Bell v. Currie

404 S.W.2d 321, 1966 Tex. App. LEXIS 2898
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedMay 30, 1966
Docket7614
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 404 S.W.2d 321 (Bell v. Currie) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Bell v. Currie, 404 S.W.2d 321, 1966 Tex. App. LEXIS 2898 (Tex. Ct. App. 1966).

Opinion

CHAPMAN, Justice.

This is an appeal from an instructed verdict in a suit filed by appellant John Bell, Jr., and wife to recover from appellees, Joe Currie, Golden Currie and H. J. Price d/b/a Currie Drilling Company, the amount of money paid appellees for drilling a domestic water well appellants allege ap-pellees by oral contract were obligated to drill in a workman-like manner and which was not so drilled.

The jury having been instructed to find for appellees at the close of appellants’ testimony, we must view the evidence in the light most favorable to the losing party, *322 indulging against the instruction every inference that may properly be drawn from the evidence. Dunagan v. Bushey, 152 Tex. 630, 263 S.W.2d 148; McCarty v. Moss, Tex.Civ.App., 225 S.W.2d 883 (error ref.) ; Houston Transit Co. v. McQuade, Tex.Civ.App., 223 S.W.2d 64 (error ref.); Speights v. Deon, Tex.Civ.App., 182 S.W.2d 1016 (error ref.); James v. Missouri-Kansas-Texas R. Co. of Texas, Tex.Civ.App., 182 S.W.2d 921 (error ref.).

Appellants testified that the only agreement they first had with appellees was to drill the well three hundred feet at the price of $1.50 per foot for drilling, “ * * * and we wanted good water.” When no water was found at three hundred feet to justify production appellees agreed to drill deeper at the same price. So far as we can tell from the record that is the only agreement between the parties concerning the drilling of the well proper, though there were agreements with respect to the casing, pump, etc. There is no showing in the record as to a meeting of the minds between appellants and appellees that the latter contracted to drill a well that would furnish “good water,” whatever that term means. Additionally, one of appellants’ witnesses, Mr. McCaskell, who finally drilled a satisfactory well for appellants and who testified he had drilled between three and four thousand water wells, testified that he never, in any experience as a well driller attempted to guarantee that the water would have a certain taste one way or another. We make this statement only because of the considerable amount of evidence to the effect that the wells rejected produced water with a salty, soda taste. Actually, Appellant Bell testified concerning the well ap-pellees drilled, that he had no agreement with them that if he was not satisfied with one strata of water they were to seal it off and go to another strata; had no complaint of the quantity of the water; but his only complaint was “ * * * dirty water and the filth it would pump out.” Yet, he testified he never had any agreement about sealing off any strata of water to keep it from running down the outside of the casing.

The explanation given by appellants’ witness, Campbell, for the murky, dirty condition of the water was that “ * * * the only thing I could figure, top water was running down the side of the hole through the red bed and washing clay and dirt down as it went.” However, this witness testified his experience in drilling water wells had been in the Hereford area and that he knew nothing of the formations where the subject well was drilled. Mr. McCaskell testified that in his opinion “ * * * there is not enough top water out there to indicate it would come down.” Mr. McCaskell also testified:

“Q. You heard the process described here that the Curries used in connection with the drilling of this well — have you heard anything described that indicated an unwork-man-like way of drilling a well?
“A. No, sir, I have not.
⅝ ⅝ ⅜ ⅜ ⅜ ⅝
“Q. And if there was top water there in that well that Mr. Currie drilled, there was a better way of sealing it off than what he used, wasn’t there ?
“A. No, sir, I wouldn’t say that. * * ”

The witness did not seal his well in the manner the Curries used but the testimony shows that he received $2.00 per foot for drilling. Appellants’ witness, Campbell, also testified that if appellants paid $1.50 per foot for the drilling of the first well he could not have paid for a “graveled well,” the term that seemed to have been used in the case for sealing off top stratas of water. He testified a “graveled well” would be $1.75 to $2.00 per foot. Mr. McCaskell testified he drilled his second well free of cost because the Bells were dissatisfied with the first well he drilled and the water was not suitable for domestic use.

*323 The only testimony we have found in the record with respect to a “graveled” job on the Currie well is the conversation related by appellant between himself and H. J. Price as follows:

“Q. And did you have a conversation at that time with Mr. H. J. Price?
“A. Yes, I did.
“Q. All right—relate that, please.
“A. Well, I went in to Mr. Price and we exchanged greetings, and I said, ‘did you get a good well out there ?’ and he said yes. I said, ‘is the gravel packed, did you get a good gravel job?’ and he says, ‘yeah,’ and he says, ‘didn’t really have to, the gravel packed itself.’ I says, ‘the gravel packed itself ?’ He said yes;

This testimony taken in connection with Mr. Bell’s previous testimony to the effect that the only agreement he had was that the well would be drilled for $1.50 per foot furnishes at least no more than a scintilla of evidence that appellees were obligated at that price to do a “graveled well.” This is particularly true in connection with the other testimony placed in the record by appellants to the effect that they could not have paid for a “graveled well” at the price of $1.50 per foot. Of course, it is elementary that the parties could have contracted for such a well at that price or any other price, but there is just no probative evidence they did so. In fact, it is difficult to conceive of a contract to perform as important a service as the production of a domestic water well for one’s home, requiring as much expenditure, under an arrangement as casual and with as few specifics as this case shows. The mere statement by Mr. Bell “ * * * and we wanted good water” did not, in our opinion, obligate appellees to produce what Mr. Bell termed “good water” when there is no showing in the record of a meeting of the minds in that connection.

Appellants presented all the witnesses that were used. None were called as adverse witnesses.

The party who places testimony in evidence vouches for their credibility and is bound by their testimony. Pickett v. Dallas Trust & Savings Bank, Tex.Com.App., 24 S.W.2d 354; Whitefield v. Whitefield, Tex.Civ.App., 160 S.W.2d 306 (writ ref. w. m.); Mayflower Investment Company v.

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Bluebook (online)
404 S.W.2d 321, 1966 Tex. App. LEXIS 2898, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/bell-v-currie-texapp-1966.