Patanjali Sastri, J.

1. The short point raised in this appeal which has been brought by some of the defendants related to the mode of appropriating three of the payments made in scaling down the suit mortgage debt. These payments are as follows : Rs. 2,200 paid on 6th November, 1925 " towards the debt due under this mortgage deed "; Rs. 1,000 paid on 15th March, 1927, ". towards the principal and interest due on the debt " and stated to have been " credited towards this deed "; Rs. 1,500 paid on 15th February, 1930, in two parts, namely, Rs. 684-7-9 out of which Rs. 420 was to be credited to the principal and Rs. 264-7-9 towards the interest due on the bond and Rs. 815-8-3 paid " towards the deed." In scaling down the debt the Court below after discussing the decisions of this Court relating to the manner in which open payments have to be dealt with for the purposes of the Act IV of 1938 expressed the opinion that a payment made towards principal and interest of a debt could not be regarded as an open payment. It proceeded, however, to award relief to the debtors under Section 8(2) under which no question of appropriation of payments can arise at all. Mr. Govindarajachari fo