlawfully fail to give the information required of him and he would be fined £5.
Mr, Jolly asked that the penalty should be held in abeyance until the question of an appeal had been settled and the chairman agreed The Postmaster-General announces the appointment of Mr. E. E. Harper, Inspector of Postal Traffic, Postal Services Department, to be Postmaster Sudveyor, Belfast, vice Mr. A. J.
September Arden, ORE, mie Thompson, Superintending Engineer..oH.
South Wales Engineering District, to Superintending of Mr. T. T. Partridge, who retired Engineer, Ireland North Engineering District, in place on September 30.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.