Davis v. H. S. & M. W. Snyder, Inc.

150 N.E. 864, 255 Mass. 45, 1926 Mass. LEXIS 1062
CourtMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
DecidedFebruary 25, 1926
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 150 N.E. 864 (Davis v. H. S. & M. W. Snyder, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Davis v. H. S. & M. W. Snyder, Inc., 150 N.E. 864, 255 Mass. 45, 1926 Mass. LEXIS 1062 (Mass. 1926).

Opinion

Carroll, J.

This is an action of tort to recover for the alleged act of the defendant, on or about September 21,1917, in directing the National City Bank at New York to cable certain money to one Tockel, in Russia, by reason of which Tockel lost the money. A part of the plaintiff’s amended declaration was stricken out as immaterial and unnecessary; a demurrer to the remainder of the declaration was sustained. The plaintiff appealed from the order to strike out and from the order sustaining the demurrer.

The declaration as amended alleged that on September 21, 1917, the National City Bank at' New York (hereinafter called the bank) received from the defendant checks amounting to $7,671.18, owed by the defendant to Marcus A. Tockel, as payment of commissions for the sale of leather; that the bank held the "said sum, the property of the said Marcus A. Tockel”; that in June, 1917, Tockel had directed that $3,602.32 of the amount owed be placed with the bank, and that he be advised; that the defendant sent a check for $3,602.32 to the bank, payable to it, with a letter requesting the bank to place the check to the account of Tockel, "pursuant to cables, copies of which appeared at the bottom of the letter”; that the cables referred to requested the deposit of the money; that the bank replied it had no account with Tockel and requested the defendant’s advice; that the bank collected the check and credited amount to "Collection account, Foreign Exchange.”

The declaration further alleged that in July, 1917, Tockel requested that the balance due him be placed with the bank, and that he be advised; that the defendant cabled, saying [47]*47it would deposit “additional 4080 dollars commission” on Thursday, “Advise National City disposition,” and on July 14 sent a check for this additional sum to the bank, asking it by letter to hold the amount “in his [Tockel’s] name, to his order, or to our order until further notice unless you have received direct notice from Mr. Tockel himself”; that the bank received the check, and in letter of acknowledgment stated that Tockel had no account and it had received no information from him, and asked the defendant’s advice whether to cable this sum “through our correspondents in Moscow for Mr. Tockel or credited to our correspondent’s account and advised by letter”; that the defendant replied there was no need of cabling Tockel, as the defendant had cabled him and he would doubtless write the bank what disposition he desired; that the bank placed the proceeds of the second check to “Sundries Account.”

Further, that on July 5, 1917, an account in the name of Tockel was opened at the bank with a credit of $9,051.30 (money received from Howes Brothers, Boston) which ran as an open account until October 31, 1917, and the two remittances of the defendant were not placed in this account; that prior to July 5, 1917, Tockel had no account with the bank; that September 9, 1917, he cabled to the bank, asking what amounts had been received from the defendant, and “in reply received a cable stating that no payments had been received from Snyder”; that September 18, 1917, Tockel cabled the defendant this message:

“Twenty one chevreauchrom instructs tomorrow national pay seven hundred thousand against warehouse receipts stop confirm receipt depositing commission national city my current account inducing them cable amount stop national cabaled n payments received from you for me stop according your telegrams deposited 7670.”

The declaration then continues, “Thereupon . . . the defendant, without the knowledge, authority or consent of said Tockel, and contrary to his rights, directed the National City Bank to send . . . Tockel’s . . . money to Russia; said direction being contained in letters copies whereof . . . are hereto annexed.”

[48]*48The first letter was from the defendant to the bank, asking it to cable Petrograd to accept seven hundred thousand rubles from Chevreau Chrom Shoe Factory, Moscow, against warehouse receipts and inclosing a copy of the cable of September 18, “advising us that he would like you to cable his account to your branch in Russia.” In the copy of the cable the letter “N” after the words “National cabled,” and preceding the words “payments received,” was omitted. The second letter was from the bank to the,defendant, and stated in substance, after a reference to the seven hundred thousand rubles, that it is unable to interpret the cable quoted, it is “holding the sum of $7,671.18 awaiting your orders,” and asked if the money is to be cabled to Tockel and if the expense of remitting $7,671.18 through the Petrograd branch to Tockel is to be deducted or to be borne by the defendant. The third and last letter relied on was from defendant to the bank, saying that Tockel would pay the expense, requesting the bank to cable the money, and continuing: “We send you copy of cable exactly as received. To our minds it mean as follows: 'Our message 21. Chevreau Chrom instructs tomorrow National pay 700,000 against warehouse receipts stop confirm receipt depositing commission National City my current account inducing them cable amount stop National cabled payments received from you for me stop according your telegrams deposited 7670.’” The declaration then proceeds that the bank, wholly by the defendant’s direction, sent the money to Russia without Tockel’s knowledge, and that the money was thereby wholly lost to Tockel, to his damage.

Then follows the part of the amended declaration struck out. It relates to subsequent events and correspondence between the bank, the defendant and Tockel, and to cables between Tockel and the defendant, the amended declaration concluding that on the death of Tockel the plaintiff was appointed his administrator, and “claims to recover . . . the sum of seven thousand six hundred seventy-one dollars and eighteen cents ($7671.18), the damages sustained by said deceased,” by reason of the wrongful act of the defendant on September 21, in depriving him of the money.

[49]*49The matters alleged in the part of the declaration which was stricken out were immaterial and irrelevant. They had reference to events subsequent to the defendant’s alleged tort and had no bearing on the plaintiff’s cause of action. The plaintiff relied on the act of the defendant in September, 1917, in advising the bank to send the money to Russia, by reason of which advice the money was lost. The practice act requires that the substantial facts “necessary to constitute the cause of action” shall be set out in the declaration concisely and with substantial certainty. G. L. c. 231, § 7. Under this provision the part of the declaration stricken out was not necessary to make out the cause of action. Carney v. Proctor, 237 Mass. 203. See Davis v. H. S. & M. W. Snyder, Inc. 248 Mass. 387; Davis v. H. S. & M. W. Snyder, Inc. 252 Mass. 29.

The plaintiff’s cause of action is based on the alleged wrongful action of the defendant in September, 1917. At this time the defendant had already sent the money due Tockel to the bank, (as requested by him), the bank had received the money and it was in its possession. It is not alleged that this money was held by the bank as a special deposit. The defendant paid its debt to Tockel by depositing the money with the bank. That was decided in Davis v. H. S. & M. W. Snyder, Inc. 248 Mass. 387. The bank accepted the money, being informed that the defendant had cabled to Tockel asking him to advise the bank as to its disposition.

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Bluebook (online)
150 N.E. 864, 255 Mass. 45, 1926 Mass. LEXIS 1062, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/davis-v-h-s-m-w-snyder-inc-mass-1926.