COAL DEALERS OF PETONE AND THE MAYOR

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 290, 1 September 1920, Page 10

COAL DEALERS OF PETONE AND THE MAYOR

y DEFAMATION CASE SETTLED. In the - Magistrate's Court yesterdi; morning, before Mr. AY. G. Kiddell, S.M tlie case of Gaynor «nd others ; v M'Ewan was culled. This wis a cas in which James. Gaynor, John Clark John Jacobsen, and M'Ewen aud Cm ter, Ltd., coal dealers at Petone, pre cceded against John W. M'Ewan, Mayo of the borough. The statement of clain Bet out that on March 9, 1920, at Wei iington, a .deputation consisting of th defendants and other.v waited on th Prime Minister ivith respect to the con shortage and the. distribution of coal a Petone, and that in tho course of hi address the defendants stated that "th dealers in Petono were in tho habit e delivering only 1001b. as a hundred weight, and I have some evidence tha tho weight was sometimes much shorte than that." The plaintiffs claimed tha the words meant that they were dishon est in their selling and delivering o onal. and that tho words were spoke: fulicly and maliciously. The plaintiff claimed ,£2OO damages. Y\ lion the caso was called, Mr. H. I O'j.mry, who appeared for the plaintiff; said that the action was one for defame Hon .itainst the Mayor of Petone. Th matter had been settled by the defemj ant. through his solicitor (Mr. R. ( Kirk), writing to Messrs. Bell, Gullj Myors, and O'Leary, and enclosing a lei ter from Mr. M'Ewan, in which tho lal ter said: "I desire to say that my ri marks at the deputation to the Prim Minister were entirely in the public in teresL. I had no intention of iniput ing dishonesty to tho dealers in coal wh have protested against the report. I{c cognising tho legal position of dealers i coal. I wish to add that if any of m remarks can reasonably bo so interpreted I withdraw the same and express rcgrc at their publication." Mr. O'Learv stated that the defendan ugriwd to pay the expenses of the plair tiifu. and they were satisfied with thi of regret. Counsel said h had taken this courso of mentioning th mailer while asking for withdrawal o tha caso in justice to tho plaintiffs, a the remarks of the Mayor were publish ed in the newspapers. The plaintiff merely wished to be vindicated. Leave to withdraw tho case wa granted ■