ALLEGED LIBEL.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume VII, Issue 2127, 8 December 1920, Page 9

ALLEGED LIBEL.

* CLAIM FOR DAMAGES. December 8. The Hearing of a libel action was commenced before his Honour Mr Justice Stringer and a jury to-day. The plaintiff is Arthur Leigh Hunt, of Wellington, lately general manager of the New Zealand Farmers' Co-operative Distributing Co., and the defendant, H. Beresford Maunsell, sheep-farmer, of Tenui, Wairarapa. The claim is for £ISOO, as damages for alleged false and malicious statements by the defendant against plaintiff in his office aS| general manager of the company, and in connection with the election of directors in 1919. The statement of claim sets out that defendant who Was a candidate, with Mr Moss, for election to the directorate, convened a meeting of shareholders in Masterton on January 7, 1920. At this he spoke and published the following words about plaintiff: "Mr Leigh Hunt asked me to leave the sending of the joint circular by myself and Mr Moss in Mr Hunt's hands, and I found that the circulars had not been sent out until a few days before the election, and after Sir James's circular had gathered up all the proxies." It was submitted that, by this, defendant had behaved with grave impropriety.