Butte Floral Co. v. Reed

211 P. 325, 65 Mont. 138, 1922 Mont. LEXIS 231
CourtMontana Supreme Court
DecidedNovember 22, 1922
DocketNo. 4,925
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 211 P. 325 (Butte Floral Co. v. Reed) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Montana Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Butte Floral Co. v. Reed, 211 P. 325, 65 Mont. 138, 1922 Mont. LEXIS 231 (Mo. 1922).

Opinion

MR. JUSTICE GALEN

delivered the opinion of the court.

This is an action for damages for breach of warranty on the sale of an automobile truck. Upon issue joined, the case was tried to a jury, and resulted in a verdict and judgment for the plaintiff in the sum of $1,950.58. The appeal is from the judgment and from an order denying defendant’s motion for a new trial.

[140]*140In its complaint plaintiff alleges: “That at the time of said sale and delivery defendant stated and warranted to plaintiff that the said motor-truck was a 2-ton truck and in first-class condition; that plaintiff and its officers at the time of said sale and delivery were unfamiliar with motor-trucks, and especially were'unskilled in and unfamiliar with the particular truck which defendant then sold and delivered to plaintiff, and purchased and paid for the said truck, believing and relying upon the said statement and warranty of defendant that the said truck was a 2-ton truck and in first-class condition, and purchased and paid for said truck without any knowledge that the said statements and warranties of defendant were not true; that. the said motor-truck was not a 2-ton truck, but was and is a 1%-ton truck; nor was the said truck in first-class condition, but then was, and now is, worthless and worn out. * * * All of which facts were known to the defendant at the time he made the said sale and the said warranties and representations to plaintiff, and none of which facts were known to the plaintiff. ’ ’ Further it is alleged that immediately upon ascertaining the condition of the truck the plaintiff offered to restore it to the defendant upon condition of repayment of the purchase price paid therefor and the expenses to which the plaintiff had been put, that the truck is, and at the time of its sale was, of no value, but that the steel body placed thereon by the plaintiff is reasonably worth the sum of $100.

Beeovery was sought of the purchase price paid for the autotruck, $1,950, and also special damages alleged as follows: The cost of a steel body purchased for the truck of the reasonable value of $100; plus loading and freight charges thereon from Great Nalls to Butte, amounting to $22.71; together with $177.87, the cost of installing such body; also $114.50 for putting a cab on °the truck; $45.43 for insurance; and $15 for a state license thereon and, further, $125 to cover expenditures made to replace two broken front wheels; $55 paid a mechanic to replace a broken spring and in getting [141]*141the truck back to Butte. All of such items of special damage were claimed as the reasonable and necessary expenditures made by the plaintiff in attempting to use the truck in its business. The item as to the value of the body was eliminated by reason of the credit allowance given the defendant by the plaintiff in its complaint and specific instruction given the jury. The court denied a motion to strike the several items of special damages alleged, but upon the trial, on defendant’s motion, withdrew from the consideration of the jury the two items as to the cost of the wheels and spring, and later by specific instruction excluded the expenditures alleged to have been made by the plaintiff for the installation of a cab, for insurance, and for a state license. This left before the jury the amount expended by the plaintiff in the purchase of the automobile truck, $1,950, and but two items of special damages, namely, expenditures made for loading and freight charges on shipment of the body from Great Falls to Butte, $22.71, and the cost of installing such body on the chassis, amounting to $177.87.

It is evident that the jury, in arriving at their verdict, found the value of the truck, with the body placed thereon, to be the sum of $200, deducted the same from the amount paid by the plaintiff, $1,950,. and added the special items of damages remaining and submitted, $22.71 freight charges on the body, $177.87 for installation thereof, thus totaling $1,950.58, the amount of the verdict.

Though several alleged errors are assigned, upon which a reversal is sought, in our opinion there are but two questions determinative of the appeal, namely: (1) Did the transaction constitute a sale and breach of wai’ranty, or was it one of agency exclusively? And (2) Were the items of special damages properly submitted to the jury?

The allegations of the complaint are amply supported by the evidence, save as to two items of special damages alleged, viz., $45.43 for insurance and $15 for a state license, totaling $60.43. The jury were properly instructed to ignore these [142]*142items for failure of proof. It appears that in the month of April, 1919, the plaintiff desired to make purchase of a second-hand two-ton White truck for use in its business, and, understanding that the defendant handled second-hand trucks, Philo H. King, secretary-treasurer and general manager of the plaintiff company, called upon the defendant for the purpose of negotiating such a purchase. King testified: “I went into Mr. Reed’s office, understanding that he sold second-hand White trucks—bought them and sold them—at various times, and told him I wanted a two-ton truck to use in hauling sand, coal, soil, fertilizer, and one thing and another for the greenhouses, and what I had in mind, and he told me that he could purchase me one of that kind, he thought; he didn’t have one on hand, but he was going east and he had bought second-hand cars for a number of years, and that he could find me one, he felt quite sure, that would just answer the purpose. So I told him that if he could get a good two-ton truck to answer the purpose for which we wanted it that I would buy it from him for the Butte Floral Company, and that I had heard of a steel body that the city of Great Falls owned that I could purchase at a very reasonable price, and asked him if that would be all right to use on this two-ton truck, that I understood it was made for a two-ton White truck, and he said, ‘Yes, sure,’ that would be all right, and he felt quite sure he could purchase just what we wanted. So he advised me not to do anything further about a truck until I heard from him; if he found something he would let me know. So he went east, and a short time later I got a wire; that is, it was sent to Mr. Lingley, of the Sherman & Reed Company. He brought it over to the store and showed me the wire; said that this truck was a bargain at $1,950. He didn’t state whether it was f. o. b. Butte or f. o. b. the east; so I asked Mr. Lingley to ask him whether it was f. o. b. Butte or f. o. b. the east, as I wanted to know what the truck would cost. So I think it was the next day Mr. Lingley came in and said the truck would be $1,950 f. o, b. cars Butte. [143]*143So, relying upon Mr. Reed’s statement that the truck was a bargain at that price and would answer our purpose, I wired him $1,950.” The telegram was admitted in evidence without objection, and is in words and figures as follows: “Western Union Telegram. 4/5/1919. A. G. Lingley, care Sherman & Reed, Butte, Montana. Have Mr. King wire First National Bank here nineteen hundred fifty dollars for two-ton White chassis; a bargain. Advise purchase. Ans. Perm Hotel. J. R. Reed.”

Continuing, the witness testified: “I had no further conference with Mr. Reed until he advised me the truck had arrived; that was the latter part of May, 1919. * * * A day or two later I went down and saw Mr. Reed, and he took me back into the barn there, where it was rather dark, or garage. * * * Mr. Reed showed me this chassis and said that that was the one he had purchased in the east, and I looked at it.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
211 P. 325, 65 Mont. 138, 1922 Mont. LEXIS 231, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/butte-floral-co-v-reed-mont-1922.