Ephrata Water Co. v. Borough

Citations

• 20 Pa. Super. 149
• 1902 Pa. Super. LEXIS 199

Syllabus

<p>Contract — Time—Commencement of work — ‘ ‘Immediately ” — Water company.</p> <p>Where a contract provides that the work shall commence “ immediately on the signing of this agreement,” the word “ immediately” must be construed as such convenient time as is reasonably requisite to do the thing. The word has a relative meaning, and will imply a longer or shorter period according to the nature of the thing to be done.</p> <p>Where a water company agrees to supply a borough with water, and covenants to commence the work “immediately on the signing of this agreement,” the company will be deemed to have sufficiently complied with its covenant as to the commencement of the work, where the evidence shows that at the date of the contract, which was in February, the company had a reservoir having a capacity of 70,000 gallons; that in the spring of the same year, it drove two or three tunnels into a mountain, and thereby obtained a considerable supply of water; that in the same year it purchased all the pipes that would be required, and had them in readiness to be laid; and that in the fall of that year it commenced the construction of a reservoir which was completed in October of the following year, having a capacity of 700,000 gallons.</p> <p>Contract — Performance — Reciprocal duties — Water companies — Boroughs.</p> <p>Where a contract imposes reciprocal duties on the parties and the ability of one to perform depends on performance by the other, it would seem plain that the latter’s failure to perform within the time fixed for performanee by the former would be'a waiver of the time limitation. A party who is himself in default has no right to insist on rescission while in default, and where there has been indulgence on botli sides, one party cannot suddenly rescind without notice to the other. After waiver, or where the agreement was originally indefinite, time does not become of the essence until notice be given by one of the parties, insisting on compliance within a re