'The first sitting of the new Fall claimed: Tls. 137,000 damages' for} Court of Appeal Was held ast Tue! failure to purchase timber. on their} day in H, M. Supreme Court, Sir delialf, a similar amount for breach Skinner Turner,: the President, being of contract to open a credit account, accompanied onthe Bench by Sir and a declaration of indemnification
Yang and) Judge Grain, At the Gollan, Chief Justice of, Hong sgaipst all claims that might, be made against plaintiffs by a third] opening of the Court, the President party. The case carried on fo: and eventually' Judge "Shr, Crown Advocate-—Before judgment for the de-commencing our work to-day, it fendants, with costs.
Fight that a brief reference should, The lumber company now appeal made to the severance of two against the judgment in full, it Tinks with the past history of the! being claimed that the Judge mis Bench of this Court that have directed himself on the evidence and recently. occurred, I refer to the on various particular points, that he death of Judge Mowat and of Si was wrong in holding that'd letter LIS. Wilkinson. Their careers of July 16, 1924, formed part of were curiously alike: both "men the contract, and that he miscon-earn to the East in 1864 in H. M. strued the contract. Mr. Tycho Consular service one to China and Wing (with Mr. Fishman) appear the other to Japan, Both men ed for the appellants.and Mr. J. R. tured their attention to the study Jones for the respondents.
Mr. Wing said that the plainti' the Bar in London, the Taw and both were called to ease was that the defendants had judge Mowat sat on the Bench to buy for them, whilst the de-of this Court as Assistant Judge an.t fendants said they only had to fas acting Chief Justice and was Issue a letter of credit. It was later made Judge of H. M. Court contract to buy and finance. "To from which post. he: buy" had a very definite meaning, retired in 1897, Sir Hiram Witkinbut as far as he knew "finance" gon acted as Chief Justice here and never deen given a judicint then became Crown Advocate interpretation. It was his complaint which post he wes succeeded by hi that the learned Judge all through son, who has just retired); he then had rather overlooked the im. Became Judge of H. M, Court for portance of the clearly understood Japan and eventually Chief Justice term "to buy" and had brought of this Court, retiring in 1905. unduly into the foreground the Judge Mowat died in June of Inst vague! and uncertain term "to year and we have just learned of finance." The breach alleged was the death of Sir H. S, Wilkins at the eleventh hour defendants Though to most of us here to-day Introduced a new meaning into the these two men are only names, contract and refused to pay in earned to me to be fitting to record Vindivostok bat only on arrival of our sympathy with their relatives the timber in Shanghai. It was and to show that they are not] essentially a commerical case and forgotten in the history of H. practical commercial view was that Supreme Court for China, really it always had been intended to be a cash transaction, but'
One other word. This ig the first nitting of the Full Court ax con-/Mackensie's suddenly changed it credit, transaction. Aman stituted under the Order-in-Council of 1925. The old Full Court con. another country, who did not but who had! wisted of the Judge and Assistant carried out all the terms on his Indge of the Court, with a casting Vote, in the ease 'a difference of side, shipped the timber and paid all the expenses, naturally wanted opinion, in the hands of the Judge his money. He was asked to trust] not a very satisfactory arrang: them, but "why should he when he ment, and hence litigants were apt knew nothing about them? It wax fo take their appeals direct to the claimed that nothing whatever turned Privy. Council in London without on whether the letter of credit war' any first appeal in China, In 1925) Irrevocable or not, because it never {was enabled to get this altered was revoked, and, thanks to the ce-operation of Mr. Jones—That has been estal the'Colony of Hongkong, we have ished as a matter of fact. now a Full Court of three Judges and appeals only ie to the Privy Mr. Wing repeated that clearly! Gouneil from decisions of that it was a contract to buy.
Justice Gollan—Yet in no} Court, thus ensuring to. litigants one appeal in China and that to a fetter' in the correspondence do you Court in which the majority of the ask them to buy.
Judges sitting: can have had nothing inane" was not intend-do-with the case in the Court of Firat Instance, ed to over-rule "buy" but rather to supplement it, whereas I contend T doubt not that this change will be welcomed, and, though this that the tendency has been to not the first' time' he has sat with obliterate it. 5 Mr. Wing agreed vith the Pres-me in Shanghai, 1 should like, on behalf of the Judes of this Court, ident's suggestion that, although a to add a word of welcome to Hon contract could not be departed from Kong's Chief Justice on bby the introduction of extracts from first sittings of the newly-constituted seme other documents, nevertheless, ¥oll Court. reference could be made to some other document when there was Mx. RoE. S. Gregson (acting Jdoubt or some ambiguity in the Grown Advocate)—On behalf of the contract. In this ease, however, ho'
jar of this Court, I desire respect Jcontended that the letter of July filly to associate myself with what your Lordship has said with regard 15 us too far vay and could help very. little.
the late learned Judges. of this The hearing was adjourned, Court. In common with most the other Present -members of the Arguments for Respondents Bar, T had not the privilege of ever Repising on Monday to the meeting either of them, but to those the appeal, Mr.
who did not know them, the the Court" that, fnémory is kept alive by legend and tthe original hearing, tradition, "As to this present sit ti leaded that there was no. case of the Full Court, 1 have mn ta"anower bot "the Tete dec plensiire, on behalf' of the Bar, ce" neve one witness forthe tendering our respectful and coral Seence and then pave augment Weleame to Mr. Justice Gollan. and; He felt sue, therefore, that the oan confident, that. it is the: hone Indeent mist have been bane all members' of the Bar that swe! the' fae that the plants had aot hay frequently see him on. this Ber'ch on similar occasions in the! trade out their case and hat Suture, would "not be reveretd'unere the defence "had an appoctnity of Stinging forward the ret of the LUMBER CO/S APPEAL, 'The Court then proceeded to he: sine The wear heed as ah appeal in the case of the' Shang firaged in the' rnnssetln cone eho hal etn pislpal
mii Import & Export Lumber Ca. malta te respondents but they hod Mackenzie & Ca. In the original even ther aportasé vitesse dation the plaintiff's (a company of Mr. Jones was arguing with and "a" Chive regard to the appellants' claim for
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.