ACCOUNTANTS’ SOCIETY

Evening Star, Issue 18050, 18 August 1922, Page 7

ACCOUNTANTS’ SOCIETY

LECTURE BY MR J. B. CALLAN. At a- meeting of -the Accountants’ Society hold last evening Mr J. B. Galla-n delivered a lecture on * Contracts and tho Sale of Goods Act.’ There was a large attendance, and Mr Jas. Hogg presided. Mr Dalian said it seemed to him that the subject chosen was of interest rather to msi'chauW and agents than to accountants ; but lie bad b-een assured that, it was of general interest- to all commercial men. Possibly during tho recent slump and clumping it had been a topic of unusual interest. The .subject was very largo, as was illustrated by the, fact that tho latest edition of Benjamin, who was still entitled to bo considered the. leading text-book writer, filled 1.150 pages. He bad therefore thought it best to select one or two topics of practical interest. These were as follow;—(1) Tire formalities required for a, contract for goods to the value of £lO or upwards, having particular regard to what was a sufficient in writing, and how that memorandum might bo pieced together nut of different documents and letters, and how it sometimes happened that a. man against whom there would bo no case because he had signed nothing supplied the missing link against himself in his endeavors to repudiate; (2) attempts to vaiy a written contract by something merely verbal; (3) tho meaning of the words “shall not bo enforceable by action,'’ which resulted in this—that a contract might have some- legal standing, although for Jack of writing it could not bo enforced; (4) the necessity for a distinction being made between contracts for work and labor and contracts for the sale of goods: (5) the difference, between acceptance sufficient to show that there was a contract and acceptance to show that the purchaser had accepted the goods ; (6) the meaning of the words “given in earnest” : (7) tire distinction between contracts for the sale of specific goods and sales by description ; and (8) the measure of damages on breach of 'contract. Tho speaker dealt in some detail with those different aspects of tho subject, and cited eases bearing upon each by way of illustration. Mr Callan was accorded a vote of thanks at the close of his address.