The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1877-07-06

! NEGOTIABLE PAPER.-An important De.
cision bp the Supreme Court Supreme
4 Court, sitting at Harrisburg, rendered An
important decision last week in the case of
Woods US. North, error to the Common
Pleas of Huntingdon county, which Is of
great interest to bankers and business men,
"a it Involves the validity Of Endorsements
Of pruinissory notes containing what is
known as the five per cent collection clause.
/ which was given by Judge Sharswood, and
is follows:
! IT is a necessary quality Of negotiable paper
that 1T should he simple, certaini uncondt-
would he mere affectaton Of learning to cite
the. elerrehtart treatises ard the decided eases
very Important to the corntnerciai community
that il should he maintained IN all its rlgor: q
case we are Of the opinion that it Violates this
/ rule IT il had beefl payable at sixty days, with
( five per cent, it would ha.e been objectionable
as usurons on its face. 1t woiiid not. however,
on that accotint have invalidated the note or
/ NAV be made payable with interest from its
date, and IL more than law full interest is stipu-
lated for, it does not, In Pennsy ylvania, make
the contract void. but only the nsury. Hence
such a note is sufficiently certain. Itis payable
paper Cow in que question there enters. as to the
amount, and undoubted element of uncertaiE.
ty. 1T vs. mistake To suppose that II the note
was unpaid at maturity the five per cent; would
he payable to the holder by the parties. 1t must
go into the hands OF an attorney FOR collection.
. 1t is not a sum necessarily payable The phrase
collection fee" necessarily implies this. Not
! be arbitrarily determined by the parties. 1t
must be only what would be be reasona6le rom rom
In reason, and the uscage OF the legal profcsA
FIVE Five see per cent % Would T probably be uqnsidored
by jury as a reasonable compensation upon
% d IF it
thousand dollas they would probably think
thousand dollars. Now. then, can this note he
said to he certain as to its anio,int or that
ment at maturity. are necessary legal inciden,s
the body of the note would not affect its neRo-
liability. Neither does clause waving eS'
lateral agreement as here, depending too, as it
by the verdict of a jury. is entirely different
1t may he well characterized, like aFree-
Justice Gibson, IS "luggage." which negotiable
paper, riding ms it docs: on the wings of the
vino, is not a courier able to carry.
If this collateral agreement may be intro
duced with i,npunity, what may not bef 1t is
These instruments may come to be numbered
difficulties. contentious and litigation results.
1t is the best rule oi'std principles Judgment
reversed
The case came up writ of from
Judge Dean, of Huntingdon, who had de
cided such paper TO be negotiable.
1t is asserted by a Philadelphia paper
that the amount of such notes current in the
represent not less than i've million dollars
This is possibly an eXaggeration, but it is
well known that the amount is very large.
- S
SAD SUICIDE IN BLACKLICK TOWNSHIP.
An intelligent and respectable young man
named William Cameron, son of Mr.. John
Cameron, of Blarkhck township, committed
suicide on last Saturday afternoon by cut-
ting his throat from ear to ear with razor,
thereby severing the winlpipe and causing
.lht inst tu,lf i'm of nc
shocking tragedy, who was aged about q
years, followed the occupation of school
teaching for several years past, in which we
are told he was quite proficient, but at the
close Of the recent term at Brallier's school,
in said township, of which he had charge,
he went to Allegheny county, where he be-
came pastor of Methodist congregation,
having previously, we believe, preached on
several occasions with great success, but
whether as prohatiOnist or a licensed minis
ter we are not prepared 10 say BE that as
it may, however, he gave up his charge in
Allegheny county in course of a few weeks
and returned to his home in Backlick town
ship, where he has ever since been lahoring
under disease of the mind which was not
only painfully apparent TO his friends, but
of which he himself WAS fully aware, as is
evidenced by the fact that he requested his
family to keep close watch upon his move
menfs, as he feared that he would do him.
self bodily harm Matters continued in this
way until the time above mentioned, young
Cameron's friends meantime scarcely per-
mitting him out of their sight, when he and
his father, In company with two neighbors
named Empfed and Bracken, paid visit
to the old gentleman's saw-mill, near which
his father and Mr.. Empfield seated them
selves on n log, whiie young Cameron and
Mr.. Bracken continued their walk for some
distance further, the former finally, how
ever hastily excusiug himself and abruptly
parting with his companion, who has;ened
back and informed the other two gentlemen n
of the circumstances. Alarmed at this time
tNf I'D h.
Messrs. Empield aud Bracken, went in
search of the truaut, whom they soon after
found in dense laurel thicket, with his
throat cut from ear to ear, as already stated,
and life totally extinct, the unfortunate
yonng man having evidently perpetrated the
rash act and then crawlcd into the thicket
while his lfe's blood was rapidly oozing
away. That he was not in his right mind
when he committed self mi urder is of course
beyond question: and that his mental de-
rangement was the result of close and severe
, / study seems TO he equally certain. Being a
man of more than ordinary ability and great
promise, and possessing as he did the respect
! and good will of ali who knew him, his sad
and shocking death is one of the most la
. mentable we have ever been called upon to
! chronicle; and it is almost needless to say
F that the friends have the sympathy of all
, feeling hearts in their terrible bereavement.
DEATH OF VENERABLE LADY.-We
copy from the Johnstowu Democrat the fol-
lowing notice of the death of the venerable
mother of a large family we'll, known and
greatly esteemed in that vicinity, among
whom we may name Messrs. David and john
Dibert, two of the most enterprising and
successful citizens of Johnstown. The DEM
ocsdt says:
Mrs. Rachel Dibert, of Johnstowu, departed
this life on Monday morning, June 2Sth, ar one
| O'Clock, aged - Years. month, and II days
Few persons were better known to this COM
munity that the deceased, Her birth place
was in the neigh Oorhood of Dibertsville. SOM
erset county. where she lived with her father,
Mr.. Christian Biough, Mennonite farmer, un-
Til the of twenty-five years. when she be-
came united in marriage W tth Mr.. John Dibert
For nearly twenty years they resided in Diberts-
IL - l axl l1rxai LIN Ca.