Lord MacDermott.-

This was an appeal from a judgment of the High Court of Basutoland of 25th October 1947, whereby the seven appellants were convicted of the murder of one Katse Phatela on 25th December 1945, at Phatela's in the District of Qacha's Nek, and sentenced to death.

[2] The case for the crown was that the killing of Katse was a ritual murder committed by ten persons for the purpose of obtaining human blood to be used by a witch-doctor named Molume Kaphe in connection with a dispute about land. Of these ten, the witch doctor died in gaol while awaiting trial and two others, Jan Gat and Maama Molahlehi, gave evidence for the prosecution. The remaining seven are the appellants. It is unnecessary to recite the evidence adduced at the trial in detail. At this stage, it will suffice to say that the Crown testimony in support of the, charge was to the effect that Katse was chosen by appellant 1 as the victim whose blood was required; that a feast previously arranged by appellant 1 was held in the hut of appellant 2 on Christmas Day 1945; that Katse was there plied with drink until be was insensible; that he was taken out of the hut after dark and carried by some of the ten persons already mentioned, the others accompanying them, to a spot about 500 yards away where he was hit on the head with a pick-handle and throttled; that the witch-doctor next pierced or stabbed Katse's head behind the right ear with a sharp pin and caught the blood from the wound in a tin; that Katse was then carried to the edge of a krantz or cliff some 31 feet high and thrown over into a stream; and that several of the appellants followed him down and confirmed he was dead.

[3] Such, in broad outline, was the story sworn to by each of the accomplices, Jan Gat and Maama Molahlehi. Their versions differed in certain points, but in substance they told the same tale. It may be stated now, though the matter will be referred to hereinafter, that apart from their testimony there was no evidence sufficient to implicate the appellants in the offence alleged. Whether, there was any other evidence showing that Katse had been murdered by someone was a disputed question which will be examined later. His dead body was found on 26th December and buried on the 28th. On 10th January 1916, it was exhumed and examined by Dr. R. C. Ogg who proved the cause of death to be "injury to the brain from a fractured skull and a fractured femur."

[4] The case made by the appellants at the trial challenged the contention that Katse had been murdered and suggested that he had met death by falling over the krantz while on his way home drunk. Appellant 2 elected to give evidence on oath denying the charge but his testimony was not accepted. The other appellants did not give evidence but contented themselves with statements from the dock, after verdict given, protesting their innocence. In addition to appellant 2 several witnesses were called for the defence, the gist of their evidence being that the deceased left the feast before it ended and while the appellants or some of them were still there, and that Jan Gat and Maama Molahlehi spent the hours of darkness, during which the. murder was alleged to have occurred, asleep in the hut of the witness Dora Mafatela.

[5] The first question arising for determination is whether it was competent for the High Court to convict the appellants having regard to the state of the evidence and the terms of S. 231 of the Basutoland Criminal Procedure and Evidence Proclamation, 1938, as amended. It has already been observed that the only evidence implicating the appellants in the crime charged was that of the two accomplices. It will be convenient to consider now, before referring to the relevant provisions of the Proclamation, whether there was any evidence, in addition to that of the accomplices, to show that Katse had been murdered by someone. At the trial corroboration of the accomplices' story of an intentional killing appears to have been sought in