THE "PICTURESQUE ATLAS" AGAIN.

Otago Witness, Issue 1949, 2 July 1891, Page 20

THE "PICTURESQUE ATLAS" AGAIN.

- At the Resident Magistrate's Court on Friday, before Mr B. H. Carew, 8.M., an action was faeard Id which the plaintiffs, Bowerman

Brothers, sought to recover from the defendant,

William Midhie, of North-East Harbour, the Iram of £10 ss. for 41 parts of 1 The Picturesque Atlas of Australasia." Sir Robert Stoat appeared for the plaintiffs, and Mr W. Maegregor for the defendant. From the given for the plaintiffs, it appeared that in May 1888 Mr Metoalfe, a canvasser in . the employ of Bowerman Brothers, oalled at the defendant's residence and solicited an order for "The Picturesque Atlas." After some conversation with the defendant, he <got him to sign an order for 42 parts. This order ma signed with an indelible ink pencil, bnt , Metcalfe could not remember whether it was I his own pencil or the defendant's that was used in signing the order. He was, however, certain that the order was not signed in ink. Some time afterwards Mr Bowerman, one of the plaintiffs, called at the defendant's residence with "The Picturesque Atlas." The defendant was not at home at the time, but one of his daughters told Mr Bowerman that her father only ordered one copy of the work, and she would only pay him for one ooyy. She accordingly paid him ss, and Mr Bowerman left, but on a subsequent date he returned to the defendant's place in company with a young man named M'Nair, and left 41 copies of " The Atlas." Mr Maegregor, in opening the case for the defence, said the defence in this case was the ! usual one of fraud and misrepresentation on the part |of the canvasser 'who took the order, but the facts were different from any case which had hitherto come before his Worship. Mr Miohie was a' respectable settler, residing down the harbour, and his evidence, which would be supported by that of his daughter, would flatly contradict the major portion of the evidence which was given by Mr Metcalfe. Mr Miohie and his daughter would both swear that the only signatures that Mr Miohie gave to Metcalfe were signatures in ink, that he never had a blue pencil in his hand, » and that he specially avoided signing with a pencil owing to what he bad heard about signirjg -with a pencil before. He sent for ink specially to sign the order with; his daughter brought the ink* from the kitchen, and saw her father sign the order with ink. The signature on the order produced was not signed by Mr Miqhie. Mr Carew : That is, it is a forgery ? Mr Maegregor said he would not cay anything about that. He simply said that Mr Michie signed an order in ink. The case was & fraud from beginning to end, and the fraud had been completed apparently by transferring a signature in ink for a portion of the "New Zealand Atlas " to an order for a " Picturesque Atlas of Australasia " ; but he was not acquainted, with the method of doing that. When Metoalfe came to the defendant's place he was shown into the sitting room by one of the defendant's daughters. When defendant saw him, he said : " You need not loose your pack, for I will not take a book from yon or any other man under Heaven at any price." The reason he said this was that he had been " had " by a book canvasser in the old country. On that occasion, he regretted to say, the book in question was a Bible. When defendant intimated that he would not have a book, Mr Mekcalfe asked him if he had ever seen the "Atlas." Defendant replied that he had not, and after some further conversation defendant said he would take one copy of " The New Zealand Atlas." He subsequently called one of bis daughters to bring the ink for him to sign the order with. Mr Metoalfe then said: "I will give yon my pencil."' The defendant, however, replied that his daughter would get pen and ink and she would hear the bargain. Metoalfe then said; "You take one at 5s only Mr Mjohie,"

The defendant replied, "Yes." Miss Michie was in the room at the time and laid the pen and ink on the table between her father and Mr Metcalfe. The defendant took hold of' the pen and ink, and before he signed his name, he said: "I take one at 5s only." Metcalfe assented by saying, "Yes, Mr Miohie." Defendant then signed his name to the list of subscribers, under the impression that he was signing a contract for a book. While defendant was signing this list, Metcalfe got up, came round to the part of the table where defendant was.and said, "Please sign this, Mr Miohie," while he held a book in front of him with a piece of blotting paper over the face of it, leaving only room on the paper for the signature. Defendant said, " What have I got to sign this for?" Metcalfe replied that jl was merely a check on the publishers Defendant signed as he was direoted, and again signed with ink. When Mr Bowerman called to deliver the "Atlas," Mrs Michie and her two daughters were at home. One of the daughters went to the door, and Mr Bowerman produced the order which was now sued on. He asked her if that was her father's writing on the order. She replied, " No." He then told her it was an order for the "Picturesque Atlas." She. however, said her father signed for a book in ink, and that, the writing shown her was not his writing at all. She was then asked if she was sure her father wrote with ink, and she said : " Yes ; I was in the room." Mr Bowerman then offered to deliver some books, but she refused to take them, and he took them away. It would, therefore, be seen that the defendant's signature was obtained by misrepresentation, and that the contract produced in court was not Mr Michie's contract at all.

The defendant gave evidence in support of learned counsel's statement, and evidence for the defence was also given by Alice Michie and Mary Walker. The former corroborated the defendant's evidence as to his signing the order with pen and ink, and as., to his only ordering one copy of the Atlas. Mr Carew "delivered judgment on Monday last in favour of plaintiffs for 410 5* with costs (£3 6s). Mr North, on behalf of the defendant, applied that the order might ;be itdponnded by the court for seven days, and as Mr Sim, counsel for the plaintiffs, consented to the application, it was granted. -