390
THE LANGKAŤ CASE AT
SHANGHAI.
The claim for Tls. 55,000 damages brought by Mr. M. M. Tackey against Mr. R. S. F. McHain occupied the Supreme Court. of Shanghai for three days last week. The trial came on before Sir Havilland de Sausmarez, Judge, and Messrs. W. Poignand, A. R. Fullerton, F. A. Pearson, M. F. H. Gray, and G. A. Richardson, jurors.
Mr. T. Morgan Phillips and Mr. H. S. Oppe appeared for the plaintiff. Mr. R. N. Macleod and Mr. R. E. S. Gregson represented the
defendant.
Mr. Oppe read the amended statement of claim as follows :-
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
12.-During the said period on April 14, 15 and 16 the plaintiff's agent in Shanghai relying on repetitions by third parties of the said false statement as to part of the shares so sold, sold the plaintiff's shares at prices less than the true market value of the same, in the belief that the prices offered for the said shares represented the true market value of the same, whereas in truth and in fact they did not.
13.-Omitted.
14.--The plaintiff claims Tls. 55,000 damages sustained by him by reason of the facts herein before set out being the difference approximately between the price at which the plaintiff sold the said shares and the price at which the said shares could have been purchased upon and after the publication of the said news. Mr. Macleod read the statement of defence as follows:-
DEFENCE.
1.-The defendant has no knowledge of the alleged in paragraphs 1 and 12 of the statement of claim and leaves the plaintiff to prove such allegations.
1.-The plaintiff is and was at the times hereinafter referred to the holder for value of 195 numbered shares in the Maatschappij Tot- Mijn-Bosch-en Landbouw-exploitatie in Lang-matters kat and of instruments of transfer for the same duly signed by the registered holders of the same and was prior to the events hereinafter set out entitled to be placed on the register of shareholders of the said company in respect of the same.
2. The said company is a public com- pany carrying on business extractors and dealers in oil in Sumatra, Shanghai, and elsewhere with a capital of 2,500,000 Guilders divided into 25,000 shares of 100 Guilders each. The said shares have for some time past and are still extensively dealt in on the Shanghai Stock Exchange and the price thereof is quoted daily in the official or other record of the same.
3. The defendant is a British subject and is a Director and the General Agent of the said company at Shanghai and as general agent manages the affairs of the company in Shanghai. 4. On or about April 10, 1909, the defendant
such as
General Agent and Director in Shanghai as aforesaid received by cable news that oil had been found on the com- pany's property in Sumatra in great quantities. 5. The said discovery was of great impor- tance to he said company and the news thereof if then published would have greatly immedi- ately appreciated the value of the shares of the company on the market.
6. The defendant omitted to make known and improperly concealed with fraudulent intent the said news from the general body of share- holders in the company from the time of its arrival until April 19.
or
7-During the said period on or about April 15, 16 and 17 the defendant stated orally to certain persons members of the Shanghai Stock Exchange and others (other than the plaintiff or his agent) that no news affecting the value of the company's property in Sumatra or otherwise had been received by him by the company. Such statements were to the defendant's knowledge false and fraudu- lent and were calculated to deceive and did deceive the public including the plaintiff (meaning thereby the dealers in and holders of shares in the Langkat Co.) with regard to the same and were calculated to and did give rise to false rumours regarding the reason of the rise in the price of the shares hereinafter re-
ferred to.
8.-- Omitted.
9.-The defendant further represented orally to the said persons and on the said occasions that the rise in the price of the shares herein after referred to was not due to the receipt of any news, but was due to some other cause, well knowing that such representation was false.
10.-Omitted.
11.-During the said period the defendant corruptly and improperly communicated the said news to or allowed the said news to be communicated to or obtained by cer- tain persons other than the plaintiff and the general body of shareholders with the result that such persons were willing to and did buy shares of the company in the
• market at higher prices than had immediately before the arrival of the said news been offered for the same and by reason of such willingness on their part other persons were induced to sell at less than the true market value of the said shares at the said date in the belief that there was no cause for the said rise in the market price of the same.
j
2.-The allegations in paragraphs 2 and 3 of the said statement of claim are admitted.
3. On the tenth day of April, 1909. the defendant as general agent and director in Shanghai of the Company received from the Company's agent in Sumatra a telegram read- ing "Hole No. 94-888 feet-boring finished. The result is beyond expectation. Output 80,000 gallons daily-salt water nil--great pressure-very much better than all previous, and the defendant did not make known such news to the general body of shareholders in the Company until April 19.
"
4.-The defendant denies each and all of the allegations in paragraphs 4, 5 and 6 of the said statement of claim except so far as they are consistent with paragraph 3 hereof.
5. The defendant denies each and all of the allegations in paragraphs 7, 9, 10, 11 and 13.
6. The defendant will object that the state- ment of claim is bad in law and discloses no cause of action against him on the ground that:-
(a) False and fraudulent statements to per- sons other than plaintiff or his agent calculated to deceive, deceiving the public and giving rise to false rumours give no right of action to the plaintiff.
