The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1906-04-05

promise, the consideration having been
something in the past So if l have
bought a horse and not at the time re-
quired warranty, and afterward go 10
the person from whom bought IT ana
ask for warranty a warranty theh
given, unless something is paid on II, Is
not valid in the law.
If | promise to repay to strangers
what they may pay out in the future IN
taking care of my sick son who Is OF full
age, the promise is supported by valid
consideration and is legally binding. II,
however strangers take care of my SICK
son who is of full age and / afterwards
promise to reimburse them, my promise
| is without consideration, as it is based
upon past acts. / may be morally bound
TO do so, but am not legally so bound.
1t has been held that where the act Is
done at the request OF another person
under such circumstances that the law
will imply promise to pay what the
service is worth subsequent promise
TO nav will be binding the theory being
that the parties have reduced to a GER
tainty what they have purposely left I'M
determined.
As an exception to the rule that
promises cannot be based on a consider
alton that is past we name promises to
pay debts barred by the statute OF
limitations or by discharge in bankrupt
CIV. Courts so holding have declared
that the moral obligation to pay debt
barred by statute or by discharge in
bankruptcy is sufficient to uphold the
promise,
Another rule is that the consideration
must be something possible. A promise
to do something that cannot in the ma
ture of things be done is not valid con-
sideration to support contract. Not
only thing which is physically i'm
possible but also thing which Is legal
" impossible cannot be made consider
alton. A mere stakeholder in corpora
ton cannot execute legal deed for the
corporation. A promise by stakeholder
TO do so would not be legal consider
alton for contract.
The question arises AS to whether the
fact that one is morally obliged to do
thing will make his promise to do it
valid as q consideration for a contract.
We have seen that where one is legally
bound to do thing, his promise TO do 1t
will not make legal consideration. The
rule is that a moral obligation will not
uphold q promise,
There is one other point we should
consi,.er before passing from the subject
of consideration. Sometimes consider
alton is said to fail If promise to pay
"a man hundred dollars in consideration
of his agreeing to sell me his chestnut
colt the consideration supporting my
promise to pay is his promise to convey
the title to the animal to me. If before
he does 50 the horse dies there is a total
failure of consideration. There is alb
solutely no way possible by which he
may fulfill his agreement,
Where a patent right was consider
alton of contract, and 1t was found
that the patent right was void, the con-
sideraton was said to have failed. The
mere fact that a patent right that con
stituted the consideration of a contract
could not be applied to any useful pur-
pose and was of no value did not con-
stitute failure of consideration.
A promise to pay money for notes
which afterwards are found to be forged
is another instance of u promise given
for a consideration that has failed.
There is such thing, too, az n partial
failure of consideration, in which case
the party injured may recover for so
much as'has failed.
Before passing from the question of
let us emphasize the fact
that a court will never examine into the
mere adequacy of price or consideration,
that is it will not consider whether the
price or consideration was large or
enough. Courts do not ATTEMPT |
to make contracts for people. They will
not answer the question rs to whether |
one person received enough for what he
gave, or whether one promise was
worth the other, The only time when
the question of adequacy can come up is
when fraud is charged and the gross in
adequacy of the consideration is brought |
in ~ evidence of the fraud. Mere in
adequacy of consideration, however, is
not enough to warrant acourt in setting |
aside a contract.
To be continued.