Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933), Thursday 15 February 1917, page 8


LABOUR MEMBER CHARGED.

ALLEGED PREJUDICING OF

RECRUITING.

1 HOBART, February 14.

In the Hobart Police Court to-day,

before Mr. D. E. Dicker, P.M., one of the Assembly members for the Franklin divi-sion in the Labour interest was charged by summons, on an information laid bv Captain Hoad, of the military stat!, of having been guilty of an offence under re-gulation 28 of the War Precaution Regu-lations of 1915, in having on January 25 la3t, at the Freemasons' Hotel, made a statement likely to prejudice recruiting, as follows :-"I would as soon be under German rule as unilcr British, and if Aus-tralia were in trouble Great Britain would not fire a shot to help her." The accused pleaded not guilty.

Mr. Hotlgman (for the defendant) ap-plied for an adjournment to enable the defence to be prepared, but as there wero two lady witnesses-members of a theatri-cal company-who urgently required to leave the State, the magistrate decided to hear them, and then adjourn the further

hearing. ]

Doris Gilham, of the Peg o' My Heart Company, said she and Miss Tien Hogue -Miss Allgood's understudy-immediately after their arrival from Sydney were in .the dining-room of the hotel, when she heard Dicker say to a companion at one of the tables, loud enough for all in the , room to hear, that ho was glad Aus-

tralia was too far-seeing lo adopt the Imperialistic policy, and that if Aus-tralia was in trouble England would not fire "a shot to help her. She could hard-ly describe the effect it had on her. She was an Englishwoman who had been treated with great courtesy in Australia. She said to Miss Hogue, "I can't sit here and listen to this," and proceeded to leave the room. Just as they got to the door she heard Dicker say : "I would just as soon' live under German rule as British." After conversation with a friend, they decided to inform the mili-tary authorities.

In cross-examination, she said that when Dicker made tbese statements, she said "Hot," and banged the door. Miss Hogue was ns astonished as she was. Dicker also said Australia had helped England, and England had done -nothing for Aus-

tralia.

Mr. Ho'dgman : You consider that con-scription in Australia would bo proper ?

Witness : I am loyal. I think so. I have lived in England, and have seen the suffering there, and of our brave men at the Front, who need support.

Miss Tien Hogue gavo corroborative evi-dence, after which the further hearing waa

adjourned for -a- week. -