33 



35- No charge has yet been formulated against these 

 gentlemen, and there is no assurance that they will not be kept 

 indefinitely in prison without a charge and without ajrial. The 

 delay in formulating charges affords ground for the supposition 

 that the search of houses did not result in the discovery of 

 criminating material, while their continued incarceration exposes 

 them to the possible danger of the fabrication of false evidence 

 against them. 



36. In the important provincial centres and village town- 

 ships, as in the countryside, the same thing of wholesale arrests 

 of leading men and keeping them in jail without bail being 

 allowed is continued throughout the Island. 



37. An application was made to the Supreme Court for a 

 writ of " Habeas Corpus " on the prison authorities to produce 

 Mr. W. A. de Silva. Sir Alex. Wood-Renton, Chief Justice, 

 issued a notice, and the Attorney-General, Mr. Anton Bertram, 

 appearing on behalf of the Officer Commanding, the Brigadier- 

 General, H. H. L. Malcolm, justified the arrest and detention on 

 the ground of Martial Law, though the averments of the appli- 

 cant's affidavit, that the rioting had ceased and tranquility pre- 

 vailed in the country, was not denied in the affidavit of the 

 General which acknowledged the arrest under Martial Law. 

 Instead, the Attorney-General stated that he had instructions 

 from the Government to say that the country was not quiet, and 

 the application was refused by the Chief Justice. 



Extract from 

 " The Times of Ceylon, June, iqtli, 1915. 



Justification for Martial Law. 



At the App.eal Court yesterday, before the Chief Justice, an 

 application was made for a Writ of Habeas Corpus for the pro- 

 duction of the body of Mr. Wilmot Arthur de Silva, J.P. 



Mr. A. St. V. Jayewardene, with Messrs. Allan Drieberg and 

 E. J. Samarawickreme, appeared in support. The Hon. Mr. Anton 

 Bertram, Attorney-General, with Mr. B. W. Bawa, K.C., Acting 

 Solicitor-General, appeared contra. 



The petition is by Mr. W. Lionel de Silva, nephew of Mr. 

 Wilmot A. de Silva. It is stated in the petition that on June 2ist, 

 1915, Mr. \\ilmot A. de Silva was arrested and taken into custody 

 and removed to the prison at Welikade, and has since been, and is 



i. A. P. Goometilleke, Harry Dias, P. C. Bias (Panadura), F. H. Dias 

 ftandaranayaka (Heneratgoda), Simon Senanayake. 



