Vaughn v. Herndon

• Decision Date: 19 December 1891
• Citation: 17 S.W. 793,91 Tenn. 64
• Parties: Vaughn et al. v. Herndon et al.
• Court: Tennessee Supreme Court

17 S.W. 793

91 Tenn. 64

Vaughn et al. v. Herndon et al.

Supreme Court of Tennessee.

December 19, 1891

Appeal from circuit court, Montgomery county; A. H. Munford, Judge.

Action by G. Vaughn & Co. against Herndon and Major to recover for a loss arising from a sale of tobacco by a sample. Judgment for defendants. Plaintiffs appeal. Affirmed.

Turney C.J.

The Clarksville Tobacco Board of Trade was chartered by section 1, c. 142, Acts 1875. Pursuant to its powers, the board adopted by-laws, among them: ""Sec. 10. That, in addition to the officers of the board, the following standing committees shall be appointed and elected: The president shall appoint every month a 'committee of arbitration,' consisting of two members, one of whom shall be a warehouseman, the other a buyer; these two shall select a third person,-to whom shall be referred all questions of dispute between members in regard to tobacco matters, and all questions of claims for damages upon hogsheads of tobacco claimed or supposed to be unfairly sampled. This committee shall have power to order resamples of said disputed hogsheads, or to employ some responsible person to superintend said resampling, whether here, in New York, Baltimore, New Orleans, or any foreign markets, if they have just reason to believe that the unfair representation of the hogshead did not occur in the sample drawn in this market, or shall order back the hogshead to Clarksville for examination, upon written demand of the seller of the same. If the buyer's claim is substantiated, the seller shall pay the assessed damages, and all expenses accruing from the error, including express or freight charges, and expenses for resampling. If the claim proves unfounded in justice, the buyer shall bear all expenses as above. No trivial claims, or claims unfounded in justice, shall be entertained or acted upon by the committee. Sec. 11. The board shall at their annual meeting, or as soon thereafter as possible, elect, to serve until the first of November following, a 'committee of appeal,' consisting of five members, one of whom shall be one of the vice-presidents of the board, who shall act as chairman of said committee. To this committee any member or members may appeal who may feel aggrieved or injured by any decision of the 'committee of arbitration.' Three members shall constitute a quorum of this committee, though all five shall meet upon written request of either of the...