Stacy v. President

Citations

• 5 Scam. 90

Syllabus

<p>Error io Morgan.</p> <p>i. Corporation. — Compensation of officer. The State Bank of Illinois offered a reward for the discovery of a robbery ; one half for the detection of the person or persons concerned in the robbery, and the other half for the recovery of the money stolen, or in proportion for the amount recovered. After the publication of the offer of the reward, the president of the bank ascertained, by the confession of the robber, who committed the robbery, and recovered from him the greater part of the money taken. The president promised the robber that he would not disclose the fact of his guilt to any person except the president of the branch bank where the robbery was committed, unless required to make the disclosure before a court of justice ; and he did not disclose the fact until after the arrest of the robber. One of the directors of the branch bank subsequently made affidavit charging the robber with the crime, upon which a warrant was issued, and the robber arrested and committed to jail, from which he escaped without a trial. The director received no compensation for his services as director. Before he made the affidavit, the fact of the recovery of the money was known to this director and several others, and the citizens of the town where the robbery was committed were generally aware of the same fact: Held, that a discovery of the person who was guilty of the offence, and a communication of the discovery to the bank, would be such a detection as the notice required : and this might be done without either an arrest or commitment of the offender. If the money had been previously obtained, a party detecting the robber and giving notice to the bank would be entitled to receive one half of the reward ; but no person could claim any portion of the reward except the individual who first ascertained who took the money, and gave to the bank the earliest information thereof: Held, also,- that the president of the bank discovered the robbery and that t