Farwell v. Smith
Farwell v. Smith
Opinion of the Court
The question in this case lies within a narrow compass. Several positions taken by the plaintiffs’ counsel
It appears by the report, that there was evidence tending to show that the defendant had agreed to purchase scythes of the plaintiffs, to be delivered at a future time, and also that he had agreed with one Spaulding to have scythes of him, to be manufactured by the plaintiffs for Spaulding ; that when the scythes were brought, the messenger was asked by the de fendant’s clerk, whether they were ■ delivered on Spaulding’s account or the plaintiffs’, and he said he did not know; upon which they were credited to Spaulding, and accounted for in settlement with him. There was also evidence tending to show, that the fact of their having been so received and credited was early known to one of the plaintiffs. This evidence was left to the jury, with an instruction, that if the scythes were in fact received by the defendant on Spaulding’s account, and credited to him, and this was seasonably known to the plaintiffs, if they did not give seasonable notice to the defendant, that they did not intend to deliver them on Spaulding’s account, but his own (Smith’s) account, then there was no delivery, pursuant to the alleged contract, and the sale was not complete. The Court are all of opinion, that this instruction was correct. The action was for goods sold and delivered. The sale was not complete without delivery, and delivery implies an acceptance. The evidence, which the report finds to have been conflicting and contradictory, left it open for the jury to find, that the fact of leaving the goods at the defendant’s store, which was relied upon as proof of delivery and acceptance, was equivocal, and the parties respectively were under a mistake, the one intending to deliver them under one
Judgment on the verdict.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- John Farwell versus Alpheus Smith
- Status
- Published