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7 Wash. L. Rep. 1 (1879)

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           The only Exclusively Legal Newspaper Published at the National Capital.


  Vol. VII.                         WASHINGTON, D. 0., JANUARY 6, 1879.                                                         No. 1.


                                         .4.   R sessed at the time, besides other property, of owner, or if rot satisfied of the genuineniess of' a
                                         I.t X 1,170 shares of the capital stock or the Wester n  Power of attorney produced, they can require
                                               Unici Telegraph Comipany. Upon the settle- the identity o the party in the one case, and the
                                               , ment of his estate tlese shares were equally dis- genuiisnecss of the document in the other, to be
      GEORGE  B. CORI]LL,                      tributed between the wiudow. M's. Davenport, -atisfactorily established before allowing the
                 EDITOR,                       and the childi en, each taking 390 shares ; an'l transfer to be nmade. Iii either case they most
To whom exchanges, and all communications should be in their nanmes respectively they were entered act ripon their own responsibility. III many
                  addressed.                   oin the books of the compaiy, and to them sep- instances they may ie inisled without any fuilt
     PUBLISHED EVERY MOATDA Y,                 arate cCrtificates were issned. The widow was of theirown, justas the niostearetul person may
                                               alppointed gnardian of the chiidren, and to lier Romnetlies be induced to purchase property
At the Printing Office of Jno. L. Ginck, as such guardian tire certificates of their sliare   fron one who has no title, and who may per-
            631 F Street. N. W.                were delivered. These declared oii their face laps have acquired its possession by lorce or
                 T E R M S :                   that they were transferable in person or by at- larceny. Neither the absence of blame oii the
FOUR DOLLARS per annum. Single Copies, Ten Cts torliey oil the books of the company only upon part of the officers of the company in allowing
                                               theirsirreitderandcaiielation. On thebackoh an nathiorized transter of stock, nor the good
                  Contents.                    eachone w as printed a blank form ofcransftr ai i  ftilh of tile purchaser of stoleii property, will
Transfers of Stock toppel-Wes tern Union Teis. power of attorney.   Those belonging to tle avail as an answer to the demaid of the true
  Co Y Davenoort-U S. Supreme Court ....... . . childh'en, with tile one issued to tier, and soe  owner. The great principle that no oie can be
Jurisdiction of Federal Courts-Robertson v. Cease  Government boods were placed by her iii a till deprived of his Property w\ithout his assent, ex-
  -U. S. Supreme Court .............................. 2 box, which was locked aiid deposited in the cept by tie processes oi the law, requires iii the
Privity-Second National Bank of St Louis vGrand
  Lodge of Masons-U. S. Supreme Court ....... 8 1      National Baik of Cincinnati for safe cases intioied that the pioperty wrongfully
A Glimpse of the ( 'curts of Rio de Janeiro ......... s keepiig. H-r brother, Robert W. Richey, Wva- transferred or stolen should be restored to its
An Infernal Law Suit ............................ 3 at the time an officer ii tie bank, aind remained rightful owner. The maintenance of that pril-
E ditcurial  ........................  .............. .. .
dSi,torn(,nrnner.s. T _...................... .si(li for owe vetrs atlterwardls, and had acrl','   .ipte is i'vltial to tie loacu and |ifety oh1 SO-
Promissory Note ................................. 4 to the box. lie kept the key to it during her ciety, and  the insecurity which would follow
Notes of itecent Detcisions ............................ 5 absence from Cincinnati il order to get for col- any departure from it would canse far greater
Divorce in Olden Times and New .................  i l o  the coupons attached to the Government iiij iry tilan any which can fall, in eases of n-
Divorce by Prestmption ..............................  6
Etra-territorial .urisdiction ......................... 6 bonds \\hen they became due.    lawful appropriation of property, npou those
lotrest after Default .................................   February, 1871, te took from this box the who have been iisled and defrauded.
Damages for malpractice ............................  i
Memoranda under the Statute of Fraods ...........7 certificate of 390 shares belongiiig to the plain-  We do not itueistand tilat the counsel of the
A Grand Juror's Annoyance ....................... 7 tiff, Henry Davenport, and forged his name to appellant controvert these views, bit they con-
New Suits.............................................  7  the transfer and  po ver of attorney  oii its back,  tend  tlat the  mother  of  the  plaintil s, as  their
                                               adding his owin signattre as that of all ate.-ting gl-lardiat, was chargeable w\iti e tipable negli-
                                               ,witness. to this form tie sold the certificate. gence in the keeping of the certificates, and,
                                  (            and the ptuirclasers tsitig the forged power of therefore, that the plaintiffs are estotiped from
                                               attortley obtained a transfer of the shares on the elailminlg thein or their %aloe front tire company.
                                               books of the company.      Sibst'quently Mrs. 'ile negligelce alleged consisted it the fact
     Supreme Court of the United States.       Davenport wvas in Cincinati, atud oti one occas- that she eutrusted tter brother with the key to
       Nos. 57 and 5S.-OCTOBEn TEunt, 1878.    ion.sent for the box, but returned it to the bank the hox in which they were deposited when she
