R.M. COURT

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XII, Issue 3945, 22 October 1891, Page 2

R.M. COURT

MASTERTON.-THURSDAY. (Before Colonel Roberts, R.M.) emu F. G. Moore v. A. A. Elkina.— Claim, £6 12s Bd, for rates owing to the Wairarapa North County Council and Masterton Road Board. Judgment for the amount claimed, with costs 80s. R. Manning v. J. Wisbart.—Claim, £3 2s, poundage fees. Mr Pownall! appeared for the defendant and objected to the bill of particulars. The case was adjourned till next Court day. PICTURESQUE ATLAS CASES. Bowerman Bros v. John Graham. —Claim, £7. Mr Pownall for the plaintiffs, Mr Beard for the defendant. Mr Pownall explained that the contract had been signed and the books delivered. There was a balance of £7 owipg. William M. Rundle, attorney for tbe New Zealand publishers of the Picturesque Atlas, deposed ; I have met Mr Graham before, On October 1, 1890, I called upon him and stated my business. I told him I had called to deliver the Picturesque Atlas according to his order. 1 showed him the first of fourteen parts unbound and the first volume of the work, which was the same fourteen parts bound. He said he was too busy to look at the work then and asked me to leave tbe volume so tlißt ha could look at it at night at bis leisure. I did so. He told x\e to call in the morning and he would tell mo which way he would ' have it, bound or unbound. I called I on the following morning, and heathen : complained that the book had nothing ! about New Zealand in it. I told him ' New Zealand was- in a future volume. > He tlfen fcnid 'he 'only :; wanted' New i Zealand'. I then drew hi's attention ' to the fact tbat the order was for tbe i

whole work and I was delivering according to contract. I showed him the contract. The contract produced is the one I showed him. That is the contract on which the action is now being taken. He acknowledged his signature but said he thought he was the New Zealand parts. Wc had some controversy over the matter, ind a gentleman whom 1 presume is Mr Grahim's son became very abusive. I then left the shop. I was opposite the store the same day and Mr Graham came across to me and told me he would pay roe for the fourteen numbers I had taken in the morning. He said he did not w a nt any legal trouble over {the matter, be would rather settle it. I told him if I was likely to have the same scene in the shop as I did in the morning I did not feel like going. He excused this, and i went oyer to the .shop and received payment of £3 10s. This was for numbers one to fourteen. TfiVprice of the work according to contract wb« £lO 10s. Before paying tho £3 JM Mr Graham read tho contract. By Mr Beard: My interview on October Ist was the first I had had with Mr Graham. I left the volume on October Ist, and took it away again on the following morning, because it was a different work to that which he had ordered. I left the bound volume and took away the unbound. Ido not remember seeing anybody else in the shop the first time I went in. I did not ptoduce the contract signed, the first time I went into Mr Graham's shop. When I went into the shop on the following morning I found Mr Graham, his son, and a stranger there, Ths stranger bud a good deal to say about book agents in general. He led me to infer that there were no book agents in Heaven, and appeared to be an ally of Mr Graham's. When I produced the order to Mr Graham it was in a cover. I have not the butt of the order form produced. The marginal slips or butts, are not used by the agents or Bowerman Bros. When 1 produced the order to Mr <3raham his son was in a different part of the shop about fifteea feet away. I held the order form in my hand about a foot trom Mr Graham's nose, so that he could read it. I read it out load to him, and he commented upon it as I did so. He said he did not think he was signiug for forty-two parts. He said " that is my signature, but I thought I was signing for the New Zealand parts only." No question about the signature was raised. lam acquainted with Metcalf. lathing was said by Mr Graham about having signed with an indelible pencil. The signature lo the order form produced is apparently in ink. It is my opinion that the who'e ot'tke words | on the order form were written by the same hand, by the same ink, and apparently at the same time. I recognise the signature on the margin as that of Mr Metcalf. After producing the order form I pressed for pay* ment, but this did not meet with a ready response, Mr Graham tefusing to pay. I have not in my possession a list of subscribers] in this district. Mr Beard : I have given my learned i friend notice to produce the list. Peri haps he will produce it. Mr Pownall: lam condncting my own case now. I must decline to produce it. Mr Beard: I want to cross-examine upon it.

Mr Pownall : Well, I decline to produce il now.

Cross-examination of witness con* tioued ; I have seen the signatueV of Mr Graham, which has been written in ink. I have seen no other order form than that produced. 1 have seen Mr Graham's signature to a re« ceipt, which was handed to Bowerman Bros. Tho whole of the writing on the leceipt form was written by me in Mr Graham's presence a« the time of delivering the work. By Mr Pownall: I saw Mr Graham sign the receipts for the books. Donald M'lutyre, sworn, sKted : I am an agent for the Picturesque Alias Company. On September Ist, this year, I in company with another agent named Jnger, left twenty-eight volumes of the Picturesque Atlas with Mr Graham. We left them on his counter. A young lid was there who we look to be his son. Mr Jager told him what the parcel contained. By Mi Beard : We had no conversation with Mr Graham when the books were delived. He was out at the time. This was the case for the plaintiff. For the defence Mr Beard said he did not now wish to argue the legal aspects of the case. He would produce the facts only. Mr Graham would positively swear that he had signed the contract with an indelible pencil in the presence of Metcalfe, who was not produced.

