Hege v. Newsom

96 Ind. 426, 1884 Ind. LEXIS 331
CourtIndiana Supreme Court
DecidedJune 25, 1884
DocketNo. 10,565
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 96 Ind. 426 (Hege v. Newsom) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hege v. Newsom, 96 Ind. 426, 1884 Ind. LEXIS 331 (Ind. 1884).

Opinion

Black, C.

The appellee sued the appellants, the complaint containing three paragraphs. The first was upon an account for saw-logs sold and delivered, for hauling the same, for sawing done, and for produce sold and delivered. The second paragraph alleged a contract between the appellee and the appellants for the sale by the former to the latter of 14,398 feet of logs at and for the price of sixty-five cents per hundred feet, and for the hauling of the same by the appellee at and for the price of fifteen cents per hundred feet, and [428]*428for the sawing of 1,580 inches of logs by the appellee at and for the price of three-fourths of a cent per inch; and alleged performance by the appellee and acceptance by the appellants, and their failure and refusal to pay. The third paragraph alleged the sale by the appellee to the appellants of 14,398-feet of logs, and the receipt of the same by the latter at and for the agreed price of eighty cents per hundred feet, and the-failure of the appellants to pay.

The appellants demurred to the first and second paragraphs of the complaint; the demurrers were overruled, and these rulings have been assigned as errors; but the appellants have-waived the errors, if any, by failing to discuss the rulings in their brief.

The appellants answered in four paragraphs, the first of which was a general denial; the second was an answer of set-off; the third, pleaded by way of partial defence, set up-the unmerchantable character of part of said saw-logs; the-fourth paragraph set, up the unmerchantable character of a portion of the logs as a counter-claim.

The appellee demurred to the second, third and fourth paragraphs of the answer. The demurrer to the second paragraph Avas overruled, those to the third and fourth paragraphs AA'ere sustained. The rulings upon the demurrers to the third and fourth paragraphs have been assigned as errors.

The appellants filed two additional paragraphs of answer,, numbered fifth and sixth, demurrers to which were overruled. The record does not shoAv that a reply Avas filed, but. the parties, without any objection because of the Avant of' a reply, Avent to trial; and therefore the cause is to be regarded as if there had been a reply in denial to the second, fifth and sixth paragraphs of ansAver. Counsel for both parties say in their briefs, that the fifth paragraph Avas substantially the same as the third paragraph, and that the sixth was substantially the same as the fourth. If, then, there Avas any error in sustaining the demurrers to the third and fourth para[429]*429graphs, the appellants were not harmed thereby, and we need not inquire as to the sufficiency of those paragraphs.

There was a verdict for the appellee for $112.50. A motion for a new trial made by the appellants was overruled, and judgment was rendered on the verdict.

After the close of the evidence and during the progress of the argument to the jury, counsel for the appellants tendered to the court, and requested it to give to the jury, two special instructions in writing, properly numbered and signed by counsel for the defendants as such. The court, on the ground that these instructions were not presented in time, refused to consider them and refused to endorse thereon, “ Refused and excepted to by defendants at the time,” or “ given,” or “ given as modified.”

This action of the court, shown by bill of exceptions, has been assigned as error. It was also made a cause in the motion for a new trial. If it was erroneous, it was ground for a new trial, and could not here be specially assigned as error. But there was no error in the court’s refusal. The statute requires that a party who desires special instructions to be given to the jury shall deliver them to the court before the argument to the jury commences; and he is not entitled to have any consideration given to such instructions tendered to the court after the commencement of the argument to the jury. R. S. 1881, sections 533, 534; Ollam v. Shaw, 27 Ind. 388; Malady v. McEnary, 30 Ind. 273.

On the trial, the appellants asked a witness testifying in their behalf to state “what, if anything, you told John Ritz while he was delivering these logs about any of the logs not being worth anything, or 'about not receiving them on account of their not being fit to make lumber of.” The appellee objected to this question, and the court sustained the objection.

We can not say that this ruling was erroneous, for the, reason, if for no other, that the appellants did not state to the court what fact or facts they expected to prove.

[430]*430This has been decided so often that no citation of authority can be needed.

The appellants excepted to each of the instructions given to the jury. We will consider those which have been noticed by counsel in argument.

The eighth instruction was as follows: “ But if you find that the contract betVeen the parties was that the plaintiff was to receive the sum of eighty cents per hundred feet for logs delivered by him, and that this covered the timber, cutting and drawing, then the measure of the plaintiff’s recovery will be determined by multiplying the number of hundred feet delivered for which the defendants would be liable by eighty cents, and this product would be his damages on this branch of the question, and no more.”

The evidence showed that in the negotiation for the purchase of the logs different propositions were made on the part of the appellants to the appellee, one for the purchase of the logs at sixty-five cents per hundred feet, the timber to be cut. and hauled by the appellants; another for the purchase of the timber at sixty-five cents, to be cut by the appellee at three-fourths of a cent per inchanother for the purchase at eighty cents per hundred feet for the logs delivered at the mill. It was necessary for the jury to determine which of these propositions was accepted, and it was not improper for the court to instruct the jury how to arrive at the damages upon the basis of the proposition to pay eighty cents per' hundred feet, if they should find that this proposition was accepted. The objection made to the instruction by the appellants relates to the words in italics, and they contend that the court, in effect, said that if the contract to deliver at eighty cents per hundred feet did not expressly include expense of cutting and drawing, the plaintiff could recover in addition to the eighty cents per hundred his expenses for cutting and drawing.the timber to the place of delivery. The instruction was plainly incapable of such a construction, and, in view of the evidence, the words in italics were not improperly used.

[431]*431Objection is made to the thirteenth instruction. In the immediately preceding instructions the court had stated that a contract of the character described in said preceding instructions would bind the defendants to pay the stipulated price for such logs only as would make merchantable lumber, and for the number of feet of merchantable lumber they would make. In the thirteenth instruction the court told the jury that under such a contract “ all the logs that were taken by the defendants and the lumber used by them will be regarded and held by you to have, been merchantable lumber, and the defendants will be held to pay for all such so appropriated by them, at the contract price.”

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Bluebook (online)
96 Ind. 426, 1884 Ind. LEXIS 331, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hege-v-newsom-ind-1884.