That  Ray  and  Thornton,  and  all  the  other  indorsers  were  legally  re-
leased and  discharged  from  all  responsibility  upon  the  bill,  is  unquestion-
able. And  so  also  was  Saunders,  the  drawer,  unless  it  appeared  that  he
had  made  no  provision  for  the  payment  of  the  bill,  nor  had  any  funds  for
its  payment  in  the  hands  of  the  acceptor ;  the  contrary  of  which  is  always
presumed  in  the  absence  of  proof  establishing  a  want  of  funds.^

That  Ray  knew  that  he  and  they  were  discharged  when  he  paid  and  lifted
the  bill,  does  not  appear ;  but  the  presumption  may  be  fairly  indulged  that
he  did  not  know  or  believe  it.  It  is  certain  that  the  fact  of  his  discharge
was  not  communicated  to  him  by  the  officers  of  the  bank ;  and  as  they  did
not  know  that  the  indorsers  were  discharged,  as  is  proven  by  their  cashier,
whose  business  it  was  to  deal  in  such  paper,  the  presumption  may  be  in-
dulged that  Ray,  who  knew  but  little  about  such  paper,  did  not  know  it.
And  though  it  is  proven  that  he  knew  that  the  bill  had  not  reached  New
Orleans  in  time,  it  does  not  appear  that  he  knew,  or  that  the  fact  was  com-
municated to  him,  that  the  bill  had  not  been  mailed  for  that  place  until
the  24th  of  October,  and  that,  mailed  at  that  time,  it  could  not  reach  New
Orleans  until  after  its  maturity.  Nor  does  it  appear  that  he  knew,  when
he  paid  the  bill,  that  had  it  arrived  in  time  the  funds  were  ready  to  pay
it  off,  and  that  it  would  have  been  paid,  and  he  and  all  the  indorsers
discharged  from  further  liability.
