McCahan v. Wharton

Citations

• 121 Pa. 424
• 15 A. 615
• 1888 Pa. LEXIS 676

Syllabus

<p>1. When the verdict in the court below was for the defendant, the Supreme Court will not reverse the judgment thereon and enter judgment for the plaintiff, especially when the pleadings, showing the issue on which the case was tried, are not furnished.</p> <p>2. A judgment will not be reversed for a slight inaccuracy in a portion of the charge, when the case was otherwise fairly presented and the testimony adduced showed that the error was harmless.</p> <p>3. A provision in an ore-lease that if the lessees did not quit possession and surrender the leasehold on or before July 1, 1884, “the very act of their refusing or neglecting to quit possession and surrender this lease is hereby agreed on their part that there is a sufficient quantity of ore on said property to pay the royalty of $1,200 on February 1, 1885,” etc., is not to be held conclusive upon the lessees.</p> <p>4. Such provision in the lease was to be construed as an admission which threw upon the lessees the burden of proving that there was not ore in paying quantities upon the leasehold, and if not there, the lessees were not liable for the stipulated minimum royalty: Muhlenberg v. Henning, 116 Pa. 138.</p>