ACTION FOR DAMAGES.

Taranaki Daily News, 21 December 1917, Page 4

ACTION FOR DAMAGES.

AN AMICABLE SETTLEMENT. By Telegraph,—Press Association. Wellington, Bm. 19. In the Magistrate's Court, the. case of ■ Samuel Kract/.er, ofChristchurch, v, H. E. Gcddis and Co., proprietors, of the Free Lance, was called on. Plaintiff claimed £IOO damages for the publication of the words t ""I Alio noticed a well-known raceoourse detective being driven to the races in a car owned by a well-known Wellington bookmaker. Hot stuif, eh?" Plaintiff claimed that the words meant that he, in breach of his duty as a racecourse detective, was in Intimate association with a bookmaker, therefore rendering himself incapable of impartially performing his duty. Defendants' counsel said that a week after the original statements were made in the Free Lance th'e writer of turf topics, having found that the statement complained of (which was contained in a correspondent's letter) was wrong published a statement to that effect, and later, having received a letter from plaintiff's solicitors, defendants put in the Free Lance ft full statement by way of explanation and rotractipn, but they had not brought this under the notice of plaintiff or his solicitors, who only saw the matter a day or two ago, • Plaintiff's counsel said if the retraction had been known plaintiff, who did not desire damages from the Free Lance, would not have brought the present action. Plaintiff desired to bring an action against the writer of the letter containing the defamatory statement, but the ethics of journalism prevented the newspaper divulging his name. As the Free Lance had published a full explanation the present action would be withdrawn.