referendum to ensure public safety in the face of Hurricane Felix, Cabinet Secretary Mr. Leopold Mills testified yesterday.

The decision was made as the hurricane approached on the afternoon of August 14, despite the fact Attorney General Mr. Elliott Mottley and others present knew the law provided for no such delay, Mr. Mills said.

Testifying at the opening day of a Commission of Inquiry into the one-day postponement of the referendum that was set for August 15, Mr. Mills told of a meeting held in his office in the Cabinet Building a day earlier.

No politicians were present, but Mr. Mottley, Chief Parliamentary Counsel Mr.

George Griffith, Parliamentary Registrar Mrs. Marlene Christopher, acting Permanent Secretary of Labour and Home Affairs Mr. Edwin Wilson, and assistant Cabinet Secretaries Mr. John Drinkwater and Mr. Robert Horton were, Mr. Mills said.

A hurricane with sustained winds of 107 miles per hour and gusts to 135 mph was expected to make a direct hit on the Island the next morning.

At the "administrative'' meeting, which followed a 10.30 a.m. Cabinet meeting, it was agreed that "weather conditions were predicted to be such that nobody could be expected to venture out'' on referendum morning, Mr.

Mills said.

The Parliamentary Election Act 1978 only allowed the referendum to be postponed if the 20 returning officers each opened their polling stations and then adjourned the vote for 24 hours in light of the storm. But Mr. Mills said he and other officials felt it might not be safe or even possible for returning officers to get to their polling stations.

While "it was obvious there was no provision in the law for the postponement'', it was a matter of "common sense, practicality, and public safety,'' he said.

It was also agreed that "any decision ... should properly be made by the Secretary of the Cabinet, particularly since any decision was likely to be controversial,'' Mr. Mills said.

The final decision would depend on how bad conditions were, and would be made and announced by Mr. Mills the next morning.

Mr. Griffith "suggested that all present be prepared to sign a statement supporting the Secretary of the Cabinet if he had to make a decision,'' Mr.

Mills said. "There was no objection.'' But "no such statement was in fact prepared'', Mr. Mills said under questioning from the commission.

Mrs. Christopher, who also testified yesterday, said "no definitive decision'' was made at the meeting in Mr. Mills' office on August 14.

The next morning, Mr. Mills "was to make an administrative decision, and then he would make an announcement,'' she said.

"I felt very concerned myself that if there was a hurricane the next day, how would I logistically get everyone in place and how would I conduct this thing,'' Mrs. Christopher said.

Throughout his testimony, which kicked off the inquiry which is expected to last all week, Mr. Mills stressed that politics played no part in what he described as an administrative decision.

Mills gives evidence There has been rampant speculation that former Premier the Hon. Sir John Swan wanted the referendum delayed until Christmas in the hopes of garnering more support for a "yes'' vote on Independence.

Mr. Mills said he had no personal talks with the Premier about a delay in the referendum, and said "the Cabinet acted entirely properly in this entire matter''.

He said he did not recall meeting Sir John and then Transport Minister the Hon. Maxwell Burgess outside the Government Administration Building on the afternoon of the 15th, as has been reported to the commission.

"I don't want to say that it did not happen,'' he said. "It is, of course, possible.'' In other testimony, Mr. Mills denied that he said the referendum was postponed "indefinitely'' when he announced on radio at about 8 a.m. that it would not proceed.

Although a stronger storm had been expected, the hurricane weakened and skirted the Island by 41 miles at 10.48 p.m. on August 14, bringing top winds of 90 mph.

Still, Mr. Mills noted that two-thirds of the Island was without power, phones were out, electricity lines were down, the Causeway was impassable, and so were many roads. Meanwhile, high winds and heavy rains continued.

"There was a real risk to life and limb,'' Mr. Mills said.

At a meeting that had just ended, the Emergency Measures Organisation had recommended that people stay in their homes and Government offices would remain closed until further notice. Mr. Mills said the EMO was concerned with public safety, not the referendum, and it did not discuss the vote.

"The general thrust of the statement (he made on radio) was that in the circumstances, the referendum could not proceed in light of the weather,'' Mr.

Mills said. "It was something that I scribbled very hastily following the EMO meeting.'' He did not say when the referendum would be held, "because I did not know when it was going to be possible to do that'', he said.

The Attorney General had said if the polls did not open at all, legislation would be required to set a new date, and that would require Parliament being recalled.

Mr. Mills said he was also "under the impression'' that either all the polling stations had to open at once, or else none could.

But "at no time did I indicate that the referendum was going to be postponed indefinitely, or that it had been canceled altogether, or that it would not take place until later in the year''.

He "simply indicated ... the referendum could not proceed under these circumstances.'' Officials were "certainly hopeful'' that there might be a chance to "trigger'' the 24-hour delay clause in the Parliamentary Election Act and proceed with the referendum the next day, Mr. Mills said. "At the first opportunity, that's exactly what happened.'' Mr. Mills called for changes to the Parliamentary Election Act 1978 to spell out clearly what should happen if an act of God like a hurricane interfered with a general election or other vote.