No one can be charged with liability on the basis of entries in account books.

First defendant in O.S. No. 999 of 1984 on the file of Principal Subordinate Judge, Salem, aggrieved by the decree for Rs.3,37,662-47 with interest thereon against all the defendants, preferred the above appeal before this Court.

2. The case of the plaintiff as set out in the plaint is briefly stated hereunder :- The plaintiff has been supplying yarn to the first defendant between 21-6-1982 and 12-4-1983. As on 12-4-1983 the sum due to the plaintiff from the first defendant was Rs.3,74,299.37. After subsequent payments, the ultimate balance due on account of the transaction is Rs.3,30,258-64. The plaintiff has been repeatedly writing letters to the first defendant to pay the amount and the first defendant has been sending amounts to the plaintiff. They sent a sum of Rs.86,793-39 on 31-8-1982, Rs.59,451-20 on 24-9-1982 and Rs.1,14,054.93 on 13-10-1982 and Rs.66,987-78 on 16-11-1982. On 17-12-1982 they had written a letter to the plaintiff mentioning their requirement for January, 1983. On 14-12-1982 they sent Rs.1,48,388-06 by demand draft. On 15-3-1983 the plaintiff wrote to the first defendant confirming the sending of a telegram as follows :-

"Upto February, 1983 Rs.3,02,275-25 is due from you. Request immediate payment"

and again another letter. Thereafter, the first defendant informed the plaintiff that they could address letters as

"Mettur Textiles, Alexander Thread Division, Post Box No.5, Mettur Dam. On 21-4-1983 the plaintiff received a letter from Mettur Textiles, Alexander Thread Division, Mettur Dam stating that in the light of the change in their management, they are awaiting finalisation of bank facilities and as soon as the same is completed, they will discharge their outstandings. The plaintiff has no knowledge of the change in the management of the first defendant. The plaintiff supplied the goods only to the first defendant. On 19-7-1983 the plaintiff sent a registered notice to the Mettur Textile Private Limited, Rukmani Sewing threads, Silaiman, Madurai and Mettur Beardsell Limited, Madras-12, enclosing a copy of the account and asking for payment. By their own voluntary undertaking, the second defendant has agreed to repay the amounts due to the plaintiff, but the first defendant's over-all liability to pay remains and he is unaffected by the alleged change over. Again, the plaintiff wrote to the defendants 1 and 2 on December 10, 1983 calling upon to pay the amount due immediately. As there was no response, finally, a legal notice was sent on 6-2-1984 to all the defendants. All the defendants have received the notice on 7-2-1984 and 8-2-1984. The first defendant has sent a reply on 21-3-1984 wherein it is stated that the textile company has been constituted into a separate company now known as Mettur Textiles Industrites Limited, that the company has taken over all the assets and liabilities of the division, that they are passing on their (plaintiff's) letter to M/s Mettur Textiles Industrice Limited for verification and payment, if due. The other defendants have not sent any reply. All the defendants are liable to pay the suit claim. The plaintiff is a commercial institution which has availed bank facilities at interest rates of 21 per cent per annum. The conditions of sale of the yarn to the first defendant was that the payment should be made immediately or within a very short time. As the payments have not been received and the amounts have remained due from 12-4-1983 the plaintiff has been deprived of this huge amount from 12-4-1983, the plaintiff is entitled to interest at 21 per cent per annum by way of damages from the defendants for the amounts outstanding.

3. The first defendant alone filed a written statement wherein it is stated that the third defendant had taken over the assets and liabilities of the Thread Unit at Mettur with effect from 1-1-1983. On and from 31-12-1982, the first defendant ceased to carry on the business of the Thread Unit. The plaintiff was fully aware of this chan