Mayor of New Castle v. Toman

Citations

• 27 Del. 242
• 4 Boyce 242
• 88 A. 65
• 1913 Del. LEXIS 38

Syllabus

<p>1. Pleading—Subject-Matter of Allegations.</p> <p>Pleadings in an action at law should contain a statement of the facts sufficient to apprise the opposing party of the matters relied upon, and should also present an issue which, when joined, discloses the precise question for determination.</p> <p>2. Pleading—Replication—Particularity.</p> <p>In an action of debt for the penalty of a bond, where the obligation is admitted and the defendant pleads performance, the degree of particularity required for the assignments of the breach by replication is controlled by necessity and by the relation of the parties to each other and to the matter in dispute, since a litigant, in possession of the facts in controversy, cannot exact of his adversary the same particularity of statement which would be required if he were without knowledge of the facts.</p> <p>3. Taxation—Collector’s Bond—Actions—Pleading—Assignment of Breach.</p> <p>The assignment of breach in the replication, in an action upon a tax</p> <p>collector’s bond given to a city, need not allege the names of the persons from whom the taxes were not collected or were collected and not accounted for, or what portion of the taxes not accounted for belonged to the different funds, since those are matters peculiarly within the knowledge of the collector, and of which the city could obtain information only through him.</p> <p>4. Taxation—Collector’s Bond—Pleading—Assignment.</p> <p>The portion of the taxes unaccounted for which belongs to the separate funds is not material to enable the collector to determine to what funds the city has credited the payments made by him, since his liability is discharged by’the payment of the money collected to the city, regardless of the funds to which the city credits it.</p>