The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1906-08-02

bind the person to whom he has made
the offer by that persons mere silence
Mere silence in the law is not consent
generally speaking, though there are in'
stances where this common law, silence
gives consent, is true in the law.
An answer giving the price OF an
article in response to an inquiry ITS 10
| its price is not necessarily proposal OF
an offer to sell it to the particular person
inquiring the price.
Example; q in New York writes A
in Detroit asking the price Of five nun
dred dozen eggs. A writes, eight cents
dozen D." b responds, Il will take
them. A contract is not thereby com
| pleted. As statement of price does not
necessarily mean that he will sell them
to the person inquiring
Most, if not all, the rules relating to
contracts by letters are equally applica-
bic to contracts made by use of tele-
graph.
Where one party makes an offer by
telegram which is accepted by the other
party by telegram, the contract Is as
valid as though il had been made by
letters through the mails, or even direct
ly by the parties IN person. The con
tract is completed by telegraph when
the acceptance is written and handed to
the telegraph company, or its agent, for
transmission.
If the offer is communicated by mail
and the acceptance is communicated by
telegraph, when is the contract com
plete? The doctrine of agency, to which
we have referred, and by which the
offerer makes the post his agent, and by
reason of which the delivery Of the ac-
ceptance TO the post is the affirming of a
contract, would not seem TO apply here
as the making of the offer by mail can.
not make the telegraph company an
agent of the offerer If the offer is made
by post and the acceptance is made by
telegraph, the telegraph company is
really the agent Of the acceptor, and
therefore the notice of acceptance IN the
case of telegraphic message in reply to
a letter must be delivered TO the otferer
or to his duly authorized agent, before
the contract is complete and binding
81, -, 10 ,v ta1atrrgr,N
it is best to accept il by telegraph, as
the handing of the message Of acceptance
to the telegraph company for trans,
mission completes the contract, the
telegraph being the implied agent of the
offerer. BY mailing letter accepting
an offer made by telegraph one is liable
to be defeated in his acceptance by re-
ceiving retraction Of the offer before
the acceptance reaches the otferer. The
poatoffice in that case cannot be consider
ed rs the agent of the otferer he having
chosen the telegraph as the means of
communication.
Persons using the telegraph as mode
of communication are not responsible
for, nor bound by the errors of the
operators in transmitting messages.
Example b in New York photographed
A in Detroit asking on what terms he
would sell him one hundred dozen eggs.
A answered stating his terms. b tele
GtCanl I,,nl,.I
The operator sent it Send five hundred
dozen A sent five hundred dozen eggs
b refused to accept more than one hun.
dred dozen, on the ground that his tele-
gram ~ he had written it specified one
hundred b could be compelled to take
but one hundred dozen eggs.
lnasmuch as communication by tele
phone are personal, although the parties
are out of sight of each other, the or
binary rules of personal communication
apply. The only question that arises is
the question of fact as to whether the
person to whom or by whom the offer
was communicated was the principal,
or the principal duly authorized agent.
This Of course is difficult to prove oft
times, but where the contract is in dis.
pute it is necessary to do 80.
Conversations through the telephone
are admissible in evidence.
No decisions have yet been made rs to
contracts made through the monograph
II will have to be decided hereafter as to
the status of the parties in the case of a
message talked into photograph and
afterwards delivered by sending the
cylinder TO the person to whom the offer
is made.
The parties may by express agreement
provide that the contract will not be
binding until the acceptance has been
received by the offerer, and business
men will do we'll in making offers by
mail or telegraph to provide that the
offer shal! not be binding until the &c
CeptanCe is received
------------------------------