Katanga household. To the satisfaction of Dorothy Katanga, because Anna was a hard worker, and to Jack Katanga for – possibly – other reasons.”
“You mean—?”
“I mean what you’re thinking. Katanga was by now a virile, forceful, mature man. I can easily suppose that his little missionary-reared wife had lost most of the original attraction she had for him. You will have noted that they had no children.”
“So he seduced the hired help.”
“If he did – and it is only a presumption – he was both careful and tactful. His wife, with their newly acquired wealth, was able to enjoy long shopping mornings in the West End. And the house, remember, was isolated. Also he did not make the mistake that some men have made – read your criminal cases – of degrading or insulting his wife. On the contrary, he behaved more courteously to her – particularly in public – than he had, perhaps, done before.”
“Are you suggesting that Katanga’s wife welcomed the importation of a mistress into the household?”
“I don’t know whether she welcomed it. She may not even have known what went on when she was out shopping. However, that is not the real point. What we have to look at—” he had touched the bell on his desk and said to Mrs. Portland, “Would you ask Mr. Silverborn to step in? Thank you. — What we must look at very carefully are the chances of keeping this deplorable case out of court altogether. Ah, Lewis, you have some news for us.”
“Views, not news,” said Mr. Silverborn. “I find that we are in a curiously unexplored field of the law. Most of it stems from the Vienna Conventions of 1961 and 1963 and there are very few decided cases to help us. In fact, most of the decisions and statements are American. Not binding on our courts, of course, but since the Americans have adopted both Conventions on almost exactly the same lines as we have, they could be regarded as persuasive.”
“And what is the answer at the end of the day?”
Like all lawyers this was the sort of question that Mr. Silverborn disliked. He said, “The only answer I can give you is that if Mr. Mullen can be regarded as a diplomatic agent, then he would be totally immune from the criminal jurisdiction of our courts.”
“And how would it be decided whether he was a diplomatic agent or not?”
“That is a question for experts in international law. I have already had a word—” he turned to Mullen, who was showing signs of impatience —“with your English solicitor, Mr. Roger Sherman. He fully appreciates the difficulties of the position and, no doubt, has already sent a set of instructions to Counsel. If we are denied the protection of diplomatic privilege in the Magistrates’ Court, we should have to appeal to a Divisional Court. Indeed, if the Divisional Court found against us, we might have to take the matter on to the Court of Appeal. In either case Counsel will be needed. In the end, senior Counsel.”
Mullen, who had been coming quietly to the boil, now exploded. He said, “For God’s sake, how long do you think this legal hurdle-race is going to take?”
“The court will usually expedite such matters if there is a valid reason for doing so.”
“Valid reason! Do you realise I only came here to try to get Katanga extradited? I’ve got to be back in Pretoria by the end of the month to give evidence at the U.D.F. terrorist trial. I never anticipated being here for more than a few weeks at the outside.”
“I promise you that we’ll waste no time,” said Mr. Silverborn. He tried not to let the fact that he disliked Mullen colour his reactions.
In the room next door, Kathleen was saying to Rosemary, “You’ve been scribbling very busily. What’s it all about?”
“Something I’m getting up for the big white chief,” said Rosemary. She had stopped scribbling, but her pencil was still poised.
“How’s the hag-ography going?” said Mavis. A big, cow-like girl, she was secretly rather
“You mean—?”
“I mean what you’re thinking. Katanga was by now a virile, forceful, mature man. I can easily suppose that his little missionary-reared wife had lost most of the original attraction she had for him. You will have noted that they had no children.”
“So he seduced the hired help.”
“If he did – and it is only a presumption – he was both careful and tactful. His wife, with their newly acquired wealth, was able to enjoy long shopping mornings in the West End. And the house, remember, was isolated. Also he did not make the mistake that some men have made – read your criminal cases – of degrading or insulting his wife. On the contrary, he behaved more courteously to her – particularly in public – than he had, perhaps, done before.”
“Are you suggesting that Katanga’s wife welcomed the importation of a mistress into the household?”
“I don’t know whether she welcomed it. She may not even have known what went on when she was out shopping. However, that is not the real point. What we have to look at—” he had touched the bell on his desk and said to Mrs. Portland, “Would you ask Mr. Silverborn to step in? Thank you. — What we must look at very carefully are the chances of keeping this deplorable case out of court altogether. Ah, Lewis, you have some news for us.”
“Views, not news,” said Mr. Silverborn. “I find that we are in a curiously unexplored field of the law. Most of it stems from the Vienna Conventions of 1961 and 1963 and there are very few decided cases to help us. In fact, most of the decisions and statements are American. Not binding on our courts, of course, but since the Americans have adopted both Conventions on almost exactly the same lines as we have, they could be regarded as persuasive.”
“And what is the answer at the end of the day?”
Like all lawyers this was the sort of question that Mr. Silverborn disliked. He said, “The only answer I can give you is that if Mr. Mullen can be regarded as a diplomatic agent, then he would be totally immune from the criminal jurisdiction of our courts.”
“And how would it be decided whether he was a diplomatic agent or not?”
“That is a question for experts in international law. I have already had a word—” he turned to Mullen, who was showing signs of impatience —“with your English solicitor, Mr. Roger Sherman. He fully appreciates the difficulties of the position and, no doubt, has already sent a set of instructions to Counsel. If we are denied the protection of diplomatic privilege in the Magistrates’ Court, we should have to appeal to a Divisional Court. Indeed, if the Divisional Court found against us, we might have to take the matter on to the Court of Appeal. In either case Counsel will be needed. In the end, senior Counsel.”
Mullen, who had been coming quietly to the boil, now exploded. He said, “For God’s sake, how long do you think this legal hurdle-race is going to take?”
“The court will usually expedite such matters if there is a valid reason for doing so.”
“Valid reason! Do you realise I only came here to try to get Katanga extradited? I’ve got to be back in Pretoria by the end of the month to give evidence at the U.D.F. terrorist trial. I never anticipated being here for more than a few weeks at the outside.”
“I promise you that we’ll waste no time,” said Mr. Silverborn. He tried not to let the fact that he disliked Mullen colour his reactions.
In the room next door, Kathleen was saying to Rosemary, “You’ve been scribbling very busily. What’s it all about?”
“Something I’m getting up for the big white chief,” said Rosemary. She had stopped scribbling, but her pencil was still poised.
“How’s the hag-ography going?” said Mavis. A big, cow-like girl, she was secretly rather
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