Henry v. City of Sacramento
Henry v. City of Sacramento
Opinion of the Court
A demurrer to the complaint was sustained, with leave to amend; and plaintiff declining to amend, judgment was rendered for defendant. From this judgment plaintiff appeals.
It is alleged in the complaint that on September 11, 1893, one A. L. Fish entered into a certain contract set forth in the complaint, with the defendant, the city of Sacramento; that thereafter on March 1, 1894, the said Fish duly assigned said contract to J. H. Henry and A. Abbott; that thereafter the said Abbott duly assigned all his interest in the contract to the said J. H. Henry; and that on November 27, 1894, the said J. H. Henry duly assigned the said contract to W. E. Henry, who is the plaintiff herein and brought this suit on June 27, 1895. The demurrer states the general ground that the complaint does not state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action, and also presents the point that the alleged contract was personal in its nature and not assignable. This second point need not be here considered; for, in our opinion, the complaint in other respects does not state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action.
The contract is quite lengthy, and need not be here set forth in detail. It is sufficient to say generally that, in the event of a certain contingency happening, the said Fish was to supply the defendant for city purposes water, in quality “ clear, sweet, and wholesome,” and “ suitable for drinking water and domestic uses,” and in quantity not less than “one thousand million gallons per annum”; and the defendant was to pay for said water at a certain rate for a certain period mentioned, the said
It is quite clear that the contract and the covenants of the defendant were based on the possibility of Fish discovering and developing by means of said wells water for the supply of the city, of the quality and quantity before mentioned, within six months after the date of the contract. But it is nowhere averred in the complaint that Fish or his assigns ever discovered or devel. oped water of said quality and quantity, or any water
The judgment appealed from is affirmed.
Temple, J., and Henshaw, J., concurred.
Hearing in Bank denied.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- W. E. HENRY v. CITY OF SACRAMENTO
- Cited By
- 3 cases
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- Municipal Corporations—Water Supply—Conditional Contract—Action for Breach—Insufficient Complaint. —Where a contract by a city for a water supply was conditional on the discovery and development of a sufficient supply of clean, sweet, and wholesome water suitable for drinking water and domestic uses, within six months after the date of the contract, and provided that otherwise both parties should be released from all liability under the contract, in an action by the contractor or his assignee for damage for breach of the contract on the part of the city, it is not sufficient for the complaint merely to allege generally a compliance with all the requirements and conditions of the contract, to be performed by the contractor or his assignee, but it must be specifically averred that the contractor or his assignee discovered or developed water of the required quality and quantity within the six months allowed therefor, and a complaint lacking such averment does not state a cause of action.