Greenawalt v. Este

• Decision Date: 08 December 1888
• Citation: 40 Kan. 418,19 P. 803
• Parties: JOSEPH C. GREENAWALT v. LOUISA M. ESTE et al
• Court: Kansas Supreme Court

19 P. 803

40 Kan. 418

JOSEPH C. GREENAWALT v. LOUISA M. ESTE et al

Supreme Court of Kansas

December 8, 1888

Error from Atchison District Court.

THE opinion states the case. Judgment for the defendants, on June 3, 1887. The plaintiff Greenawalt brings the case to this court.

Judgment affirmed.

S. H Glenn, for plaintiff in error.

Hudson & Tufts, and W. W. & W. F. Guthrie, for defendants in error.

HOLT C. All the Justices concurring.

OPINION

HOLT C.:

This action was brought in the district court of Atchison county by plaintiff in error, and 640 acres of land were attached. The defendants moved to dissolve the attachment. There were five distinct grounds alleged in their motion for dissolution. The court denied the first four and sustained the fifth ground, and dissolved the attachment. The plaintiff brings the case here for review. The defendants state that the court erred in overruling the first four grounds of defendants' motion, but as they have filed no cross-petition in error we shall not consider their objections. The attachment was dissolved because the court held that the petition did not state a cause of action. ( Quinlan v. Danford, 28 Kan. 507.) The petition, with sufficient fullness and detail, alleges the transactions of the parties, excepting the averments concerning the refusal of defendants to execute the contract. It is set forth that the defendants are all non-residents of the state, and that the plaintiff is a resident of Atchison; that he wrote to the agents of defendants at Cincinnati, Ohio, who, the petition avers, were duly authorized to act as agents of defendants in this matter, on the 28th of February, 1887, stating he wished to purchase the land belonging to defendants, describing it, and asking them their price. They answered March 2, as follows:

"CINCINNATI, OHIO, March 2, 1887.

"J. C. Greenawalt, Esq., No. 513 Commercial street, Atchison, Kansas -- DEAR SIR: Your letter of the 28th ult. has been received. We will sell the whole section of land in Atchison county, Kansas, referred to by you, at $ 50 per acre.

Yours respectfully,

ESTE & SCHMIDT."

Upon the 5th of March the plaintiff telegraphed as follows:

"To Este & Schmidt, 34 West Fourth St., Cincinnati, Ohio: Your offer, letter March 2, accepted; have deposited ten thousand dollars to your credit in Exchange National Bank. Send deeds and papers at once. Answer. J. C. GREENAWALT."

At the same time he wrote and mailed to Este & Schmidt a letter of acceptance:

"ATCHISON, KANSAS, March 5, 1887.

"Messrs. Este & Schmidt, Cincinnati, Ohio -- GENTS: I this morning accepted your proposition made to me by letter March 2, 1887, by telegram, and have deposited to your credit ten thousand dollars in the Exchange National Bank of this city, and requested them to inform you of the fact. The balance of the money is on deposit for you, and will be paid to you upon the receipt of deeds conveying the title of said land, to wit, section fifteen, town six, of range twenty, in Atchison county, Kansas, to me. As the money is lying idle, I desire that you should close up the transaction at once.

I am, truly yours, etc.,

J. C. GREENAWALT."

The sole question we shall consider is, whether there was a contract between the parties to this action. Taking the allegations of the petition as true, as we must under the motion to dissolve the attachment, we learn that plaintiff wrote to the duly authorized agents of defendants at Cincinnati, Ohio, stating he wished to buy defendants' land in Atchison county, describing it, and asking the price; they promptly answered they...