Confessional

At Basle, Switzerland, last week, a priest in criminal court clutched his cross and doggedly refused to reveal what the prisoner had told him in confessional. Just as the confidences of a lawyer's or doctor's client are privileged in U. S. courts, so this priest insisted were his confessional secrets. The public prosecutor cajoled and bullied; the priest remained obdurate. The judge ended the Punch & Judy show by fining the priest one Swiss franc ($0.1923) for contempt of court, and dismissing him as a witness.