In December 1968 while on a trip to the United States I bought paperback copies of Gore Vidal’s Myra Breckinridge and Sanford Friedman’s Totempole, the former being the best-selling novel at the time in America. With a large number of other books I posted these back to myself. The Customs Department opened the parcel, seized the books and informed me they were confiscated under Section 4A of the Customs Act. Thirteen months later a decision of Justice Levine in a District Court returned Totempole to me and Myra Breckinridge to the Customs Department.

In retrospect I embarked on this case almost by accident. It appeared that the revised Customs Act made a court challenge possible, and further that a challenge through the district court would be cheap and avoid the problem of costs. It also appeared that the Council for Civil Liberties would assist me. I therefore proceeded to sue for return of my books, an appropriate action to take against a government which talks so much about the sanctity of private ownership.