Court Opinion

ID: 3621715
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2016-07-06 00:03:18.724661+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T14:07:36.288241
License: Public Domain

The law of stoppage in transitu has no application to this case. The oil was delivered to the purchaser on board his own vessel; and, moreover, supposing it had ever been in the hands of a carrier, it had arrived at its destination, and had passed into the actual possession, or at least had come under the absolute control, of the plaintiff; and it was in no sense on its passage to him.
If the judgment can be sustained, it must be either upon the ground of a rescission of the contract by the mutual consent of seller and purchaser, or of a reconveyance and redelivery of the goods to him, or to a third person for his use, in payment of the debt contracted by their purchase, and by way of preference in favor of the plaintiff as a creditor; and I think it can be sustained on the first of these grounds. The statement of facts is not as precise as could be desired; for it is not stated in it whether the plaintiff's clerk had or had not such a control of the business of his principal as authorized him to act upon the communication of Wing; nor what determination he came to upon the receipt of Wing's *Page 545 
letter; or what he said to Wing when he saw him on the 10th July. If he had the general authority of a managing clerk, in the absence of his principal, and if he immediately elected to take back the goods in pursuance of the offer of Wing, and communicated that determination to Wing, and went about securing the actual possession without unnecessary delay, I think that would be a sufficient rescinding of the sale. As the letter of Wing did not mention the place where, or the person with whom, the oil was stored, the only thing which the clerk could do was that which, in effect, he did do, namely, to see Wing, and ascertain these necessary facts. This could not be brought about in time to send to New York until after the service of the attachment. But if the clerk, with sufficient authority, consented to receive back the oil, and communicated such determination to Wing on the 10th, when he went to Falmouth, I think the sale was rescinded; and although the attachment was levied on the same day, it does not appear that it was prior to the interview with Wing. The case of Salte v. Field (5 Term, 211), and Smith v. Field (id., 402), are in point.
By the application of the rules by which we examine cases brought here upon statements of facts, I think we ought to intend that the circumstances which I have suggested as necessary to a perfect rescission existed in this case. It is incumbent on the party appealing, to show that the judgment is contrary to law; and it is not sufficient that the case is so imperfectly stated that the law applicable to it cannot be ascertained. If we applied to such cases the principles by which special verdicts are tested, scarcely a judgment which is brought before us could be sustained. In cases of special verdicts the inquiry is, whether facts enough are found to sustain the judgment. If not, it is reversed. But in such cases as the present, the question is, whether, upon the facts stated, we can adjudge that the judgment is contrary to law. Unless we come to such a conclusion, the judgment must be an affirmance. The facts which are stated in this case are perfectly consistent with those which I have considered as essential to constitute a *Page 546 
rescission of the sale. The clerk acted as though he had authority to accept the offer of Wing, contained in the letter; for he sent a message to New York to the plaintiff's correspondent to take possession of the oil as soon as he as he ascertained where it was stored. He acted throughout as though determined to accept the offered abandonment of the purchase. It is not found, in so many words, that he told Wing that he would take the property back; but it is stated that the object of his journey to Falmouth, where Wing was, was to ascertain where, that is, in what storehouse, or with what person, the oil was stored; and immediately on his return he dispatched the telegraphic message to New York to take the delivery of it for the plaintiff. The idea that the message to those correspondents was to make a seizure under the law of stoppage in transitu is not found in the case; and it is improbable, upon the facts which are found. It would be absurd to attempt to make a seizure under the law ofstoppage in transitu when the goods had reached the purchaser's hands at the place of destination, and he had placed them in the hands of a third person for the use of the seller, and had given him notice to come and take them. The facts actually found being in harmony with the supposition that the clerk notified Wing that the plaintiff accepted his offer, it was the business of the defendant, if he would impeach the judgment, as being against law, to have procured a statement which should have affirmed the disputed fact to be such as he assumes it to be. For these reasons, and without examining the further questions alluded to, I am for the affirmance of the judgment of the Supreme Court.
All the judges concurred in the judgment, without indicating upon which of the opinions they based their determination.
Judgment affirmed. *Page 547