Charles, J.:-
This is an appeal from the decision of a magistrate's court awarding £90 as damages for wrongful destruction of a canoe and 8 guineas costs.
The learned magistrate found that the defendant/appellant who was the Road Overseer of the Epe District Council had caused the plaintiff/respondent's canoe to be broken up after he, the defendant appellant, had had it removed from the water-way at Epe in carrying out an instruction of the Epe District Council that the foreshore, water-way and landing route were to be cleared. According to the evidence, the Council's instruction did not extend to the destruction of canoes.
The only ground of appeal which has been argued is that the action should have been dismissed under the Public Officers Protection Ordinance 1947 (Cap. 186) because it had not been commenced within three months of the defendant's wrongful act. The learned magistrate had held that the Ordinance did not apply to the defendant as "the type of officer entitled to this pro…