Suit to Recover Damages for Alleged Wrongful Dismissal and Assault, The hearing of a claim by R. G. Ashton against Messrs, Moutrie Ca., adjourned some weeks ago in consequence of plaintiff being in hospital suffering from smallpox, was continued at H. M.
8 Court on Wednesday before his Hon. Judge Skinner Turner.
Plaintiff is; claiming damages for wrongful dismissal, and an additional sum for alleged assault.
Mr. M. Reader Harris appeared for plaintiff and Mr. R. G. Mac-Donald for defendants.
Plaintiff gave evidence that he had been in the music business for about 10 years, in England, America, Canada and China. After serving in the war, he got in touch with Messrs. Moutrie & Ca. through an advertisement in a Toronto trade paper. Witness was engaged by the late manager, Mr. F. J. Hinton, as gramophone salesman, and the arrangement was that he was to be paid $200 per month and commission, then left blank, but the amount to be the same as that received by the other foreigners. He was given first-class railway expenses for himself and his wife and a second-class passage. He arrived at Shanghai in December, 1920, and in the following February the question of commission was rediscussed, and left open for readjustment by the directors. He consulted a solicitor, and in August received the full amount due up to the end of July. On August 10 he received a letter giving him three months' notice and suggesting that he might leave earlier if he wished, but he preferred to stay and work out his notice.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.