(b) There was no duty of the defendant to the plaintiff to give him the news withheld or to abstain from communicating or allowing to be communicated to or obtained by others the
said news.
(c) The damages are not natural and probable consequences of the acts and omissions alleged.
VERDICT.
The trial
The reports of the trial have occupied many columns in the Shanghai papers. lasted four days. being concluded on Friday. We take the following from the N.-C. Daily News :-
The jury retired at 12.10 p.m. for an hour and three-quarters. When his Lordship came back into Court and asked the foreman if he could help them in any way to come to a conclusion, the foreman said that he did not think so. They hoped to come to a decision, but if they could not do so, they would come to his Lord- ship for further assistange. At 2.30 p.m. the jury returned to Court and informed his Lord- ship that they had agreed on two points they could not agree on the third. He asked if the verdict must be unanimous. His Lordship said it must be, unless the parties consented to a majority verdict, and asked if he could assist the jury on any particular point. The foreman asked if his Lordship would deem it right for them to let him know on which points they did agree. His Lordship having replied in the affirmative, the foreman announced that the jury answered the first question and the third question in the affirmative. They could not agree on the question of intention, which was a very difficult point.
His Lordship then further directed the jury on this question. The foreman of the jury asked the Court: Would the knowledge of the results of his act on the market prove intention? His Lordship replied in the negative.
Mr. Phillips asked his Lordship if he would note an exception to that ruling. His Lordship replied that he would make a note what Mr. Phillips said, but he would not note an exception to the ruling because that was not the practice of the Court.
[October 30, 1909.
Mr. Oppe than addressed his Lordship on th law, and a lengthy discussion ensued.
The foreman of the jury asked if the question of the influence on the market had anything to do with it? His Lordship replied that it had
not. The foreman said that in that case he did
not think that they would have any difficulty.
Shortly before three o'clock the jury again returned to Court, and answered the second question in the negative. The questions and answers were as follows:
(1) Did the defendant make a false repre- sentation to Anderson and others to the effect that no news affecting the value of the Com- pany's property in Sumatra or otherwise had been received by him or by the Company? Yes.
(2) When making this statement did the de- fendant directly intend that brokers and holders or shares in the Langkat Company should act upon such information by selling their shares on April 15, 16 and 17 P-No.
(3) Did the plaintiff being a holder of shares in the Langkat Company in fact act upon such information, and was he damnified by doing 80 P-Yes.
Mr. Macleod on this finding applied for judgment with costs.
His Lordship entered judgment for the defendant with costs.
THE JAPANESE NAVÝ.
DETAILS OF NEW VESSELS.
The vessels now in course of construction are as follows:-
NAME. Kawachi 'Settsu "Aki"
Satsuma
"
22
CC
"
CLASS. Battleship...
TONNAGE.
... 20,800
75
20,800
19,800
19,800
14,620
**
14,620
5,000
4,035
1,150
1,150
Dispatch boat... Destroyer...
...
Ibuki Armoured cruiser... Kurama" Four cruisers. "Tone" "Kaifu " Two destroyers ... The "Kawachi and "Settsu aro to be launched next year, the "Aki" is now under equipment, the engines being already fitted; the "Satsuma" and " Kurama” will be shortly com. Ibuki" is about to take service, the pleted; the "Tone" is now completed. the "Kaifu" will be completed next year, the two destroyers in 1911, and the four cruisers in 1912. The Rochi notes that the Kawachi" and "Settsu" are of "Ibuki" and "Kurama" are little inferior to the an improved "Dreadnought" type, and that the Indomitable of the British Navy, which is re- garded as the most powerful armoured cruiser now afloat. The "Indomitable" is a vessel of 18, 750 tons with a speed of 25 knots, equipped with eight 12-inch, and sixteen 4-inch guns, are each of while the "Ibuki" and "Kurama 14, 620 tons with a speed of 22 and 21. knots respectively, equipped with four 12-inch, eight 8-inch, and twelve 4-inch guns. The three cruisers are not so strongly armed, but they are. designed for great speed and navigating power. The" Kaifu" and two other destroyers are of the type of large destroyer now coming into vogue, each having the great speed of 35
knots.
31
"
THE RAGNAR” FOUNDERS,
The Danish tug Protector returned to the Colony yesterday after a visit to the scene of the wreck of the Norwegian steamer Ragnar on Pattle Island. On Monday morning those on board the Protector took observations of the stranded steamer and came to the conclusion that they could refloat her, but before starting operations they decided to have tiffin. During the meal, however, the Ragnar was lifted by a heavy swell, and foundered before the Protector had an opportunity of putting into operation the scheme for refloating her.
So far, Mr. Eitzen, the Norwegian Consul, has received no word of the missing engineers, but hopes that they were picked up by the Prometheus or some other passing steamer, and that he will receive news of their safety from Bangkok.
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.