Anderson v. White

52 P. 231, 18 Wash. 658, 1898 Wash. LEXIS 604
Washington Supreme Court·Decided February 18, 1898·No. No. 2780·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinion

The opinion of the court was delivered by

Dunbar, J.

The respondent, Anderson, commenced this action against defendant, White, in which action certain property was garnished in the hands of Drummond. Palmer, the appellant, intervened, claiming the property so garnished. White defaulted and Anderson took judgment against him, so that the question in issue was the right to the property garnished. The property garnished in the hands of Drummond consisted of two scows, which had formerly belonged to White, and certain money, the proceeds of the operation of those scows and other property, belonging to White. It was Palmer’s contention that the property which was the subject of the bill of sale was received by him in payment of a debt owed to him by White. The bill of sale was recorded in Pierce county. Anderson’s contention was that the bill of sale was not recorded in the proper county or counties, and that the same was made through a conspiracy between Palmer and White to defraud Anderson and other of White’s creditors. A jury trial was had and verdict and judgment in favor of Anderson. Appellant makes but two assignments of error: First, that there was no evidence to justify the verdict, and, second, that over the objections of the appellant witness Patterson was permitted to detail what White had said to him [660] about tbe sale to Palmer, after tbe sale had been made.

Tbe respondent moves to strike appellant’s brief and affirm tbe judgment below, for tbe reason that tbe brief fails to make a reference in tbe statement of tbe case to tbe pages of transcript for verification, and fails to make an assignment of errors relied on for reversal. An inspection of tbe brief shows that tbe appellant’s assignment of errors are made in tbe two particulars wbicb we have above mentioned, and that tbe pages of tbe transcript are referred to where tbe error is alleged in relation to tbe introduction of objectionable testimony. Tbe motion will therefore be overruled. On tbe merits, so far as tbe weight of testimony is concerned, an examination of this record convinces us that there was sufficient testimony to warrant tbe jury in coming to tbe conclusion that it did, and tbe verdict will therefore be binding on this court, even though in our judgment tbe weight of testimony was tbe other way. Tbe only other error alleged in tbe brief is tbe admission of tbe testimony of tbe witness Patterson in relation to White’s statement concerning tbe bill of sale. It is contended by tbe respondent that there was no sufficient objection to this testimony, but we think tbe objection was ample. When an objection is once made clearly and distinctly, and tbe grounds of the objection stated, it is not necessary that it should be repeated to every question that follows and wbicb falls within tbe objection.

Tbe testimony was as follows:

Q.—I will ask you, Mr. Patterson, if you bad any conversation with Mr. White regarding tbe sale of bis business, and outfit to Mr. John P. Palmer?
Mr. Peid, counsel for intervenor.—J"ust wait a minute. Tbe intervenor objects to that question on tbe ground that any statement made by Mr. White after tbe sale would not be binding upon him.
Tbe Court.—I will allow you to ask tbe question.
[661] Mr. Reid.—Rote an exception on the part of the intervenor.
A.—Rot until after I came in from the camp, the 5th of March.
Q.—Will you tell the jury what that conversation was?
A.—Well, he called me in the room and told me he had made a hill of sale of his property. He did not tell me who to and I did not ask him. He said that he was pressed, that he had went security for some parties, as I understood it, and they had failed to pay him, and he was pressed to pay this, and he made this bill of sale to protect himself and the parties who had worked for him.

It is contended by the appellant that this testimony was inadmissible, for the reason that one who has parted with his interest in property cannot affect the right or title of his vendee by such statements, and several cases are cited to sustain this contention, notably, Winchester, etc., Mfg. Co. v. Creary, 116 U. S. 161 (6 Sup. Ct. 369). As a general proposition there is no doubt of the correctness of this rule, for as was said by the supreme court of the Hnited States in the case above cited:

“ After the sale the interest of the vendors of the property was gone; having become strangers to the title their admissions are no more binding on the vendee than the admissions of others. It is against all principle that declarations made after they had parted with the title and surrendered possession should be allowed to destroy the title of their vendee.”

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Anderson v. White, 52 P. 231, 18 Wash. 658, 1898 Wash. LEXIS 604 (Wash. 1898).

52 P. 231 (Anderson v. White) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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