£12 10s. Od., Cy. On Time. Port Hope, Oct. 18th, 1853. Two months from date, I promise to pay to Wellington Jones, or bearer, at my place of residence in Bowmanville, twelve pounds ten shillings, currency, worth of sound and merchantable winter apples. No. Due 18th Dec., 1853. DONALD PIPER. Joint and Several Note. Brantford, Dec. 19th, 1853. £125 Os. Od., Cy. Three months after date, we jointly and severally promise to pay to the order of Louis Terroux, at our place's of residence, in the town of Brantford, one hundred and twentyfive pounds, currency, worth of good, healthy and merchantable cows, sheep, swine, and the balance, if any, in peas, at the market price, for value received. No. Due 19th March, 1854. HARRISON LYMAN. A SET OF BILLS OF EXCHANGE. No. 1. Exch. £250 Stg. Toronto, Dec. 23rd, 1853. Thirty days after sight of this first of Exchange, (second and third of the same tenor and date, being unpaid,) pay Messrs. A. Shaw & Co., or order, two hundred and fifty pounds, sterling, value received, and place the same to my account, as per advice. To Mr. Samuel Holmes, Merchant, London. W. H. RICHMOND. No. 1. Exch. £250 Stg. Toronto, Dec. 23rd, 1853. Thirty days after sight of this second of Exchange, (first and third of same tenor and date being unpaid,) pay to Messrs. A. Shaw & Co., or order, two hundred and fifty pounds, sterling, value received, and place the same to my account, as per advice. To Mr. Samuel Holmes, Merchant, London. 45 W. H. RICHMOND Toronto, No. 1. Exch. £250 Stg. Toronto, Dec. 23rd, 1853. Thirty days after sight of this third of Exchange, (first and second of same tenor and date being unpaid,) pay to Messrs. A. Shaw & Co., or order, two hundred and fifty pounds, sterling, value received, and place the same to my account, as per advice. To Mr. Samuel Holmes, Merchant, London. No.. £22 10s. Od., Cy. A BANKER'S DRAFT. Bank of Montreal Agency. Hamilton, 27th Dec., 1853. Three days after sight of this my first, (second not paid) please pay to the order of W. & J. Bond, Twenty-two pounds ten shillings, Halifax currency, and place the same to Account of this office. To A. Simpson, Esq., Cashier, Bank of Montreal, Montreal. J. STEVENSON, Jr. Agent. No.-£125 Cy. DRAFTS OR INLAND BILLS. Toronto, Dec. 27th, 1853. Three days after sight, pay to the order of Henry Smith, one hundred and twenty-five pounds currency, value received, and place the same to my account, as per advice. JAMES SHEILDER. Sir, at sight, please pay S. H. Bond, or order, one thousand pounds, currency, for value received, and place the same to my account, and oblige your obedient servant, £1000 Cy, Toronto, Dec. 30th, 1853. 46 W. H. RICHMOND. RESPECTING RESPECTING BILLS OF EXCHANGE. Exchange is the act of paying or receiving the money of one country for its equivalent in the money of another country, by means of Bills of Exchange. This operation, therefore, comprehends both the reduction of moneys and the negotiation of Bills; it determines the comparative value of the currencies of different countries, and shows how foreign debts are discharged, and remittances made from one country to another without the risk, trouble, or expense of transporting specie or bullion. A Bill of Exchange is a written order of request, addressed by one person to a second, desiring him to pay a sum of money to a third, or to any other to whom that third person shall order it to be paid; or it may be made payable to bearer. Bills of Exchange are very useful to business men, who wish to send large sums of money to individuals living at a distance from them. "If A, living in Montreal, wishes to receive £250 sterling, which B, in London, owes him, he applies to C, who is going from Montreal to London, to pay him £250 pounds sterling, and takes his order or Draft on B for that sum, payable at sight. A receives his debt by transferring it to C, who carries his money across the Atlantic, in the shape of a Bill of Exchange, without any danger or risk in the transportation; and on his arrival at London, he presents the Bill to B, and is paid." It is a mercantile contract in which four persons are mostly concerned, as follows: First. The person who makes the bill is called the drawer. Second. He to whom it is addressed, the drawee; and when he undertakes to pay the amount, he is then called the acceptor. Third. The person who gives the value for the Bill, who is called the buyer, taker, and remitter. Fourth. The person to whom the Bill is ordered to be paid, who is called the payee, and who may, by endorsement, pass it to any other person to receive the money, that other is called the endorsee, as the payee is with respect to him, the endorser; any one who happens for the time to have the legal possession of the bill, is called the holder of it. Many mercantile payments are made in Bills of Exchange, which pass from hand to hand until due, like any other circulating medium. A bill is either foreign or inland. It is called foreign when drawn by a person in one province or country, upon one in another province or country; and