Haas v. Rothschild
Haas v. Rothschild
Opinion of the Court
The plaintiff brought an action in the district court of Douglas county against Julius Rothschild to recover the sum of $8,180.30, and Savage & Green, commission dealers of South Omaha, were served with garnishee process, and it appeared from their answer that they had in their possession more than $8,000 derived from the sale of certain cattle sold by them for the defendant Rothschild. At this stage of the case Van Hoven & Co. filed a petition of intervention, as follows:
“Now comes Yan Hoven & Co., a copartnership doing business at Sioux City, Iowa, and respectfully represents to the court that during the winter of 1888 a copartnership was formed between the defendant Julius Rothschild and the intervenor Yan Hoven & Co., for the purpose of purchasing and shipping cattle; that the agreement of copartnership was oral, and in substance as follows: That the firm of Yan Hoven & Co. were to furnish the money to purchase the
“The intervenor further states there was no profit realized in the purchase and sale of said stock, but that a loss was sustained; that the said Julius Rothschild had no interest in the said cattle or the proceeds arising from the sale thereof; that by agreement and arrangement made between the said Yan Ho ven & Co. and the said Rothschild prior to the 9th day of May, 1888, the proceeds of said sale of said stock was to be applied and used in the payment of said $10,000 draft drawn upon said A. Piatt •& Co.; that the balance due from the said Savage & Green, as shown by the said garnishee’s answer, belongs to the firm of Yan Ho ven & Co.; that the said stock cattle
“Therefore the intervenors say they are entitled to the said money now held by the said garnishees, and claim the same as against the plaintiff, defendant, and said garnishees, and pray that they may be adjudged to be entitled to said money and that the same be ordered to be paid over to said intervenors, and that they recover their costs in this suit.”
On the trial of the cause the court found “that the money garnished in this case and now in the custody of the court, to-wit, the sum of $8,408.97 with interest at the rate of four per'cent per annum from the 21st day of June, 1888, is the property of Yan Hoven & Co., the intervenors herein; that said intervenors are entitled to have said money paid over to them as in their petition prayed, to which the said plaintiff excepts; that said Julius Rothschild and the said intervenors were partners, and that the interest, if any, of the said Rothschild in the said money was garnished in the hands of Savage & Green by the said plaintiff in said attachment proceedings, but the court further finds that at the time of the said attachment and garnishment the said Julius Rothschild had no interest in the partnership assets or effects, but was largely indebted to the said firm of Yan Hoven & Co.
“ It is therefore considered by the court that the attach
To this judgment the plaintiff objects and has brought the case into this court for review. It is claimed that the evidence fails to show a partnership between Van Hoven <fc Co. and Rothschild. In this, however, the plaintiff is mistaken.
W. G. Hudson testifies that Rothschild was a member of the firm of Van Hoven & Co., and that he was to purchase stock in his own name. He testifies, “Rothschild was to do the work and buy the stuff to ship, and we were to share the profits and losses equally between the firm of Van Hoven & Co. and Rothschild.” He enters into the details of the agreement, which need not be considered here.
George B. Green, a member of the commission firm of Savage & Green, testifies in substance that Mr. Rothschild admitted the debt to the plaintiff, but said it could not be paid out of that stock, as he was not the owner thereof. Green testifies as to the directions given by Rothschild when the stock was received as follows:
Q. Do you recollect what was done, what instructions were given you to sell the cattle, as stated by your partner?
A. Yes, sir; it was the day they came in, along about noon, I should think; he says if we sell the cattle why the proceeds must be forwarded to A. Piatt &' Co., Chicago, and he remarked that the market was not very good that day; he said he supposed he would not sell, he would forward the cattle to Piatt & Co., but the next day the market was better, and then he instructed us again to forward the money to Piatt.
Q,. This was all prior to the garnishment?
A. O yes, this was before the cattle were weighed.
Q. He said at first that the money should go to Yan Ploven & Co. ?
A. No; to Piatt.
Q. Didn’t he say anything about the money going to Yan Hoven & Co.?
A. He said that the cattle belonged to Yan Hoven & Co. The day after, when Mr. Hudson was down here with him, he told me then that Yan Hoven & Co. had paid for the cattle and had made a draft on Piatt in Chicago.
Q. Afterwards, he said the money should go to Piatt & Co. in Chicago ?
A. He told me the money was going to Piatt & Co. the day the cattle were brought in. He did not say anything about Yan Hoven until after the garnishee.
Q. After the garnishee he spoke of Yan Hoven?
A. He said that Yan Hoven & Co. had paid for the cattle.
The clear weight of testimony sustains the petition for intervention, and the proof fails to show that Rothschild had any interest in the stock in controversy, as it seems to have been sold at a loss. The judgment is therefore
Affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.