CLAIM FOR £91

Taranaki Daily News, 19 September 1940, Page 8

CLAIM FOR £91

SOLICITOR DEFENDANT CASE AT HAWERA COURT

On a claim against L. A. Taylor, soli-citor, Hawera, for £91 12s 4d, an amount alleged to be owing on goods stated to have been delivered to Taylor's household, judgment was reserved by Mr. J. H. Salmon, S.M., at Hawera yesterday. Mr. N. M. Thomson, Levin, appeared for the plaintiff, the Public Trustee as administrator of the estate of the late John Baird Wilson, Hawera. Taylor conducted his own case with Mr. M. J. Burns in association. The statement of claim stated that Wilson during his life time carried on business at Hawera as a retailer of butter, eggs, tea, bacon, sweets, fruit and similar household requirements and that during a period of at least four years preceding his death he continuously and regularly supplied Taylor's home with household requirements. It was further stated that at all material times Taylor and his- wife resided together and that at the date of Wilson's death a balance of £91 12s 4d was due and owing to Wilson in respect of the goods supplied. A demand was duly made on Taylor for payment of the balance owing, but the demand was not complied with, and a claim was made for the full amount. Frances Elizabeth Wilson, a daughter of Wilson, identified the writing in the books in which accounts were kept as that of her father, who died at Hawera on July 13, 1939. She visited her father last in September. 1937, when she made up some of the accounts for. him as he was very busy. The business was mostly of a credit nature, and more than £200 was owing at the time she went through the books. The account in Taylor's namc was fairly large at that time. To Mr. Taylor, Miss Wilson said she had no doubt that the entries were in the hands of her father. No Reply to Letters.

Wffliam Morley Eggleston, Hawera district public trustee, said that on August 10, 1939, he wrote to Taylor asking for payment of £91 12s 4d, and Taylor replied that the money was not owed by him and that he knew nothing of it. In September, 1939, he wrote to Mrs. Taylor asking for payment as her husband denied liability. No reply was received, and another letter was sent to her on October 20, 1939, but no reply was received. On November 13 he wrote to Taylor holding him responsible for the debt as the letters to his wife were not acknowledged. Proceedings were threatened. Taylor replied that he was of the opinion that he was not liable, and quoted authorities in support of his contention. Proceedings were issued, and subsequently Taylor made a request by telephone that the summons be withdrawn for a few days as he expected to pay the account. No conditions were specified. Richdrd Edward McRae-Fittall, accountant employed by the Public Trust Office, Hawera, said 164 accounts were owing to Wilson at the date of death, the amount involved being £235 or £237. All except 20 accounts were collected. There were no disputes about the ones paid, but of the 20 still owing eight or nine were disputed. The total of the accounts disputed with the exception of the Taylor account was £9 16s, the grounds of dispute in some cases being that Wilson was paid shortly before he died, and in two cases it was claimed that part of the amount was paid. Wilson kept a good record of the debts owing to him, the ledgers being kept methodically. The entries in the various books balanced. No Proof of Delivery. A non-suit was asked for by Mr. Taylor on the grounds that there was no proof of delivery of one item in the very long claim. The entries in the books till the beginning of 1938 were unsupported by information of what the items were, and the onus of proof was not discharged by the Public Trustee. He questioned the admissibility of the books. Mr. Thomson: They have been admitted without objection, and cross-examin-ation has been based on them. "The admissibility of books has been argued in two Hawera cases," said Mr. Salmon. "The authorities show that the books are admissible if kept by the deceased or by someone employed to keep them." Legal argument upon the admissibility of the books was submitted by Mr. Taylor. "The case does not remain with the books alone," said Mr. Salmon. "There is the evidence of Eggleston that you said you would send a cheque. I could not possibly grant a non-suit." "I think I must admit the books," said Mr. Salmon, after Thomson quoted authorities. Evidence of Defendant.

"I knew Wilson by sight, but I never said more than 'good day' to him," said Taylor on oath. "I knew his van, and I saw it in my street often. He kept goods in cool stores at the corner of my street and I often passed within a couple of yards of him. I saw him once only on my property. My wife and I were together. Wilson had a butcher's basket on his arm. My wife said to him, 'I don't want anything,' and he turned and left. He never asked me for payment of any amount and he never sent me a letter or an account. I did not know he was serving my house, and the first

intimation I had of this was when the Public Trustee wrote to me. This means I have never paid Wilson any money. "I deny that Mr. Eggleston has the right of it over my telephone communication with him," said Taylor. "I admit ringing him and I will admit that I was anxious that there should be no lawsuit against me. I did not promise to pay the account. "For a large number of years I have had to prohibit my wife pledging my credit," said Taylor. "I did not know she was purchasing things from Wilson. As far as groceries are concerned I have been allowing her to run an account for £6 10s a month with one grocer one month and with another grocer another month. She was allowed to collect the board which I compel our boy to pay. "I had to do this for, excellent as she is in many other respects, she comes from a family that does not know the value of money," said Taylor. "Had I not done this I would have been bankrupt half a dozen times." To Mr. Thomson, Taylor admitted that he paid accounts to five grocers, the accounts having been incurred without his knowledge and contrary to his expressed desire that accounts be confined to one grocer and restricted to £6 10s a month. To Mr. Burns, Taylor said he did not know of his wife's explanation of Wilson's account until Tuesday. Court Sits at Residence. The court sat at defendant's home in the evening, when Mrs. Taylor gave evidence. She said she paid Wilson £25 in three instalments in full settlement of the first accounts she ran up with him. After that she paid cash, or if there was not sufficient money in the house she paid him the following week. Her husband did not know of the transactions and it was not till Tuesday that she told him that she paid Wilson weekly. She denied that she owed Wilson money at the date of his death. She denied that after

paying the £25 she purchased more goods on credit and that she paid a further £10 towards them. Ian Lyell Taylor, a son, said he saw his mother pay Wilson with silver on a number of occasions. Legal argument in support of his contention that it was the wife and not the husband who was the debtor was submitted by Mr. Taylor, and after Mr. Thomson had made contentions in rebuttal the magistrate reserved his decision.