Transcription of affidavit from William Ashbee and Lewis Simonson (for "Morris v. Ashbee"), 25 May 1868, before George White. Source: Chancery files, 25 May 1868, ref: C 31/2233/1455; The National Archives of the UK (TNA), held off-site from Kew. Transcribed by Liz Evans, 29/10/2015, from photographic images held by Tony Proctor (images nos. 468-474) ================================================================ [page 1, image 468] __In Chancery__ __1868 M 81__ __Between__ John Stuart Crosbee Morris ________________ Plaintiff ______ and ______ William Ashbee and Lewis Simonson _______ Defendants We William Ashbee of No. 190 Grays Inn Road in the county of Middlesex Publisher and Lewis Simonson of No. 5 Bouverie Street in the city of London Publisher the defendants above named severally make oath and say as follows. 1 We have read the papers handed by the plaintiffs solicitors in this Cause to our Solicitor on the 20th day of May 1868 one of which purports to be a copy of an affidavit sworn by the plaintiff on the 19th day of May 1868 one a copy of an Affidavit sworn by Richard Hewson on the 7th day of May 1868 one a copy of an affidavit of John McMullens ^sworn^ on the same day and the other a copy of an Affidavit sworn by James Blinkhorn on the same day 2 We say that Edward Dutton of Merlin Villas, ^Lilford^ Road, Camberwell in the county of Surrey Publisher and Alexander Francis Lamb of Low Leighton in the county of Essex Publisher are ^Partners ^ and jointly interested with us in the publication of the Merchants and Manufacturers Pocket Directory in the Plaintiffs Bill mentioned and we humbly submit that they ought to be made parties to this suit 3 With reference to the 9th paragraph of the said Plaintiffs said Affidavit we repeat that the only parts of the Business Directory which were used as copy for our Directory were matters which had been paid for by the persons whose names were cut out from the 25th May 1868 (22) White No 1455 [page 2, image 469] Business Directory and that when such ^persons^ did not pay us for the use of Capitals or extra lines the portion of the Plaintiffs Directory relating to them was not used as copy but manuscripts were supplied by us to the printer. As instances of this we refer to the names of Downs Thomas F ~~~~~ under the head in our Book of Philosophical Instrument Manufacturers and to the name of Lawry and Bryant under the head of Shirt and Collar Manufacturers to the names of Mallett and Oliver under the head of Umbrella Manufacturers and Junggs ^John^ under the head of Toy Manufacturers. All the parts so cut out were verified by personal enquiry made at the places of business of the several persons whose names are so ^cut^ out and the rest of our Book with we believe the sole exception of the name of Lambert and Sons which was inserted in the manner described in the first Affidavit made in this cause by the said William Ashbee was the result of House to House inquiry and was supplied to the printer in manuscript. It is not true that the fact of our having used the printed matter in the said 9th paragraph mentioned enabled us to avoid incurring great or any expence or trouble or any appreciable loss of time or that we had thereby avoided error. 4 In reference to the 10th paragraph of the said plaintiffs said Affidavit we deny that save as herein and in the other Affidavits filed in our behalf mentioned by cutting up the plaintiffs said Directory we prepared copy for 2 [page 3, image 470] printing our said Directory before we began to canvas for the same or at any time In fact we did by ourselves and our Agents diligently canvas with a view to the completion of a Directory of Merchants and Manufacturers and with the exceptions hereinafter noticed we endeavored to give and we believe succeeded in giving in our Directory a full and proper list of the persons carrying on the several trades or businesses comprised in our said Directory. Whether or not our Directory is a Directory in the proper sense of the word we submit to this Honorable Court. 