IMPRINT CASE

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXI, 9 October 1926, Page 6

IMPRINT CASE

WIDE FIELD FOR THOUGHT SOUTHERN COMMENT SUPREME COURT RULING SUGGESTED (By Telegraph.-Biiecial to "The Mail.") CHRISTCHURCH, Oct. S. A correspondent discusses the Imprint ease in to-night's "Star" as follows:—"The rule that acceptances must be in the hands of a secretary at a certain date and hour, us interpreted by the Metropolitan Trotting Club committee, opens up a very wide field for thought. (1) Take an extreme ease. A secretary for any old reason might neglect to go to bis box and collect, letters for two or three days before the acceptances are due. (•.!) A secretary or his clerk might work with a bookmaker who has heavily laid a horse by missing a letter in his P.O. box, and the horse could not start. (.'I) A secretary may collect half a dozen letters and acceptances from his box and by mistake open only five, leaving one forgotten in his pocket. (4) A secretary may die suddenly at, say, 10 a.m. Acceptances are due at noon, and in the excitement letters might not be collected till, say, li p.m. Here again is a chance for ;l late acceptance not getling through. (f>) A secretary may not be sober and fail <o collect, letters at the proper time, or his motor ear breaks down and he is late. The fact (hat a, secretary lias a P.O. box: for the convenience of himself and his office does not seem to me at all to strengthen the hands of the committee in their decision. If the secretary had no P.O. box (here is no doubt that (he Post Office would have delivered the registered letter 24 hours before the closing of the acceptance. If the interpretation is correct, then the only way for owners to make themselves quite safe is to pay cash over the counter. Those who have to depend upon letters will still run a tremendous risk—in fact, only local owners can protect themselves. The matter is of such great importance to the club, as well as to owners, that one wonders why the committee does not at once get a ruling from the Supreme Court as to what 'Being in the hands of the secretary' really means. The starting of a horse in a race for which it? was not eligible lately cost the club a considerable sum of money, but it wijl be a flea-bite to what the club may have to pay if Imprint is not allowed to start in the Cup but happens to win high class races at the meeting, and this will cause still longer delay before we get the wonderful newtrotting ground and stands that the Metropolitan Club has talked about for so long."