C. IDIGBE, J.S.C. (Delivering the Leading Judgment): When this case came up for trial in the lower court (i.e. the High Court of Lagos) there were stored away in a store 10,242 special satchels, designed for use by the Census Board during the last census exercise in the country in 1973; they had been manufactured by the respondents at the request of the appellants but had not been collected and paid for by them in accordance with the terms of a contract concluded between the parties during the month of May, 1973.
The evidence which the learned trial Judge accepted in the lower court was that pursuant to negotiations between the appellants and the respondents, the latter at the request of the former agreed to manufacture a total of 150,000 special satchels. It happened in this way: In May, 1973 the 1st appellant who, together with the 2nd appellant, was trading under the style of "Plumstead Commercial and Company" approached the Managing Director of the respondents, B.E.O.O. Industries…