Cosgrove v. Woodward

Citations

• 49 Pa. Super. 228
• 1912 Pa. Super. LEXIS 314

Syllabus

<p>Contract — Contract by cablegrams — Affidavit of defense — Sale—Offer and, acceptance.</p> <p>1. When one offers to sell a quantity of merchandise and deliver the same at a stipulated place, and for a named price, and the other party accepts the offer, the contract is then, without more, complete. There is no necessity for any further action on the part of the offerer.</p> <p>2. The act of acceptance which completes a contract takes place when the answer containing the assent is sent, properly addressed, whether by messenger or mail, or telegram. It does not depend upon delivery of the answer to the one who made the offer, and it completes the contract even though the delivery never takes place.</p> <p>3. A person who has accepted an offer cannot avoid the contract on the ground of mistake, where it appears that it was his own mistake due to his negligence in not reading and understanding a cablegram which contained the offer.</p> <p>4. An alleged custom that a cable contract is not considered by the parties as completed until a credit is cabled to a reliable banking house to take up the bill of lading, is not a condition precedent to the making of the contract between merchants of a foreign country and commission merchants of this country.</p> <p>5. Negotiations were conducted by cable between plaintiffs, produce dealers in Ireland, and defendants, commission merchants in Philadelphia, for the shipment of 3,000 bags of potatoes by plaintiffs to defendants in the steamship “Friesland” which was to sale from Liverpool about two weeks earlier than the “Haverford” which was to sail from the same port. The defendants were anxious to have shipment by the “Friesland.” On April 15 plaintiffs cabled “Fries-land is fully booked.” “Shall I ship ‘Haverford.’ ” On the same day defendants cabled “Telegram came to hand too late. Business canceled unless you will accept order same as others 72 shillings per ton. Telegraph if you accept.” Later in the same day plaintiffs cabled