THE WESTERN UNION'TELEGRAPH COMPANY, wvithout openilng it or examining its contents. knew thlt 1)e wasinsolventand that he had used,
                  Appellant,                   aild beilg about to depart for Eumope she left without her authority, ftnds received by him on
                                               tie key w ith ter i rothe,1 gbe 'ftarwturd, lie a previousale of a portiotn of he' r' purly ; antd
                       V.                      took from the box the certificate of shares be- the further fact that when, in the summer of
           HENRY W. DAVENPORT,                 longing to the other plaintiff, Kathariue Daven- 1S71, before leaving for Europe, she sent lot' the
                      and                      port, al forged her tame to t like transfer aid box, she returned it to the bank without exam-
                                               Power of attorney, adding, as ill tie lorutercase, ilitigits contents. To have allowed her brother,
THE WESTERN UNION TELEGRAPH COMPANY,            is own sigitature as that of aii attestiitg w it- \hen known to be iinso vent, to have access to
                  Appellant,                   hess. In this form her certificate was iso sold. tire box after ite had, without her aothority, ap-
                      v.                       aii(l by the purchaser a transfer was obtained propriated to his own tuse her funds, and to have
KATHARINE J. DAVENPORT, by her guardian, tuider the forgred power of attorney oil the books returned tie box to tie bank in 1871 without
            Etn'etta E. Davenport.             of tile conpaiy. When these forgeries were exatltining its contents, were, aceirding to tiie
                                               committed both children ws ere minors, Henry contention of cotnsel, offences of such gravity
Appeals from the Circuit Courtof the United States being seventeen and Katharine fittee years o as to estop heri wards, the miluor chihlren, from
        for the SouthernDistrict of 01io.      age. Henry was at the time at school in Switz- complaining of the company for alloving their
1. The officers of a company are the custodians of its e'land, ath ihi the sunumerof 1871. Mi's. Daveti- stock to be transferred Oil its books under a
  stockbook,, and itis their duty tosee ttatail transfers port  Kathd tthartine .veit to Europe. N ne of power or attorney which tie had forged. We ito
  of shares are properlymsde, either by thestockholders theim were iulorned tf tie pretended tranusfers not think it at all necessary to comment at any
  themselves or persons having authority from them
2. To create an estoppel theie must Ce some act or of the stock until the spring of 1873, ani in 1874 length upon this singular position ; for even if
  declaration indicating an authorization of the use of these suits were brought. They were originally it were possible, as it is riot, to preclde tie
  the names, by which the company was misled, or a commenced iii one of tue courts of the State of' minor ieirs frorm-as1erting their rights to prop-
  snseqouent approval of their usc by acceptance of the Ohio, tInt] were removed to the circuit court of erty received froo ftheir father, by reason of any
                                               tie United States upon tpplie(ation of the de- negligence of their guardian; we are rnahle to
  Mr. Justice FIELD delivered the opinion of fendant. That court gave judgment for each of peiceive any necessary connectin betwecen her
the coulrt :the plaintiffs, and the company appealed to this brother's insolvency anI                                   misappropriationi of
  These are suits in equity to compel the defen- court,                                       her funds, anld the furgery of the chhidren's
dant, a corporation createdi under the laws of   Upon the facts stated there ought to be no names. or between such f'orget'y and tier omis-
New York, to replace in tile name of tile plain- question as to the righit of the plaintiffs to have Sion to open her box in 1871 aut examine its
tiff'. certain shares of its capital stock alleged to their shares repltce(] on the books of the co- contents. There is no circuimstance here upon
have belonged to them, ant to have been trans- pany and proper certificates issued to them, and which an esttppel against tie plaintiffs can be
ferred without their authority ol its books to to recover tile dividends accrued on the shares raised. To create an estoppel against them
other parties ; and to issue to them proper cer- after tite unathorized transt'er ; or to have alter- there must have been some act or declaration
tflcates for the same ; and also to pay to them native judgments lor the value of the shares and indicating an authorization of the nse of their
the dividends received on the shiares siice stch the dividends. Forgery call confer no power names, by which the company was misled, or a
unauthorized transfer. In case the comptny nor transfer any rights. The offiicers of the subsequent approval of their Ise by acceptance
fail to replace the stock, the plaintiffs ask for company are tite custodians of its stock books, of the moneys received with knowledge of the
alternative judgments for the value of their res- and it is their duty to see tit all transfers of transfer. No act or dechration is mentioned,
pective shares,                                shares are properly made, either by the stock- either of the guardian or her chiliren, which
  The facts upon which the suits rest are these: iohlers themselves or- persons having authority tends iii the slightest degree to show that any
In March, 1865, Charles Davenport, a citizen of froim them. If upon the presentation of a cer- assent was given to the use of their namdts.
Ohio, died, leaving a widow and two minor chil- tificate for transfer they are at all dIouotful of Bit moreover, neither the guardian nor the
dren, the plaintiffs here, his heirs. He was pos- the identity of the party offering it with its children whilst they were minors, were compet-

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