352 BILLS OF EXCHANGE AND PROMISSORY NOTES. [ART. 13

164. Presentment for acceptance must be made by or on
behalf of the holder at a reasonable hour, on a business day,
and before the bill is overdue, to the drawee or some person
authorized to accept or refuse acceptance on his behalf; and

1. Where a bill is addressed to two or more drawees who
are not partners, presentment must be made to them all, unless
one has authority to accept or refuse acceptance for all, in
which case presentment may be made to him only;

2. Where the drawee is dead, presentment may be made to
his personal representative;

3. Where the drawee has been adjudged a bankrupt or an
insolvent, or has made an assignment for the benefit of credi-
tors, presentment may be made to him or to his trustee or
assignee.

165. A bill may be presented for acceptance on any day on
which negotiable instruments may be presented for payment
under the provisions of sections ninety-one and one hundred
and four of this article. When Saturday is not otherwise a
holiday, presentment for acceptance may be made before twelve
o'clock noon on that day.

166. Where the holder of a bill, drawn payable elsewhere
than at the place of business or the residence of the drawee,
has not time, with the exercise of reasonable diligence, to
present the bill for acceptance before presenting it for payment
on the day that it falls due, the delay caused by presenting
the bill for acceptance before presenting it for payment is
excused, and does not discharge the drawers and indorsers.

167. Presentment for acceptance is excused, and a bill may
be treated as dishonored by non-acceptance, in either of the
following cases:

1. Where the drawee is dead, or has absconded, or is a
fictitious person, or a person not having capacity to contract
by bill;

2. Where after the exercise of reasonable diligence, present-
ment cannot be made;

3. Where although presentment has been irregular, accept-
ance has been refused on some other ground.

168. A bill is dishonored by non-acceptance: