Judge Wanliss And Justice In New Guinea

High Court’s Significant Decision—The Attack on Crown Law Officer

THERE have been some remarkable oc currences in connection with the ad ministration of justice in New Guinea.

In our May issue, we directed pointed attention to the case of Father Cranssen — a young missionary, who had been sen tenced by Judge Wanliss to five years’ imprisonment for “having counselled cer tain persons wilfully and unlawfully to set fire to a dwelling house in New Guinea.”

The facts were simple. There was bit ter rivalry between this missionary and the Lutheran missionaries, out in the “uncontrolled area” behind Madang. The safety, if not the life, of Father Cranssen had been threatened by certain native teachers of the Lutheran organisation.

Father Cranssen sent his native helpers out to deal with the situation, and they deliberately burned down three grass huts occupied by the Lutherans.

Judge Wanliss, on May 8, in imposing the sentence of five years, scolded the missionary in these terms: “You have been a traitor to your Church —a Church that has spread Chris tianity to all parts of the earth. You have degraded your mission, and humili ated your bishop and his fathers. It

makes one’s blood boil to think of what you have done.”

We said, at the time, that it was an outrageous sentence —five years’ gaol for what after all was a trivial offence, com mitted in extraordinary circumstances.

The missionary was sent to Emu Plains prison farm, in New South Wales, to serve his sentence.

There was an appeal to the High Court in August; and on August 20 the High Court reduced the sentence. One judge thought the sentence should be two years: but the other three agreed that it should be six months.

With various remissions, this term be came four months, and Father Cranssen was released from the prison farm on September 2, and taken care of by his friends. He will not return to New Guinea.

The High Court judges said: “It appears manifest that a sentence of five years’ imprisonment is out of all pro portion to any view of the seriousness of the offence which reasonably could be taken. Chief Judge Wanliss’s opinion of the facts contains many observations which confirm the conclusion that he took altogether too extreme a view of the matter.”

While agreeing that there was no justi fication for Father Cranssen’s acts and that these were actuated by resentment against the intrusion of the Lutheran mission, a sentence of five years was “a crushing punishment.”