Toledo, Wabash & Western Railway Co. v. Chew

Citations

• 67 Ill. 378

Syllabus

<p>1. Sale—liability for property appropriated, for its value. Where a railroad company takes and applies, to its own benefit, ties, delivered upon the line of its road by the plaintiff, it will be liable to the latter in indebitatus assumpsit for their value; and in such case, it matters not whether the person who procured their delivery was the agent of the company or of its contractors.</p> <p>2. Same—evidence to show acceptance. Where the plaintiff had delivered a lot of ties along the line of a railroad then in process of construction, which he claimed was under a contract with the railroad company, in a suit to recover the value of the same, the court admitted evidence that the company used some of the ties after the commencement of the suit: Held, that the evidence was proper, as tending to prove an acceptance by the company.</p> <p>3. Same—evidence to show with whom contract was made. In a suit against a railroad company to recover the price and value of ties furnished, the company offered in evidence a copy of a blank, shown the plaintiff by its engineer, for the purpose of proving that the contract was made on behalf of certain contractors named in the blank. The blank contract was not executed by the parties, and was exhibited to the plaintiff to inform him of the length and size of the ties: Held, that the blank was not admissible as evidence to prove the contract was made by the plaintiff with the contractors.</p> <p>4. Evidence—certified copy of articles for consolidating railroad companies. A copy of the articles of consolidation of railroad companies, executed in due form, duly certified by the Secretary of State that the same is a true copy, is admissible in evidence.</p> <p>5. Agency—ratification of agent's act. Where there was evidence tending to show that a party, bargaining for railroad ties, was acting as the agent of a railroad company, and it appeared that the company, when it accepted the road from its contractors, used the remaining ties, l