McKay v. O'Rourke

Citations

• 194 Pa. 471
• 45 A. 327
• 1900 Pa. LEXIS 421

Syllabus

<p>Contract — Construction of written contract — Question for court.</p> <p>A municipal contract lor building a bridge contained under the heading, “ Paving,” the clause, “ the entire steel deck ol the driveway is to bo prepared lor paving by being covered with bituminous concrete, to adapt it to the surface of the street, with such variations in depth as may be necessary,” and under a separate heading of “Now Paving,” the clause, “Upon the bituminous concrete, and bedded in fine Portland cement concrete, those portions of the driveway .... over the deck are to bo paved with granite blocks.” M. & Co. entered into a contract with the main contractors that they would “at their own cost and expense construct .... granite block paving on bridge and approaches, including the bituminous and cement concrete base.” M. & Co. subsequently entered into a contract with O., who agreed “ to furnish all the labor and material necessary to do the paving” on the bridge, M. & Co. “ to furnish all blocks necessary for the work,” the agreement to apply only to the contract which M. & Co. had with the original contractors “for block paving.” Held, (1) that the contracts made a clear distinction between preparing the driveway of the bridge for paving, by covering it with bituminous concrete, and the paving which was to be done with granite blocks laid upon the concrete; (2) that O. was not bound to lay the foundation of bituminous concrete.</p>