Newton Rubber Works v. Kahn
Newton Rubber Works v. Kahn
Opinion of the Court
Opinion by
This suit is based on a note of $2,800 and a book account of $1,200. There is nothing in the statement of the plaintiff’s claim which indicates that the note was given for merchandise, but it is declared therein that the book account is for goods sold by the plaintiff to the defendant, “ without any guarantee.” The defendant, however, avers in his affidavits of defense that the note and book account represent the price of bicycle tires purchased by him of the plaintiff, on the representation and guarantee of its duly authorized agents that they “ were of the same grade, kind and quality known as plaintiff’s regular guaranteed hose-pipe tires theretofore used by him.” He also avers that it was fully understood by said agents, and throughout the trade, -that the term guaranteed tires means that if at any time during use within one year the tires prove defective, the maker will repair them, or replace them with new tires, without expense to the purchaser. It is plainly stated in the affidavits of defense that the defendant refused to purchase the plaintiff’s tires without a distinct assurance and guarantee that they were its guaranteed hose-pipe tires, and such as he had purchased and used the previous year; that the assurance and guarantee required were promptly given by the plaintiff through its duly authorized agents, and that he, relying upon them, purchased one thousand pairs of the tires so represented and guaranteed; that for the first shipment of seven hundred pairs he gave the
In the determination of the question raised by the appeal the averments above stated and included in the affidavits of defense must be accepted as true, and the nature of the business in which the parties are respectively employed, together with the method of transacting it, must be considered. The plaintiff is a corporation engaged in the manufacture of bicycle tires, and the defendant is a manufacturer of bicycles. The defendant did not purchase the plaintiff’s tires on inspection, for the obvious reason that his knowledge of their grade and quality was not equal to that of the maker of them. He exacted a guarantee as a condition precedent to his purchase, because he was unable to satisfactorily ascertain their quality by inspection. It was not until they were tested by use that the defects in them were discoverable by him. It is therefore clear that it was a matter of importance to him to have a guarantee of the tires from the manufacturer. He bought them for and placed them on bicycles of his own manufacture. He sold his wheels to a wholesale dealer to whom he gave a guarantee of the tires like the guarantee given to him by the plaintiff through its agents. His liability to his vendee on account of the tires in case they proved to be defective was therefore the same as the liability of his vendor to him.
The learned court below determined that the affidavits of defense were insufficient to prevent judgment because they did
Judgment reversed and procedendo awarded.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.