inland, when both drawer and drawee reside in the same province or country. These last are generally termed drafts. Foreign bills are usually drawn in sets; that is copies of the bills are made on separate pieces of paper, each part containing a condition that it shall continue payable only so long as the others 47 others remain unpaid. Whenever any one of a set is paid, the others are void; for the whole set constitute but one bill. The reason for drawing them in sets is, that in case one part is lost or accidently destroyed, the other may be received by the drawee. Of the Requisites of a Bill. A Bill of Exchange must always be in writing. No precise form of words is necessary. It will be sufficient if it contain an order or direction by one person to another, to pay money to a third. It must be for the payment of money, and money only; and the sum to be paid must be payable absolutely and at all events, and must not depend upon any circumstance that may, or may not happen; the exact sum also must be inserted. The place where, and on which it is drawn, should appear on the face of the bill; there should be also a date. The time when bills are payable should be fixed; usually they are drawn pay. able at a certain time after sight, or after date; that is, after acceptance. It is not essential to the validity of a bill that it be negotiable, or that it contain the words "value received," although in many cases it is highly important that these words be inserted. Of the Obligation of Parties. The drawer's undertaking in a Bill of Exchange is, that the drawee, upon due presentment to him, shall accept such bill, and pay the same when due, and that if the drawee do not accept it, or pay it when due, he will pay the amount of the bill to the holder, together with certain damages, which the law allows; provided he is duly notified of such non-payment. It is the payee's duty, if the bill remain in his possession, to present it to the drawee for acceptance and for payment, at the proper time and place, and in case the drawee refuse to accept or pay, to give notice without delay to the drawer of such refusal. If the payee endorse the bill, his undertaking, in regard to all subsequent holders, is exactly the same as the drawer's. The obligations of the endorsee or holder, are the same as those of the payee previous to his endorsing the bill. The acceptor undertakes, and is bound to pay the bill, according to the tenor of the acceptance, when it becomes due, and upon presentment thereof. In short, all those who have signed, accepted, or endorsed a Bill of Exchange, are jointly and severally liable upon it to the holder. Of Transfer. A bill which does not contain a direction or request to pay to the order of the payee or the bearer, is not negotiable or trans 48 ferable, ferable, so as to render the drawer or accepter liable to the person to whom it is transferred, though the payee would be liable on his endorsing such bill, and the endorsee could recover against him. A bill which is made payable to order is transferable only by endorsement; but if payable to the bearer, it is transferable by mere delivery. Endorsements are of two kindsblank, and full or special endorsements. A blank endorsement is made by the mere signature of the endorser on the back of the bill; and if it be the signature of the payee, its effect is to make the bill thereafter payable to bearer. An endorsement in full expresses in whose favour the endorsement is made. Thus an endorsement in full by Charles Dill is usually in this form: "Pay James Harrison or order," and signed "Charles Dill." Its effect is to make the bill payable to James Harrison or his order only. An endorsee has a right to convert a blank endorsement into a special one, by writing over the signature the necessary words; and on the other hand he may convert a special into a blank endorsement, by striking out the words that made it an endorsement in full. Of Presentment for Acceptance. If a bill be drawn payable at sight, or at a certain period after sight, or after demand, it is absolutely necessary that the holder present it to the drawee for acceptance. For until such presentment there is no right of action against any party; and generally, unless it be made within a reasonable time, the holder loses his remedy against the antecedent parties. Of Acceptance. An acceptance is an engagement by the drawee to pay the bill when due. It may be general or conditional, and either before or after the bill is drawn. It must be in writing, though no precise form is necessary; any written words clearly denoting an intention to accept the bill are sufficient. The holder is entitled to require from the drawee an absolute engagement to pay according to the tenor of the bill, unencumbered with any condition or qualification. If the drawee refuse to give the holder a general and unqualified acceptance, he may treat the bill as dishonoured. A bill is said to be honoured when it is duly accepted; and when acceptance or payment is refused, it is said to be dishonoured. |