Kronman v. Roush Produce Co.

59 S.E. 320, 3 Ga. App. 152, 1907 Ga. App. LEXIS 582
CourtCourt of Appeals of Georgia
DecidedNovember 27, 1907
Docket374
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 59 S.E. 320 (Kronman v. Roush Produce Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Kronman v. Roush Produce Co., 59 S.E. 320, 3 Ga. App. 152, 1907 Ga. App. LEXIS 582 (Ga. Ct. App. 1907).

Opinion

Eussell, J.

The Eoush. Produce Company, of Macon, Georgia, bought twenty kegs of grapes from Nathan Kronman, of New York. Eoush refused to pay for the grapes, and Kronman brought suit in a justice’s court to recover their value. The case was carried, [153]*153by appeal, to the superior court. A verdict was rendered in favor of the defendant, and this verdict was approved by the trial judge, who declined to grant the plaintiff another hearing. The evidence of Roush, the proprietor of the Roush Produce Company, that the ■grapes were worthless, unfit to use, could not be sold by him, and that he received nothing from them, was undisputed. The question in the case is, whether Roush, by accepting the goods after being afforded a reasonable opportunity to inspect them, is bound because he waived all defects which might have been discovered by the exercise of ordinary care and prudence before delivery. If there had been an express warranty that the goods were to be of a certain kind or description, the acceptance of the goods and their application to the uses of the bujrer would raise the presumption that they were of the quality ordered. We so held in DeLoach Mfg. Co. v. Tutweiler Coal Co., 2 Ga. App. 493 (58 S. E. 790). We find, however, no evidence of an express warranty. The invoice from Kronman to the' Roush Produce Company was as follows :

“New York, Oct. 2, 1905.
“Sold to Roush Produce Company, Macon, Georgia.
“20 Kegs of grapes, 300,........$60.00
“Cartage . ........... 1.00
“H. R. Stromer, broker.”

The grapes, therefore, were sold with the implied warranty that they were merchantable and reasonably suited to the use intended, —they were to be salable and eatable grapes.

As stated above, the evidence that the grapes in question were not salable nor fit to eat was not contradicted; but the purchaser must exercise caution in detecting the defects in everything he buys. Civil Code, §3555. “After acceptance of goods purchased, the presumption is that they are of the quality ordered, and the burden is on the buyer to prove the contrary.” Civil Code, §3557. The plaintiff in error rested his case, first, upon the proposition contained in the decisions in Falvey v. Richmond, 87 Ga. 100 (13 S. E. 261), Wade v. Hamilton, 30 Ga. 450, Star Glass Co. v. Longley, 64 Ga. 576, Atlantic Phosphate Co. v. Ely, 82 Ga. 438 (9 S. E. 170), that delivery to the carrier is delivery to the purchaser. Next, relying upon the presumption stated in the Civil Code, §3557, he contends, that there was an acceptance of the [154]*154goods by the purchaser, Koush, whose duty it was to exercise caution in detecting the defects in the grapes before accepting them;, and that Koush, having accepted them after full opportunity for inspection, waived all defects in the grapes, and can not now be heard to plead or say that there was a total failure of consideration. There was conflict in the evidence as to the condition of the grapes at the time that they were shipped from New York-The plaintiff testified that they were in excellent condition. They were shipped October 3. Koush and his witnesses testified, that-the grapes were sour and worthless on October 16, and that, from their experience as dealers in fruit, if the grapes had been sound, when shipped on October 3, they would have remained in good condition for several months. This testimony authorized the jury to believe that the goods were in bad condition when shipped. So-that the actual condition of the grapes at the time of shipment was a question of fact, which the jury were authorized to determine either way. And even should the principle that delivery to the carrier is delivery to the purchaser be applicable in this case,, the purchaser ordinarily would not be bound to pay for the worthless grapes delivered to him.

Was there, then, such lack of caution on the part of the purchaser in inspecting the grapes, or such an acceptance of them by him, after reasonable opportunity for inspection, as constituted a. waiver of the defects in the grapes and precluded his defense of.' total failure of consideration? We think not. Counsel for ¡jlaintiff in error relies upon the ruling in the case of Cook v. Finch, 117 Ga. 541 (44 S. E. 95). The principles therein stated are well settled, if not elementary. Where property is bought under the; implied warranty that it is merchantable and reasonably suited to-the use intended, an acceptance by the purchaser waives all defects which might have been discovered by the exercise of ordinary care and prudence before delivery. Or, as stated by the Supreme Court in Hoffman v. Oates, 77 Ga. 701, “an implied warranty off the fitness of property sold for ordinary use does not embrace defects discoverable by ordinary care.” But the questions whether’ the purchaser in this case exercised due diligence, or- ordinary care and prudence, in his examination and inspection of the grapes - before accepting them, or whether he did in fact accept them, were, as in all other cases, peculiarly issues of fact for determina[155]*155tion by the jury. The evidence showed that the defendant was not in the city of Macon, nor at his place of business, when the. goods reached his store. Certain orders of -grapes from his customers were filled by shipment of several kegs, before his return, and these begs were returned by these customers, as worthless, as soon they were opened. So far from holding that the shipment of the kegs of grapes so shipped by the purchaser to his customers was an acceptance on his part, as it seems to be considered by the plaintiff in error, we rather think that this circumstance and the immediate return of the grapes by the customers could justly be considered by the jury as part of the inspection which develgped the fact that the grapes were worthless.

The grapes were shipped in kegs, and it was not possible to ascertain. their condition without opening the kegs. It appeared, from the evidence, that it was usual with the defendant to buy them in that way. The true condition of the grapes could only have been ascertained by opening the kegs and then repacking them in other kegs. We do not think that the purchaser was required to go to this expense; because he had the right to presume that there were no latent defects undisclosed. Latent defects are such as are hidden. The defects in the grapes, if any, were hidden by the kegs which concealed them. Whether the purchaser, in the exercise of ordinary caution and prudence, should have broken open the kegs in order to ascertain the defects in the grapes, was a question for the jury; and they have found (we think, not improperly, under the evidence) -that such action on the part of the defendant was not required. The fact that there was evidence for the plaintiff that it was customary for dealers to inspect grapes before they were sent out should have been considered by the jury, and probably' was; but it was not necessarily determinative of their decision on the subject of the defendant’s diligence or caution. The questions of diligence and negligence, and the exercise of due caution, are peculiarly questions of fact for the jury; and we would not be authorized to say, under the evidence in this case, that the jury erred in finding that the defendant exercised ordinary care and prudence.

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Bluebook (online)
59 S.E. 320, 3 Ga. App. 152, 1907 Ga. App. LEXIS 582, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/kronman-v-roush-produce-co-gactapp-1907.