he plaintiff on the Sth ay of Novem-Ler 1889 was allotted fourteen shares fully paid up of two hundred and fifty taels each the nvincorporated company British steamer Ella and the plaintiff duly took up and paid for the same.
4.—The plaintiff on the 23rd day of Decem-her 1889 was allotted four more shares in the British steamer £Va and the plaintiff duly took up and paid for the same.
5.—On th day of April 1891 W. F. Sharp the registered owner of the said British steamer Ea died, having appointed the defendant the executor of his estate.
6.—The defendant offered in writing by letter dated the 22nd May 1892 to purehsse the said shares the property of the plaintiff.
7.—The plaintiff on the 18th July. 1892 through his legal adviser accepted the above offer in writing by letter "dressed to Mr. ES. Sharp of the firm of Messrs. Gibb Livingston and Company the representative of the defendant in Shanghai wherein it was stated that the plaintiff was prepared to accept the offer made to him in the letter of the defendant dated the 22nd May 1892 namely that he the defendant _was willing to pay the plaintiff the sum of Taels one thon-sand eight hundred for his share and interest in the said British steamship Eva.
July the plaintiff through his legal adviser as aforesaid accepted in writing by letter addressed to the defendant at Hankow the said accept offer as aforesaid 9.—All conditions have been fulfilled and all things happened and all times elapsed necessary to entitle the plaintiff to have the suid promise of the defendant performed by him yet the defendant has not accepted the trendler of the said shares nor done anything necessary on his part in that behalf nor pai the said agreed price for the same.
10.—The plaintiff has thereby suffered loss and damage and the value of the said shares has been depreciated.
"The plaintiff therefore prays 1.—That the defendant may be adjudged to pay to the plaintiff the said sum of Taels 1,800 upon having a transfer of the said shares, with interest thereon at eight per cent, annum from the said fifteenth day of july 1892, or the twenty-first, day of July as the Court may adjudge, 2.—That the defendant may be decreed to pay to the plaintiff such loss as inlay be proved have accrued to him from the refusal of the defendant to purchase the said smores.
—That the defendant may be decreed to pay to the plaintiff the costs of this suit.
4.—For such further or other relief as the nature of the case may require.
(Signed) H. Parkes Witkrssox, Counsel for the Plaintifl:
The answer of the defendant, Mr. A. R. Greaves, was as follows 1.—In answer to paragraph 1 of the petition the defendant admits that the plaintiff is British subject and a marine engineer formerly on board the British Steamship Sva but has no knowledge as to whether 0 he is now sailing on board the sailing vessel Charters Torcer.
2.—In answer to paragraph 2 of the petition the defendant admits that he is a British subject, but says he carries on the business of & merchant at Shanghai and Hankow, in the Empire of China.
—The defendant admits the allegations contained in paragraphs 3 and 4 of the said petition, 4.—The defendant denies each and all of the allegations contained in paragraphs 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10.
—In answer to paragraph 5 the defendant admits that he is the executor of the late William Forbes Sharp deceased, and that the said William Forbes Sharp was the registered owner of the said steamship 2Vla. wer the defendant, says ime he did offer to purchase from the plaintiff the shares mentioned in para: graphs 3. and 4 of the petition, which he does not admit, then stich offer was not accepted by or on behalf of the plaintiff within " reasonable time, or in the terms in which the said offer was made by him, the defendant, (Signed) Joussox, Stokes & Masten.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.