Omaha daily bee., 1902-10-24
CANNOT SLEEP ON CHECKS
Supreme Court Makes a Ruling Of Impor-
tancs to Business Men.
CLEARING HOUSE NOT SWIFT ENOUGH
homeopathic Physicians Eject Omcers
nnd Listen to Interesting Pa
pers on Professional
Topics.
CFrom a stan Correspondents

(From a stan Correspondent)
LINCOLN. Oct. 23.-(special )-Business
men and bankers will be greatly interested
! In the decision OF the supreme court in
the case Of Edmsten against Herpolsheimer
& Co., inasmuch as Il Is practically a
warning to men who receive. in the courss
of their business, numerous checks from
patrons. The court says;
1t is the duty of the holder Of a check,
,pI esent Il during banking hours the next
day. IL the bank is located in the same
tcwn; II not. then to forward II by mail
the next day.
In other words. that IL a merchant has
any suspicious of the stability Of the bank
upon which checks he receives are drawn,
he must not II he wishes to avoid lose.
send It through the clearing house in the
usual way, but present it IN person or by
some employe the next day. Commissioner
Oldham wrote the opinion, and the Judges.
with the exception of Judge Sedgwick. con-
cur in the decision.
Judge sedgwick Is OF the opinion that
the majority are radically wrong, and backs
up his holding with some strong argu-
ments. He declares that the laws Of busi-
ness arising from business necessity are
more controlling than careless expressions
Of courts in other jurisdictions, and that
ythe modern system of the clearing house
rs one OF these business laws. II is not
unreasonable for a business man to adopt
the practice Of collecting his checks to-
Eether at the close OF a business day be-
fore the banks shut their doors and deposit
them. The rule is that when a loss occurc
in cases Of this character the bank closing
before the check is presented for payment,
the loss falls upon the party who is neg,
I,,A. C-I- uf,ly kwaf fafa hof tc
not negligent for a merchant to make use
Of such aids to exchange as the clearing
house. and that Il is infiicting an un>
necessary hardship upon business to compel
them to resort to such methods as the ma
jorfty decision will force them to.
Commissioner Oldham declared in his
opinion that 1t would have required but
little physical exertion upon the part Of
IHerpolsheimer or an employe to have
walked two blocks to the bank the next
day after he got the check, which was re-
ceived after banking hours. and that the
court must decline to permit him to follow
the labyrinthine paths Of the clearing
house, which led him far aside from the
straightforward way of getting his money
The case was one where ex-Oil Inspector
Edmisten gave Herpolsheimer check FOL
$500 in payment Of bill OF house fur
nishings. The check was given on Friday
May 2S, 1897, after banking hours. 1t wal
kept until the next day, when 1t was de-
posted with other checks In Herpolshei
mer's bank and. going through the clearing
house, was not presented at the Merchants
bank, upon which it was drawn, on Satur'
day Monday was a legal holiday and
Tuesday the banks doors did not open
They have remained shut ever since. Ed
misten had enough on hand to pay thu
check, and the supreme court throws tho
loss upon Herpolsheimer.
VoIdabIe, but Not Voided.
Insurance men will, be interested in thu
decision in Hunt against State Fire lnsur
ance company. an appeal from Dakot'
county, in which some new law is lai'
down.
The court holds that a breach Of condi
tions Of the policy relating to occupanc
or change OF occupancy does not, In itseli
avoid the policy, but 1t affords ground o
forfeiture only at the option OF the insured
II this is waived. IL the insurer continue
TO treat the policy as In force and does n
acts inconsistent with that view, the polio
is not voided. A notice of the facts en-
failing forfeiture to the local agent OF tn
company who has power to issue pollcie
Is a notice to the insurer.
Mcdowell verdict Reversed.
Jay b. Mcdowell of Fairbury is not I
enjoy the possession of $1,000 awarded hiI
by a Jury for injuries sustained in the dis
astrous Rock Island wreck near Lincoln
August, 1894. The supreme court says tn
trial court erred in instructing the jur
that 1t must consider. in arriving at veT
dict, whatever damages the plaintin ma
hereafter suffer"
II says that a person can only recoys
for those future damages as are shown I
reasonable certainty to follow. 1t say
that a mans loss OF his right hand, for IN
stance. is certain to be a great annoyanc'
and II he be a iaboring man, certain to i'm
pair his earning power In the future II
continue at his old vocation. But force
change therein may lead to future unar
Iticipated employment and thus to fortuna
and by disabling him from the pursuit {
his old trade be the indirect means
bringing him wealth and prominence, BC
cause injuries are permanent does not r'
move the uncertainty as to the real amour
Of damages that may follow.
EversOn Must Pay Penalty.
The conviction Of John Everson for GU
ting timber on land belonging to Harla
county is sustained. Everson's defen'
was an odd one. The land in question on'
,belonged to Ezra whitney, county treai
'urer. who defaulted. When he was col
victed he was sentenced also to pay a hE
Of S22, 900. To satisfy this judgment n
authorities OF Harlan county levied on ar
sold his farm. buying It in for $3.50 Eve
son claimed that the levying of a fine