Hudmon v. Cuyas

57 F. 355, 6 C.C.A. 381, 1893 U.S. App. LEXIS 2174
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
DecidedJune 13, 1893
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 57 F. 355 (Hudmon v. Cuyas) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hudmon v. Cuyas, 57 F. 355, 6 C.C.A. 381, 1893 U.S. App. LEXIS 2174 (5th Cir. 1893).

Opinions

McCORMICK, Circuit Judge.

In October and November, 1890, the defendant in error, a citizen of Georgia, and resident of Savannah, contracted with plaintiffs in error, citizens of Alabama, for 300 bales of cotton, to be of a named grade and price, and to be delivered at Savannah, Ga., f. o. b., under rules of the Savannah hoard of trade. The cotton was shipped by rail to Savannah, samples, weights, marks, etc., sent defendant in error, with railroad receipt, who thereupon paid the price, amounting to $15,900.95. Sixty-five hales of the cotton miscarried, and were paid for by the railroad. Two hundred and thirty-five bales were received, but proved to be so far below the grade and value specified in the contract and samples sent that defendant in error declined to export them, and, after due notice to plaintiffs in error and to their broker, through whom the contract had been made, proceeded to replace [357]*357the 300 bales, and had these 235 bales sold in Savannah for account of defendant in error. In his account, based on those transactions, the defendant in error charges: “Dec. 8. Cost of replacing 300 bales, * * * §300.00. Dec. 28. Time and expense attending to the resale of 235 bales of cotton, * * * §117.50.” This account claims a balance due defendant in error January 31, 1891, §2,694.59. April 13, 1891, defendant in error commenced his action against the plaintiffs in error in (he United States circuit court for the middle district of Alabama, claiming in his complaint this balance of §2,694.59 in three common counts: (1) As due on account; (2) balance due for breach of a contract, (setting out contract;) (3) money received to use of plaintiff; with a fourth count, as amended, claiming §16,000, (setting out contract and breach with careful detail.)

To the complaint as amended the defendants plead: (1) They did not promise as charged; (2) they are not guilty as charged; wirh these additional pleas:

"l3> Ami defendants, as further defense to tlie action of the plaintiff, say ilim ar. the time said action was commenced the plaintiff was indebted to them in (he sum of 8100, for 1his, that in the month of November, 1890, the defendants sold to the plaintiff one hundred bales of middling cotton, to be delivered f. o. 1). Savannah, for export in the state of Georgia, at nine and nine-sixteenths cents per pound, which cotton was tendered by the defendants to the plaintiff, and the plaintiff refused to receive and pay for the same, and cotton declined in price, and defendants were compelled to sell such cotton at nine and seven-sixteenths cents per pound, to their damage as aforesaid.
‘•(•I) And defendants, for further answer to the said complaint as amended, say that the three hundred bales of cotton referred to and mentioned in the said complaint as amended wore sold to the plaintiff by defendants on condition 1hat all differences as to grade and quality of tlie same should be settled by arbitration in 1lie city of Liverpool, England, and plaintiff lias never demanded of the defendants that, (lie said differences as to the grade and quality thereof should be settled by arbitration in the city of Liverpool, England, and that such differences, if any there were, were never settled by arbitra tion.
"(">) And the defendants, for further answer to the said complaint as amended, say that the three hundred hales of cotton referred to and mentioned in the said complaint as amended were sold by the defendants to the plaintiff on condition that all differences as to grade and quality of tlie same should be settled by arbitration in tlie city of Liverpool, England, and it was agreed in the contract for the sale and purchase thereof that no action should be maintainable for any difference in grade and quality of the said cotton until after Hie award of such arbitration, and plaintiff has never demanded of the defendants that such differences as to grade and quality of said cotton should ho settled by arbitration in the city of Liverpool, England, and that: such differences, if any there were, were never settled by arbitration.”

Plaintiff (below) demurred to plea No. 3 on the grounds: (1) That said plea fails to allege a tender oí the cotton by the defendants. (2) It fails to allege an unjustifiable refusal to accept the cotton on part of plaintiff.

To plea No. 4:

“(O There is no allegation in the plea that all the counts of the complaint are founded on the contract set out. in the plea. (2) The plea is not ah answer to the whole complaint. (3) The plea fails to allege that it was one [358]*358of the terms of the alleged contract that no suit should he brought until after arbitration had. (4) Said plea fails to show that the condition therein set forth was such as to prevent the maintenance of a suit (5) The alleged agreement to arbitrate, set forth in said plea, could not prevent plaintiff from bringing or maintaining this suit.”

Plaintiff demurred to the fifth plea, but his demurrer was overruled as to that plea. The demurrers to the third and fourth pleas were sustained. The sustaining of these demurrers is assigned as error. The fourth plea was bad, and the demurrer thereto was properly sustained, because said plea did not show that, under the agreement, an arbitration in Liverpool as to all differences as to grade and quality was a condition precedent to bringing suit. Hamilton v. Liverpool, etc., Ins. Co., 136 U. S. 255, 10 Sup. Ct. Rep. 945; Hamilton v. Home Ins. Co., 137 U. S. 385, 11 Sup. Ct. Rep. 133.

In addition, we may notice that the ruling complained of was without injury to the plaintiffs in error because said fourth plea is substantially embraced in the fifth plea, with an addition, which fifth plea was sustained, and let in all the proof.

As to the third amended plea, we consider that if that plea was good, and the sustaining of the demurrer to it erroneous, the record shows that it was error without injury in this case. The office of such a plea is to let in the proof of defensive matter, and this record shows that under the general issues, or in explanation and support of plaintiffs’ account, either all the dealings of the parties referred to in this third plea were shown by the proof embraced in the bill of exceptions, or in other proof which the bill says was in the case, or at least so much was put in by plaintiffs as would have admitted and called for all the proof the defendant may have had on that subject, and on this point no exception is taken to the charge of the court or to the refusing of a proper request for a charge.

It is urged that the court erred in charging the jury “substantially that the plaintiff was entitled to compensation for his timé and expenses in replacing 235 bales of cotton bought from defendants, which he had rejected, if said 235 bales of cotton did not come up to the grade at which plaintiff purchased the same.”

After a careful examination of the record, we are unable to find the evidence supporting, or tending to support, the issue to which this charge appears to be addressed. From all that is furnished us, it appears that this substantial charge complained of is merely an abstract proposition, the giving of which may or may not have misled the jury, according to the circumstances of the trial, not shown us by the record brought up. That record say's “there is other evidence in the case.”

. In Jones V. Buckell, 104 U. S. 554, it is said:

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Related

Green v. American Cotton Co.
112 F. 743 (U.S. Circuit Court for the District of Western Tennessee, 1901)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
57 F. 355, 6 C.C.A. 381, 1893 U.S. App. LEXIS 2174, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hudmon-v-cuyas-ca5-1893.