Mt. Vernon Refrigerating Co. v. Fred W. Wolf Co.

188 F. 164, 110 C.C.A. 200, 1911 U.S. App. LEXIS 4311
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
DecidedJune 6, 1911
DocketNo. 2,086
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 188 F. 164 (Mt. Vernon Refrigerating Co. v. Fred W. Wolf Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Mt. Vernon Refrigerating Co. v. Fred W. Wolf Co., 188 F. 164, 110 C.C.A. 200, 1911 U.S. App. LEXIS 4311 (6th Cir. 1911).

Opinion

McCALK, District Judge

(after stating the facts as above). This case is before the court on an appeal by the defendant from a decree against it of the United States Circuit Court for the Southern District of Ohio.

It is a case in equity, and all the evidence was presented in the form of depositions and exhibits.

[168]*168The first question to which the attention of the court is challenged relates to the extent that an appellate court will review the evidence in passing upon the findings of fact by the trial court.

[1] The rule obtaining on writs of error that, when there is any material evidence tending to support the verdict of a jury,'the appellate court will not review the evidence, does not obtain in equity cases which come up on a broad appeal. Especially is this so when it appears that all the evidence introduced before the trial court was in the shape of depositions, and not given before the court orally. Ridings v. Johnson, 128 U. S. 218, 9 Sup. Ct. 72, 32 L. Ed. 401; Johnson v. Harmon, 94 U. S. 371, 24 L. Ed. 271; Garsed v. Beall et al., 92 U. S. 684, 23 L. Ed. 686; The Santa Rita, 176 Fed. 890, 100 C. C. A. 360, 30 L. R. A. (N. S.) 1210; Waterloo Min. Co. v. Doe, 82 Fed. 51, 27 C. C. A. 50.

There is practically no controversy as to the material facts in the case. The Wolf Company guaranteed the machinery sold by it to produce 50 tons of merchantable ice daily, when the plant was installed and operated under its direction and management, according to the terms of the contract. The plant was installed under its supervision, and not only failed to produce the guaranteed daily output, but it failed to produce a pound of ice. The nub of the controversy is whether this failure is attributable to the fault of the appellant or the appellee. Was the contract breached by the one or the other of the parties to it ? A correct answer to this question depends upon a proper construction of the contract.

[2] As has been stated, the contract entered into was upon a regular printed form of proposal, prepared and generally used by the Wolf Company in the sale of its ice manufacturing machinery, and, if there is doubt as to the true meaning of the contract, it should be construed most strongly against the Wolf Company.

In Christian v. First Nat. Bank (8th Circuit) 155 Fed. 709, 84 C. C. A. 57, Judge Van Devanter, speaking for the court, said:

“The language of the agreement is that of the plaintiff and his codeposi-tors, and, if there be any doubt as to its true meaning, it is both just and reasonable that it should be construed most strongly against them. Noonan v. Bradley, 9 Wall. 394, 407, 19 L. Ed. 757; Texas & Pacific Ry. Co. v. Reiss, 183 U. S. 621, 626, 22 Sup. Ct. 253, 46 L. Ed. 358; Osborne v. Stringham, 4 S. D. 593, 57 N. W. 776.
“Of course, effect must be given to the intention of the parties, and, if that is made-plain and certain by the agreement, every part of it being duly considered, the considerations and rules of interpretation to which we have referred are without application.’’

[3] Not only so, but in construing a contract that is ambiguous its various provisions are to be considered together, and in the light of the situation of the parties, keeping in mind the object that is sought to be attained. McKell v. C. & O. Ry. Co., 175 Fed. 321, 99 C. C. A. 109; Hull Coal Co. v. Empire Coal Co., 113 Fed. 256, 51 C. C. A. 213.

[4] Turning now to the contract, we find the facts to be that the Ice Company had purchased two 100 horse power gas engines for the purpose of using them to furnish the power for operating an ice plant [169]*169which it proposed to establish. The Wolf Company manufactured and sold ice manufacturing machinery, and it submitted a proposition to the Ice Company to sell to and install for it ice manufacturing machinery, which, when connected with the gas engines according to the terms of the proposition, and onerated by it, was guaranteed to produce 50 tons of ice daily. The purpose of the parties was to install an ice plant of 50 tons daily capacity.

Gas engines were to be used as the motive power, and this was known to the Wolf Company as is evidenced by the terms of the contract, as follows:

Cl) “For di-ivins? the two compressors * * * we propose to furnish Renold silent chain drive * * * to connect to the gas engines furnished by purchaser.”

2. The Wolf Company recognized the reservation of the title of the Elyria Gas Engine Company to the two gas engines as per its contract with the Ice Company, dated December 22, 1905.

That the AVolf Company had this information before making the contract is also clearly established by the evidence in the case.

In the light of all the evidence, we think the proper construction of the contract is that the Wolf Company agreed to furnish the Ice Company machinery to manufacture ice to be driven with the power produced by the two gas engines that the Ice Company had purchased, when connected therewith by means of the Renold silent chain drive, and that the Wolf Company contracted to make this connection.

The engines, when tested, produced 300 pounds pressure, which was more than sufficient to drive the machinery.

But it is urged that the speed of the engines was irregular, and that this produced a whipping of the drive chain. If that be true, then the defect was not in the quantity of power produced by the gas engines, but in its quality.

The Wolf Company had been engaged for years in manufacturing ice-making machinery and installing it. This was the first effort that it had made to drive its ice machinery with gas engines. Fred W. Wolf, president of the Wolf Company, expressed grave doubts if it could be successfully done.

Those composing the Ice Company were novices at the business. They had purchased gas engines because natural gas was abundant and cheap in their section, and for that reason they preferred to use it as a fuel.

This was explained to Mr. Wolf, when he expressed a doubt as to the sufficiency of the gas engines, and suggested that steam power be substituted. Nevertheless, the Wolf Company contracted to sell to the Ice Company and install an ice plant to be operated or driven by the Ice Company’s gas engines by means of a chain, and guaranteed that it would produce 50 tons of ice daily. That the experiment was a failure is not more than Mr. Wolf had predicted. The failure was not because the gas engines did not produce sufficient power.' It was because the power was not uniform, and caused the chain drive to whip.

[170]*170This characteristic in the power produced by gas engines w.as known to the Wolf Company, and also, perhaps, to the Ice Company. The latter company had intended to overcome or neutralize this irregularity by the use of a spring compensating device in connection with the Renold chain. This is what it purchased under the contract.

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Bluebook (online)
188 F. 164, 110 C.C.A. 200, 1911 U.S. App. LEXIS 4311, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mt-vernon-refrigerating-co-v-fred-w-wolf-co-ca6-1911.