Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1899-03-02
AN IMPORTANT OPINION
Handed Down by Judge Graf
tan of the Hustinqs Court.

tan of the Hastings Court.
Judge Charles Grattan, of the hust-
ings court, rendered decision in bis
court few days ago in case in which
the Wesleyan Female Institute is in
volved. The opinion of the judge il
as follows and fully explains intelf:
'"This is a contest between the cred
itors of the w. F. l., who sued to set
aside the deed to Gait, trustee, as
fraudulent, and the making of certain
notes; made payable at tie National
Valley Bank of Staunton, Va, to the
order of ]. A. Fauver, treasurer of the
Board OF Trustees of the w. F. l.,
StauntoD, Va, turned over to w. w.
Robertson, the principal of said in
stitution-but not a member OF its
bOard-placed in his safe and afterwards
endorsed in blank by Fauver, treasurer
as aforesaid, but never passing into
the hands of purchasers for value with
out notice. There are two principal
contentious
list. That there was perfectly I'M
derstood agreement between the makers
OF. the notes and the authorities of the
Institute, that were to be held so to
speak in trust, until and after $4,000
in amount had been subscribed by citi-
zens in and around Stanton and
$15, ZOO by the conference or persons
friendly to the school at distance,
and in the event of the failure of either
OF these attempts to raise $25, 200, or
the cessation of the active progress of
the school at its then location, the
subscriptions evidenced by the notes,
to be void and the notes to be returned.
"2nd. That even if this be so, it can
not be proved by parol testimony, and
the parties making notes must pay.
"1st. Was there ever such an under
standing or agreement
ITO answer this question we must
look at the surroundings. This school
had for years been in operation in the
city, bringing to and discussing in it
large sums of money, and we find many
OF the makers of the notes are persons
not connected with the Methodist
Church, but people interested in the
trade which the continuance of the
school ensured. With these persons
certainly the inference is that the mo-
tive moving them was one of interest,
and the presumption would be violent
that they should put money into so
leakY vessel unless upon the assur-
ance that enough would be raised to
make the continuance of the school a
certainty, and what is said of these
outside Methodist influences, may be
said in lesser degree of the others.
Again, these notes were given in
1898, and were turned over in 1895 to
Gait, trustee, uncollected and without
any steps to collect. The very fact Of
the necessity of the Gait deed shows
the straits into which the laundering
bark had been forced. Can it be sup
posed that any such step would have
been taken if the corporation had held
$1,000 of available, collectable assets,
which would have tided them over the
shoals Is not the inference almost
conclusive, that the corporation never
claimed and never believed they had
any claim to these notes, except con-
ditiOned one, the conditions of which
had failed, and this is made entirely
conclusive by the action of the board
in executing the $2,4 74 note to replace
in the trust, SO far as they could, the
amount that had been Improperly used
by W. W. Robertson in the current
operations of the school.
"But, in addition to these facts,
there is positive evidence of Caldwell,
Gait and Fauver, active agents in the
procurement of the subscription and
members of the board, that there was
1t the time of the execution of the
notes the clear, distinct and positive
understanding and agreement, above
tated; so that it seems to me that the |
hiding of the commissioner on this
'oint is correct and must be sustained.
''2nd. Now, as to point No. 2. Can
his be sustained by parol proofp
'lf these notes had passed into the
ands OF holders of value without no
Ice; there would be an end of the mat
er, but this is not so.
IF these pursuing creditors held
ny higher position as against these
takers than the corporation, there
light be question as to whether this ,
7idence could be introduced, or
neither it would avail.
1.-The only ground for giving the cred
ors a higher plane than the corpora
on would be that it was upon the
18th of the holding of these bonds
at they extended their credits, and
is being an affirmative proposition
ould at least have to be sustained by
'idince of their knowledge of such
'ssession, for not until then would the
skers be called upon or entitled to
owe that such knowledge was linked v
ith the further knowledge of the cor. {
tions surrounding the possession of Q
q notice. AS the creditors cannot {
aim to have done this, then they b
ust stand on the same plane as the a
operation, and insuch case as this, u
seems to me, had the corporation y
tempted to collect these notes, parol y
idence would have been available on tt
e part of the makers to show that 81
eh a collection was a fraud upon "
en- La
The authorities cited by the COM d
ssioner going to show that delivery ia
obligation, plain On it's face, cou- b,
ID with a condition known to the d
ligee, will let in the obligor. as | b,
ainSt the Obligee. tn nrove tbot oor