Torian v. Weeks

46 La. Ann. 1502
CourtSupreme Court of Louisiana
DecidedDecember 15, 1894
DocketNo. 11,609
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 46 La. Ann. 1502 (Torian v. Weeks) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Louisiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Torian v. Weeks, 46 La. Ann. 1502 (La. 1894).

Opinions

The opinion of the court was delivered by

Watkins, J.

Plaintiff sues for three thousand one hundred and ten dollars and two cents as the balance due on a stated account annexed to his petition; and Ms claim is, first, for wages as overseer for ten and one-half months, in the year 1892, at fifty dollars per month, aggregating five hundred and twenty-five dollars; second, for supplies advanced to the defendant and used upon the plantation of which he had the management, and also for the service and use of Ms teams and implements in the cultivation of same, aggregating one thousand seven'hundred and sixteen dollars and eight and one-half cents; and third, for the value of one thousand and ninety sacks of rice at two dollars and seventy-five cents per sack, which was produced by plaintiff on the land of defendant, which was cultivated on shares.

The annexed account shows total amount of debits against defendant of five thousand one hundred and ninety-three dollars and eighty-three cents, subject to credits amounting to two thousand and eighty-three dollars and eighty-three cents — leaving the resulting balance stated above.

[1504]*1504There is a discrepancy between the petition and the account in respect to the amount of the account for supplies and the labor furnished — the amount claimed in the petition being two thousand five hundred and eighty-five dollars and two cents, while that shown by the account is only one thousand six hundred and ninety-six dollars and thirty-eight and one-half cents. The latter is controlling.

The record shows that the plaintiff engaged his services to the defendant as an overseer on one of his plantations for the year 1892, and that the two made an agreement to cultivate one hundred acres of another place on shares during the same year — the plaintiff to receive two-thirds and the defendant one-third of the rice thereon produced.

In limine the defendant tendered several exceptions: (1) that the plaintiff has improperly cumulated inconsistent and contrary causes of action; (2) that the petition is vague and indefinite, not setting forth the dates, places and circumstances of the various contracts and covenants which are alleged upon with sufficient certainty to enable him to plead thereto; (8) that it does not set forth any agreement to furnish supplies, teams or implements for any particular plantation, and when made, either written or verbal; (4) that the allegations of the petition set forth no cause of action; (5) and, finally, that proper parties plaintiff were not made, because one Montgomery was a partner of plaintiff in the cultivation of the crop, which was cultivated on shares.

These exceptions having been overruled the defendant filed an elaborate answer, which is of the following tenor, viz.:

1. “That he employed plaintiff as overseer on his rice plantation in February, 1892, for the year, at fifty dollars per month; but that he only worked nine months, and left his premises in the early part of December, to the serious negject of his duty and to the great injury of the respondent.” That he paid him ninety-nine dollars and seventy-five cents on his account for services in April, 1892, and that it was agreed and understood between them that the residue of his wages were to be, by the defendant, retained as security for advances that were to be made by the defendant to the plaintiff, Torian, and his partner, Montgomery, to enable them to make and gather a crop of rice they cultivated with him on shares.

2. That Torian & Montgomery were wholly without means to make a crop for themselves, and that plaintiff never furnished a [1505]*1505dollar in money, or its equivalent, to make a crop for the respondent, or to pay off his laborers.

8. That plaintiff did not do any hauling, ploughing, or any kind of work to make the crop, except with the teams of respondent; and that if the plaintiff so used his .own teams it was unauthorized, and not ratified by respondent, who had an abundance of teams of his own; and he consequently denies and disavows all liability on that score.

4. That he entered into a contract with Torian & Montgomery to cultivate one hundred acres of land in rice, on shares at their own expense, one-third of which was to belong to respondent and two-thirds to Torian & Montgomery. That all of said crop was to be shipped to the account of the respondent, and that he was to be reimbursed from the proceeds thereof the value of supplies he may have made to them on the partnership crop.

5. He charges that'during his absence Torian & Montgomery worked their crop and his, indiscriminately, cut and harvested his and their crops together — all without his knowledge or authority— and- so as to render same indistinguishable. That they secretly shipped to G. W. Sentell & Co., in violation of their contract, three hundred (800) sacks of rice, which was sold for their account, and for which they retained the proceeds. That they likewise shipped the remainder of the crop to Flower & King, and retained the proceeds until they were forced to surrender same, under threats of a criminal prosecution.

The answer admits all the credits enumerated on the plaintiff’s account — alleging same to have been for the supplies he had furnished Torian & Montgomery.

He alleges, further, that he advanced them during the year 1892 the sum of four thousand and forty-seven dollars and ninty-four cents in supplies, for which the firm of Torian & Montgomery are indebted to.him.

He prays that the plaintiff’s demands be rejected, in so far as they conflict with the averments of this answer; and that he have judgment in his favor, declaring that the planting partnership of Torian & Montgomery carried on a rice-planting adventure with respondent on shares, whereunder said firm was to receive two-thirds and respondent one-third of the crops produced; and that he have and recover from them, on his reconventional demand, the sum of four [1506]*1506thousand and forty-seven dollars and seventy-four cents for advances and supplies furnished to make the crop. That they be credited with two-thirds of the proceeds of che rice when sold, or its value when ascertained; and that the plaintiff, Torian, be credited with the amount of his overseer’s wages for nine months, less the sum of ninty-nine dollars and seventy-five cents — the defendant to have judgment for the resulting balance in his favor.

A trial was had on the issues thus made up, and a judgment rendered in favor of the plaintiff for the sum of four hundred and thirty-nine dollars and twenty-two cents — rejecting defendant’s re-conventional demand as of non-suit.

After an unsuccessful effort to obtain a new trial, the plaintiff appealed, and in this court assigns that he is entitled to have the judgment in his favor so increased as to award him the full amount he claimed in the petition; and the defendant joins in the appeal and demands judgment over against the plaintiff for one thousand and thirty dollars and seventy-two cents and all costs.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
46 La. Ann. 1502, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/torian-v-weeks-la-1894.