John Graham, sworn, stated : I remember a man named Metcalf com* ing to me some months ago. On the firat occasion be described the works, including the three volumes, and after setting forth their excellencies pressed for me totake them, which I absolutely declined. I declined to hare a thought of it. On his second visit he asked me to take the three volumes and so

insisted tbat I was obliged to express myself in a very strong way, stating that he was simply wasting his own time and infringing upon mine in this matter. On the third occasion he asked me if I would not think ot taking New Zealand only, to winch I agreed. I understood that I take numbers one to signed for New Zealand parte Only, with a spring pencil. I signed only one document. The pencil was an indelible one, produced by Mr Metcalf.

I was going to get a pen, when be said, " Never mind, sir, this will do for your signature," »nd produced an indelible pencil ready for writing. I read through what I signed, »hich was printed with "New Zealand parts " in (he centre. The words •< New Zealand parts" were in writing. The words " one to forty two" were npt upon thp contrapt signed by me. The signature to the contract produced is not mine, neither is the signature to the receipt. Npce of the writing upon tbe contract is mine. J would not have thought of igning the contract produced, as the whole of the previous conversations were on the point of numbers. Wkiro

I signed the contract two of my sons were in the shop. ] remember Bundle coming. I refused to take nil the parts, but agreed to take those of New Zealand. Strong words were used, and I said I was prepared to ttke the parts ordered, and told him what bad taken place between myself and Metcalf. He produced an order, but showed rae my signature only,and did not read the contract to me. When he showed me the signature I tol him it was not mine. I told him bad signed the order with pencil. There were ' hot words, and he TefuseU to accept anything I said. I subsequently agreed to accnpt fourteen numbers. I took therii I was under the impression they wero Hew £ealan3

parts. I looked at one page of the parts, and from seeing "Captain Cook's discovery of New Zealand " 1 concluded that the parts were those of New Zealand. Handle insisted right through that I was responsible for the whole parts. I wrote a letter to M<r Jager returning the twenty eight parts he left. By Mr Pownall : I was told that the order form was left at the Bank of New South Wales. At the time I paid the £3 10s I understood that I should still be liable for the remainder of the work. He (Mrßundle)madenoscate ment to the effect that I was released. I did not see two receipts. I could not see from my * office where Mr Bundle took the piece of paper from. I said on the 2nd of October that I was perfectly willing to fulfill my contract for the New Zealand parts. I know the number of parts I was to receive from Mr Metcalf. The price was to be five shillings a part, unbound, parts. Will not swear that

the number (fourteen parts) was in fcMta contract. Will swear the num-forty-two was not in. I do not think it extraordinary that I know that the number forty two was not there, because it was alluded to several times that I agreed to take the New Zea'and parts only. I would not accept the volume bound because I contracted for unbound parts. I afterwards in a very foolish and cursory way looked at the unbound parts.

Examination continued : I am quite sure I signed no document connected with the Atlas except the ore 1 signed with the indelible pencil. It was possible that a matter might escape a person's mind even on oatb. I am positive to the best of my knowledge and belief I did not sign any other document. Further than that I will not go. lam absolutely clear that my memory and my conscience at the present does not lead me to believe that I signed any other paper. Am absolutely positive that I did not sign any paper or document in connection with the Atlas in ink. Mr Pownall here produced another document, *nd asked Mr Graham if the words, John Graham, Masterton, Were written by him. Mr Graham: I will not say whether the signature and address, in my handwriting without 3eeing the heading. I wUI not say because there appears so many good imitations. I will not on oath say that it is or is not fljy writing. lam generally suf« ficient judge of my own handwriting to know it

MfeGraham at this stage wrote the word*; John Graham, merchant, Masterton, at the request of plaintiffs solicitor.

Cross-examined: I usually write with a medium pen. The writing on piece of paper produced is not mine. If I had not kno*n to what it was appended I might have thought it was mine. The letter "h " and "a " are different.

Mr Pownall pointed out to the Court that in one of the signatures written the gaps in the letters were the same.

Mr Graham: I might say, jour Woaship, that I base my oath that it is not my signature, on the fact that it is clear and distinct in my mind that I signed with pencil, and not on anything appearing in the signature. It was an indelible pencil. I will still deny that the pen produced *as similar to the one Me teal f used.

Mr Graham, at this stage, again tigned his name with a patent pen.

Mr Pownall here showed witness theiieading of the document which related to the Atlas Company.

Mr Graham : Ido not belire the signatdre is mine.

Mr Pownall: The accountants of two ofLthe leaiing banks of Wellington have initialled this as your signature. Do you still say you do not know whether it is t

Mr Graham : To the best of my beliefitisnot. I only signed one document.

At this stage the Court adjourned until a Quarter past two o'clock.