O'Brien v. Haslam
O'Brien v. Haslam
Opinion of the Court
This is an appeal from a judgment on a verdict
As O’Brien paid labor bills, binding twine, and threshed all the grain, he had ample reason and opportunity to know where the grain was put. He ordered a car to ship the grain from the east part of the granary, and his car was spotted at Grand Harbor. Then as O’Brien had no experience in shipping wheat his friend Haslam kindly offered to do the shipping for him. O’Brien innocently assented and his carload of 1,147 bushels of wheat was at once shipped by Haslam. He •shipped it in his own name, saying nothing to O’Brien, and he at once drew on the consignee for $700. (That was October 3, 1916.) He received from the car of wheat the net sum of $921.19. Then in November he paid the threshing bill and concluded to hold the balance to «pply on his mortgage.
Haslam testified that when O’Brien accepted his offer to do the shipping he said: “For me to go ahead and load the car and take out my mortgage, and whatever should be left over and above, to turn over to him.” That story is highly improbable. O’Brien denied it and the jury did not believe it. O’Brien’s threshing lien and his seed liens were clearly ahead of all other liens. That was not disputed. Hence, it would have been a silly thing for him to have said to Haslam: “You
In any view of the case on all the evidence the verdict could not well have been otherwise. That is a sufficient answer to the numerous assignments of error. There is no question of consequence, as to-whether or not Haslam wrongfully shipped the wheat in his own name or wrongfully received the price in his own name. As the jury found and as the fact is clear and patent, O’Brien had a first lien on the wheat for the thresh bill and for the price of his seed wheat, and when the first lien was turned into money, it was the money of O’Brien, and Haslam had no right to retain it for one minute, and he and his, counsel should have known that fact. The judgment is affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- WILLIAM P. O'BRIEN v. T. A. HASLAM
- Status
- Published