What is the test for good notice in a commercial contract?

The next case is Bridges v. Potts (1864) 17 CB (NS) 314, 33 LJCP 338, 144 ER 127. This was a lease of mining rights and was subject to termination on six months’ notice, which was given for a date other than the date of the first entry. The court held that the notice was good, but it should be noted again that in arriving at this conclusion considerable attention was paid to the peculiar circumstances of that particular case. Certain remarks made by the judges, however, are useful in considering this case. For instance, Earle, C.J., at p. 135, says: “All contracts are to be construed according to the intention of the parties, and, in construing a contract, you must take the words of the instrument and the surrounding circumstances existing at the time it is made.”