PURCHASE OF PICOT BROS., LTD.

Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 162, 5 April 1938, Page 12

PURCHASE OF PICOT BROS., LTD.

In our issue of Thursday, the 24th day of March last, there appeared a report of a Meeting held at Masterton on 23rd March, which meeting was addressed by the Hon. Adam Hamilton, M.P.; and Mr. S. G. Holland, M.P.) \vhich report contained the following paragraph: — “ ‘The details of that transaction are one of the greatest public scandals New Zealand has ever known,’ said Mr. Holland, when referring to the purchase of the business of Picot Bros., and he added that the public owed a debt of gratitude to the Opposition for ferreting out the unsavoury particulars.”

Messrs. E. R. and E. 11. Picot have, through their Solicitors, communicated with us, and have stated that the statement is capable of meaning—and has been taken by numerous people to mean —that they were parties to a contract of an improper, discreditable and dishonest nature.

We desire to say that we did not intend to make any imputation against Messrs. Picot, concerning either the honesty or propriety of the transaction, and we admit that there is no foundation for any imputation that something of an improper, discreditable or dishonest nature attaches to them. We accept Messrs.' Picot’s statement that the transaction will bear any investigation, judicial, financial or otherwise, wfciicb may be made of it. We regret that words said to be callable of the construction complained of should have appeared in our columns, and we beg to apologise to Messrs. Plcot for having published them and for any pain and annoyance which the publication may have caused them.