MISUSE OF INITIALS

Hokitika Guardian, 26 September 1939, Page 7

MISUSE OF INITIALS

ENGINEERING SCHOOL HEAD FINED. (Per Press Association—Copyright). CHRISTC'IIURCH, Sep. 25. The right- of the Principal of a private engineering school to use the title “Doctor” and the initials “M.E.” and after his name, was piestioned in the Magistrate’s Court to-day.- Elmore William Render, of the Pdlytechnical School of Engineering, was charged that he'“publicly used in connection with his trade or calling certain initials and abbreviations of words intended, and likely, to •ause any person to believe, contrary :o fact, that he held a degree, diploma or certificate issued by a University or other institution, society or association.” The Magistrate, Mr E. C. Levvy, •S.M., held that the use of the title “Doctor” infringed the statute and fined the defendant £2 with costs. Detective Sergeant F. Sinclair, who prosecuted, explained that, for several /ears, the defendant had conducted his School of Engineering under tho qualifications implied by the letters after his name, no doubt, went a long way towards inducing pupils to enrol. The police had made enquiries, and Bender claimed that the intials signified “Mining Engineer” and “Master Mechanic,” and that certificates from Pittsburg Technical Institute entitled him to call himself “Doctor.” Detective J. J. Halcow gave evidence concerning interviews with thy defendant, who allowed the police to photograph a diploma purporting to have been issued to him in 1900, by tho Technical Institute of Pittsburg. There were photographs on the wall of defendant’s place of business of other certificates, but Binder said that his papers had been lost in the wreck of the Oceanic off the coast of Scotland in 1913. Witness later produced to the defendant an enlarged photograph of the signatures and date on the dploma, and asked the defendant if lie had interfered with them. Bender said that the diploma was sent out to him in New Zealand, and as the signature and date .were not clearly visible, owing to _ the action of sea water, he had drawn them in himself.

Addressing the Bench, Mr F. D. 'Sargent, - for Bender, submitted that the case should be dismissed. It was an unusual one, and of importance to the defendant. There was no reported case on which to interpret the meaning of the section under which Bender was charged; but he understood that, in a similar Auckland case, the prosecution was dismissed. Counel contended that Bender had not used the title “Doctor” publicly within the meaning of the Section. There was nothing of this kind on the window of his premise's, or in liis advertisements, and the prospectus refer-* red to in Court was issued, not by the defendant, but by- a company.’ The section of the statute was illdrawn, and he submitted, further, that the words “a degree, diploma, or certificate issued by a University, society, or association” were quite broad enough to absolve Bender in view of the diplomas he held. Tho use of: the intials would not delude the public, and initials now were used for all kinds of things,

“The word ‘Doctor’ is not a term of magic, and its original meaning was no more than teacher,” said Mr Sargent. Detective Sergeant Sinclair submitted that if a master mechanic was entitled l o use the intials “M.M.” then a butcher's assistant was entitled to call himself “8.A.” Moreover, tin*re was a grave doubt, owing to the discrepancies, fin the names and dates,, whether Bender was the original holder of the diplomas. He admitted filling one in in material parts.

The Magistrate said that a doubt had been raised in his mind on this point, but the onus, of proof was on the police, and it had not been discharged. The Court had no doubt that the use . >f the word “Doctor” by the defendant was an infringement of the section By this, the defendant held out to the o.ublic something that might lead it to believe that he was a fully-qualified graduate of a properly-constituted bodv vhieh had power to grant the title, and had so conferred it on him. The use of the letters might well influence some persons to flunk-that T ender was mothan ordinarily qualified in certain directions, but he was not prepared to sav whether this would bring him within the .purview of the statute. The defendant would he convicted on liis use of the title “Doctor.”" In fixing he penalty the Magistrate said that ho would not treat the offence from a •i'l'v serious point of view, because of the lapse, of time before Bender’s use of the titles was challenged. ]