Stockton v. Creager
Stockton v. Creager
Opinion of the Court
Action by Creager and AYortman against Stockton and the Lafayette Opera House Association. Stockton subscribed eight hundred dollars to the said Opera
The defendant Stockton answered in three paragraphs, to the third of which a demurrer was sustained, and there was a reply to the second, the first being a general denial. A trial by jury ended in a verdict for the plaintiffs, and after the overruling of a motion for a new trial, made by the defendant Stockton, there was final judgment for the plaintiffs.
Errors assigned:
1. Sustaining the demurrer to the third paragraph of the • answer.
2. The complaint does not state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action.
3. Overruling the motion of the defendant for a new trial.
We should first inquire as to the sufficiency of the complaint. The objection made to it is, that the subscription sued on is not made part of the complaint. The complaint not only alleges the making of the subscription by the appellant and an assignment thereof to the plaintiffs, but it also alleges that the Opera House Association gave a written order for the amount of the subscription on the defendant in favor of the plaintiffs. This order is set forth in the complaint, and it is alleged that the defendant accepted the same and verbally agreed to pay the amount. The subscription is not copied in or made part of the complaint. We must regard the complaint as founded upon the order
The third paragraph of the answer did not allege that the lands which the defendant Stockton offered to convey were of the value of eight hundred dollars, and was not, for this reason, we think, a good bar to the action.
Upon the last assignment of error, we think the judgment must be reversed. There was no evidence of any acceptance by the defendant of the order drawn upon him by the Opera House Association in favor of the plaintiffs. Conceding that an oral acceptance of the order would have been sufficient, still there was no evidence of any such acceptance. The general denial being in, this evidence was essential to make out the plaintiffs’ case.
The judgment is reversed, with costs, and the cause remanded.
Petition for a rehearing overruled.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.