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19.1.1955AFFIDAVIT OF H. L.KELLY DATED
AFFIDAVITS
A note on the Affidavits: as there were three separate publishers in this case, each Affidavit was submitted in triplicate. In each case the only difference was the name of the publisher and the titles cited. Unless a duplicate Affidavit was vastly different, I have chosen to only reproduce one of the three.
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Affidavit of H. L.Kelly - Dated 19.1.1955
I, HERBERT LESLIE KELLY of 37 Liontpelier street Clayfield Brisbane in the State of Queensland and a member of the firm of Cannan& Peterson of 319325 Queen Street Brisbane aforesaid Solicitors make oath and say as follows:- 1. My said firm is acting as Solicitors for Transport Publishing Co.Pty.Ltd. of 26 Hunter Street Sydney in the State of New South Wales and I have the conduct of this matter.
2. The said Company is the Publisher of "Real Love", "Romance Story", "Real Story", "Real Romances" and Love Experiences". 3. I have been informed by John Hilton Agnew, Accountant for Queensland of Gordon and Gotch (Australasia) Limited of 262 Adelaide Street Brisbane aforesaid and verily believe that - (a) Gordon and Gotch (Australasia) Limited is the distributor of the said publications (b) the said publications are issued monthly and distributed in all the States of the Commonwealth
(c) that an average of over 2000 copies of each issue of each of the said publications has been distributed in Queensland to newsagents for general sale in this State during the past six months (d) The said publications are intended for circulation amongst teenagers and all other classes and age groups of people and are purchased not only by teen-agers but by all other classes and age groups of people. 4. By an Order dated the twentieth day of December 1954 and published in the Queensland Government Gazette Volume CLXXXVII Number 173, page 2213 on the twentyfifth day of December 1954 the Literature Board of Review constituted under and for the purposes of "The Objectionable Literature Act of 1954" prohibited the distribution in Queensland of all and every the literature being writings published periodically specified in the Schedule of the said Order for that the said literature is in the opinion of the Board objectionable. 5. The said Order farther provided that it applied wish respect to all copies and every part number or series thereof whether published theretofore or thereafter.
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7. The said publications "Real Love", "Romance Story", "Real Story", "Real Romances" and "Love Experiences" are specified in the Schedule of the said Order.
8. A true copy of each of the said publications "Real Love", "Romance Story", "Real Story" and "Real Romances" and "Love Experiences" respectively is now produced and shown to me and marked "B" "C" "D" "E" and "F" respectively. 9. Transport Publishing Co.Pty.Ltd. feels aggrieved by the said Order. 10. I have therefore been instructed to make application to this Honourable Court for an Order calling upon the said The Literature Board of Review to show cause before the Full Court of the Supreme Court of Queensland why the said Order should not be quashed and set aside in relation to the said publications "Real Love", "Romance Story", "Real Story", "Real Romances" and "Love Experiences" on the following grounds viz:- (1) That the opinion of the Board upon which the said Order is based namely that all and each of the said publications is objectionable within the meaning of "The Objectionable Literature Act of 1954" is wrong in law and in fact in that - whether or not regard is had to the nature of each one of the said publications, the persons, classes of persons and age groups to or amongst whom each or any of the said publications is or is intended to he or is likely to be distributed none of the said publications nor any part of any of them:- (i) unduly emphasises matters of sex, horror, crime, cruelty or violence; (ii) is blasphemous, indecent, obscene or likely to be injurious to morality; (iii) is likely to encourage depravity, public disorder or any indictable offence; (iv) is otherwise calculated to injure the citizens of this State; (v) Has any tendency to deprave or corrupt any of the persons, classes of persons or age groups aforesaid. (2) That the opinion of the Board upon which the said Order is based namely that all and each of the said publications is objectionable within the meaning of the said Act is arbitrary capricious and unreasonable and/or has been formed upon a consideration of extraneous and irrelevant matters. (3) That the said Order is ultra vires in its purported application to any part number or series of the said publications which had not been published at the time the said Order was made, and to any which the Board had not considered as separate publications, in that the Board has no jurisdiction to prohibit the distribution of any literature which it has not examined and received.
18 The 1955 Romance Comics Trial
(4) That the said Order is ultra vires and the said Act is invalid and unconstitutional in that it infringes Section 92 of the Constitution (Commonwealth) (5) That whether or not regard is had to the nature of each one of the said publications, the persons, class of persons and age groups to or amongst whom each or any Jf the said publications is or is intended to be or is likely to be distributed none of the said publications nor any part of any of them (i) unduly emphasises matters of sex, horror, crime, cruelty or violence; (ii) is blasphemous, indecent, obscene or likely to be injurious to morality; (iii) is likely to encourage depravity, public disorder or any indictable offence; (iv) is otherwise calculated to injure the citizens of this State; (v) has any tendency to deprave or corrupt any of the persons, classes of persons or age groups aforesaid AND why the said The Literature Board of Review should not pay the costs of this application and of the Order hereon and the proceedings subsequent thereto.
ALL the facts and circumstances herein deposed to are within my own knowledge save where deposed to from information only and my means of knowledge and sources of information appear on the face of this my Affidavit SIGNED AND SWORN by the above.