5 In reference to the 11th paragraph of the said Affidavit we say that 20 persons were employed in working our said Directory and that the preparation of it occupied a period of 8 months 6 With reference to the 13th paragraph of the said Affidavit of the said plaintiff we say that we believe that what is there stated with regard to the Trades, "Builders and Haberdashers" may be correct and we explain it as follows We employed numerous canvasers to obtain lists of Merchants Manufacturers and Importers in the manner explained in the said Affidavit of William Ashbee filed in this Cause on the 5th day of May 1868 and some of such Canvasers considered that Haberdashers and Builders on a large scale ought to be included in our Directory while others omitted them as not being within the scope of that work. We cannot say whether or not under numerous or any other headings such differences as mentioned in the said paragraph will appear upon an examination of the two Books but if there be such difference it will probably be capable of explanation in a 3 [page 4, image 471] similar way and we submit that such differences tend to refute the charge preferred against us of pirating the plaintiffs Directory 7 We believe that the 13th paragraph of the said plaintiffs said Affidavit to be true and we say that this is the course pursued by us in the ^compilation^ of our said Directory 8 With reference to the 14th paragraph of the plaintiffs said Affidavits speaking to the best of our knowledge information and belief we deny that in a single instance we have taken from the said Plaintiffs Directory passages or any passage in respect of which money had not been paid or agreed to be paid by the persons whose names are given in the Plaintiffs said Directory and with a special reference to the specific entries mentioned in the said paragraph ^we believe^ for the reasons herein appearing that the plaintiff had received money from every one of the persons therein mentioned for the insertion of his name with the exception of Messrs. Lambert and Sons whose names are inserted under the circumstances and in the manner mentioned in the said Affidavit of the said William Ashbee 9 We believe that money was paid or agreed to be paid to the Plaintiff by all persons whose names or firms are inserted in his said Directory in Capital Letters or with extra lines and amongst these inserted in Capital Letters in the Alphabetical part of his said Directory are the names William T ~~ Gough Beckley Alfred Ayden in the said Copy called Aylen, R & Fletcher Arthur Bryan Copestake Moore Crampton & Co., Arnold & Sons, and & Co [page 5, image 472] while the names of Lawry and Briant appear in Capitals in the Classified Directory and W W Rouch & Co. are printed with extra lines 10 In reply to the 15th 16th 22nd 23rd and 26th paragraphs of the said Plaintiffs said Affidavit I the said Lewis Simonson say that I adhere to the statements contained in the 9th 10th and 11th paragraphs of my Affidavit filed in this Cause on the 5th day of May 1868 11 With reference to the 27th paragraph of the said Plaintiffs said Affidavit we both say that the business of working a Directory as a Canvasser requires no teaching - In the 13th paragraph of the said Affidavit of the said William Ashbee the duties of a Canvasser are accurately described. 12 The statement contained in the 2nd paragraph of the said Affidavit of the said James Blinkhorn that in printing our Directory names and addresses only were printed and extra lines struck out we say that in such cases the Advertisers had paid us for Capitals only and had declined to pay for extra lines and that to the best of our recollection and belief no names printed in Capitals in the said Plaintiffs Directory were put in small type for the slips of our Directory as Copy for the Printer 13 With reference to the 3rd paragraph of the last mentioned Affidavit we say that if any such use of the Plaintiffs Directory as therein mentioned was made in the office of Messrs Letts & Co the same was unauthorized by us and made without our knowledge nor did we hear of it until we read the said Affidavit of the said James Blinkhorn 14 The facts and circumstances herein deposed to we respectively depose to of our own knowledge [page 6, image 473] save where the contrary appears - The sources of our knowledge herein appears William Ashbee Sworn by the Deponents Lewis Simonson William Ashbee and Lewis Simonson at No 45 Bloomsbury Square ~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ in the county of Middlesex the 23rd day of May 1868 Before me George Carew A Commissioner to administer Oaths in Chancery in England Filed for and on behalf of the Defendants by George White 70 Russell Square [page 7, image 474] In Chancery Morris Affidavit of William Ashbee & L Simonson The Defts V Ashbee fol 22 White 70 Russell Square