(c.) Vide § 31.

(d.) Reasonable time will be reckoned from the date when the holder receives the bill. No delay warranted by the ordinary course of business is unreasonable. It has been held that bills drawn by a country banker upon London may, by the course of dealing, be retainable for a longer period than a bill drawn by a merchant, or by one banker on another in the same place, Shute v. Robins, Moody and Malkin, 133; Fry v. Hill, 7 Taunton, 397. The situation and interest of both holder and drawer must be taken into account in determining what is a reasonable time. In Mellish v. Kawdon, 9 Bing. 416, the plaintiff purchased a bill drawn by the defendant on A. B., payable sixty days after sight, at Rio Janeiro. The exchange beginning to fall, the plaintiff kept the bill for five months and then negotiated it. The drawee not accepting, the plaintiff paid his indorsee and sued the drawer. Held that, there being no usage to present within any particular time, the time taken by the plaintiff was reasonable. The reasonable time is to be fixed with reference to the time each holder keeps the bill, and if each keeps it for a reasonable time, the fact that the bill is kept in all for a year will not make the delay in presenting unreasonable, Muilman v. D'Equino, 2 H. Bl. 565; but where a party received on 12th August a bill drawn in Newfoundland at ninety days' sight on S. & W. in England, and did not present it till 16th November, and offered no explanation of the delay, it was held that it was not presented in reasonable time. See also Ramchun Mullick v. Luchmeecund Radakissen, 9 Moore, P. C. 46. The detainer of the bill must not be wanton or careless, but must be either for a short period or for a customary period, or, if longer, on account of some special circumstances which must be proved, Smith's Mercantile Law, 238.

$40.

presentment

41. (1.) A bill is duly presented for acceptance (a) Rules as to which is presented in accordance with the following for acceptance, rules:

(a.) The presentment must be made by or on be

and excuses for non-presentment,

§ 41.

half of the holder (a) to the drawee or to some person authorised to accept or to refuse acceptance on his behalf (b) at a reasonable hour (c) on a business day (d) and before the bill is overdue (e):

(b.) Where a bill is addressed to two or more drawees, who are not partners, presentment must be made to them all, unless one has authority to accept for all, then presentment may be made to him only (ƒ):

(c.) Where the drawee is dead, presentment may be
made to his personal representative (g):

(d.) Where the drawee is bankrupt, presentment
may be made to him or to his trustee (g):
(e.) Where authorised by agreement or usage, a
presentment through the post office is suffi-
cient (h):

(2.) Presentment in accordance with these rules is excused, and a bill may be treated as dishonoured by non-acceptance—

(a.) Where the drawee is dead or bankrupt, or is a
fictitious person or a person not having capacity
to contract by bill (¿) :

(b.) Where, after the exercise of reasonable dili-
gence, such presentment cannot be effected (j)
(c.) Where although the presentment has been
irregular, acceptance has been refused on some
other ground (k).

(3.) The fact that the holder has reason to believe

that the bill, on presentment, will be dishonoured does not excuse presentment.

(a.) Vide § 2. The person presenting for acceptance need not be specially authorised to do so. It is sufficient if he make the presentment on behalf of the holder.

(b.) In the case of a bill drawn on a firm, the business of which entitles its partners to accept bills, presentment to one of the partners is sufficient, see § 27, note. In the case of an incorporated company, presentment must be made to the office-bearer who is authorised to accept for the company, 25 & 26 Vict. cap. 89, § 47. Presentment for acceptance is to be made to the drawee where he is to be found, and it is not sufficient to present the bill at the residence or place of business of the drawee, if he can be found with the exercise of reasonable diligence.

(c.) Where the drawee is a merchant, reasonable hours mean business hours, and where he is a banker, bank hours, Chitty on Bills, p. 184. In either case it is a question of fact to be determined on the evidence what are business hours, Bell's Prin. 336, Neilson v. Leighton, 7th Feb. 1843, 5 D. 513; 9th Feb. 1844, 6 D. 622. Where the drawee is not in business, it is a jury question whether the bill has been presented in reasonable hours.

(d.) Vide § 92. The bill may be accepted by the drawee though not presented on a business day or at a reasonable hour.

(e.) A bill not payable on demand is overdue on expiry of the last day of grace, vide § 14. A bill payable on demand is overdue, when not presented for payment within a reasonable time, vide § 45 (2). But see § 86 as to notes.

(f.) If acceptance be refused by one of them, presentment to the others is not necessary, because the holder is not bound to take a qualified acceptance, vide § 44 (1), and if he take the acceptance of only some of the drawees, without the express or implied assent of the drawer and indorsers, they are discharged.

(9.) The holder is not bound to make presentment in this case, vide subsection 2 (a).

$41.

$ 41.

Non-accept

ance,

(h.) Vide note on § 45 (8), and 49 (15).

(i.) Where the drawee is a fictitious person, a person not having capacity to contract, the holder may treat the bill as a note, vide § 5 (2), to which the provisions of the Act as to presentment for acceptance do not apply, vide § 89 (3 a).

(j.) It is a question to be determined according to the circumstances of each case, whether the holder has or has not exercised reasonable diligence in endeavouring to find the drawee, Cheek v. Roper, 5 Esp. 175. Where the drawee has left the country and his address is not known, the holder is not bound to take any extraordinary means to find him.

(k.) Thus a presentment on a non-business day is irregular, but is sufficient if the drawee declined to accept on the ground that he has no funds of the drawer, or on any ground except the irregularity of the presentment.

42. (1.) When a bill is duly presented for acceptance and is not accepted within the customary time, the person presenting it must treat it as dishonoured by non-acceptance. If he do not, the holder shall lose his right of recourse against the drawer and indorsers. (a)

(a.) The usual time for which a bill is left for acceptance is twenty-four hours, but the time depends on the custom of the place of presentment, Bell's Prin. 334. In the Bank of Van Dieman's Land v. The Bank of Victoria, L. R. 3, P. C. 526, the Bank of Victoria received a bill at one o'clock on Friday from the plaintiff for presentment for acceptance, and on the same day at two o'clock presented it to the drawees, and left it with them for acceptance. On the following day, Saturday, an acceptance was written on it by the drawees, who handed it to one of their clerks for delivery, when called for. The bill was mislaid, and the clerk of the drawees asked the clerk of the respondents to call on Monday. Before the bill was found the drawers failed, and the drawees then scored their acceptance. The holders brought an action of damages against the respondents, their agents, for not treating the bill as dishonoured, but as, according to Melbourne custom, busi

ness closed at twelve o'clock, it was held by the Privy Council,
that two hours of the twenty-four not having run on Satur-
day, when business closed, the defendants were justified in
leaving the bill with the drawees till Monday. This section
applies to all cases in which presentment for acceptance is
made, though it may not have been necessary to present.

43. (1.) A bill is dishonoured by non-acceptance
(a.) when it is duly presented for acceptance (a),
and such an acceptance as is prescribed by this
Act (b) is refused or cannot be obtained; or
(b.) when presentment for acceptance is excused
and the bill is not accepted (c).

(2.) Subject to the provisions of this Act (d) when a bill is dishonoured by non-acceptance, an immediate right of recourse against the drawer and indorsers accrues to the holder, and no presentment for payment is necessary.

(a.) Vide § 41 (1).

(b.) Vide § 17, 19, and 44.

(c.) Although presentment is excused, where the drawee is dead or bankrupt, his executor or trustee may accept, vide § 41.

(d.) The holder has no right of recourse where the drawer and prior indorsers have been discharged by failure to present in due time, vide § 40; or where the bill has been materially altered, vide § 64; or where the indorsers have indorsed without recourse, vide § 16; or where they have not capacity to contract, vide § 22; and where the bill has been accepted for honour supra protest his right of recourse is suspended. The holder may take recourse, either by action or by summary diligence, whether presentment for acceptance be necessary or not. Vide note (a) on § 98. In order to make his recourse effectual, the holder must take the steps prescribed in §§ 48, 49, 50, and 51. Although not necessary, presentment for payment may be made.