Price v. Bank of Poynette

• Decision Date: 08 December 1910
• Citation: 128 N.W. 895,144 Wis. 190
• Parties: PRICE v. BANK OF POYNETTE ET AL.
• Court: Wisconsin Supreme Court

144 Wis. 190

128 N.W. 895

PRICE

v.BANK OF POYNETTE ET AL.

Supreme Court of Wisconsin.

Dec. 6, 1910.

Dissenting opinion filed Dec. 8, 1910.

Appeal from Circuit Court, Columbia County; Chester A. Fowler, Judge.

Action by James Price against the Bank of Poynette and others. From a judgment for plaintiff, defendants appeal. Affirmed.

Marshall and Barnes, JJ., dissenting.

This action was brought to recover the value of certain personal property claimed to have been obtained from plaintiff by defendants through fraud, duress, and without consideration.

The answer sets up misappropriation of money by plaintiff's son, Fred Price, while in the employ of defendants, and that on May 7, 1906, said Fred did turn over to defendants property in part payment, and that afterwards the full amount of the misappropriation was discovered, and that the property in the bill of sale was turned over to defendants in part payment of such money; that all money paid defendants on account of the misappropriation was insufficient to pay it; that plaintiff had profited by Fred's misappropriation of the money of defendants. Defendants also deny generally the allegations of the complaint and further allege that the certificate of deposit for $200 mentioned in the complaint was the property of defendants. The following receipt was given by defendants showing the property received in reimbursement of money taken by Fred C. Price:

“Received of Fred C. Price the following certificates against the Bank of Poynette:

+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
                ¦Number 5416, James Price, for                                       ¦$200 00 ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Number 5231, Esther E. Price                                        ¦50 00   ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Number 4651, Esther E. Price                                        ¦100 00  ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Number 5659, J. J. Price, for                                       ¦55 00   ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Note against T. W. Cutsforth, for                                   ¦34 50   ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Note against Wm. Trout, for                                         ¦31 00   ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Four notes against James Insley, for                                ¦175 00  ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Note against Thos. H. Tomlinson, for                                ¦90 00   ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Note against George Cook, for                                       ¦20 80   ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Note against J. E. Foster, for                                      ¦33 00   ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Note against R. F. Buzzell, for                                     ¦32 28   ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Note against M. E. B. Thompson, for                                 ¦105 00  ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Note against George White, for                                      ¦52 30   ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Note against C. M. Theissen, for                                    ¦300 00  ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Books account against John Jamieson, for                            ¦335 00  ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Books account against Frank Hadden, for                             ¦411 09  ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Books account collected by G. L. Schwartz and proceeds turned in,   ¦54 72   ¦
                ¦for                                                                 ¦        ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Note and Mortgage given us by Ira C. Luce, for                      ¦2,000 00¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Horse, buggy, cutter, harness, etc., etc.                           ¦200 00  ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Warranty deed from James Price and wife                             ¦12,000  ¦
                ¦                                                                    ¦00      ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Warranty deed from F. C. Price and wife and E. C. Price and wife    ¦18,000  ¦
                ¦                                                                    ¦00      ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Warranty deed from F. C. Price and wife, for homestead, house, and  ¦4,000 00¦
                ¦lot                                                                 ¦        ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Bill of sale of hardware stock                                      ¦9,017 81¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Three certificates against the Bank of Poynette, notes and cash     ¦3,000 00¦
                ¦turned over Jan. 4, 1906                                            ¦        ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Personal property from Minnesota farm, after deducting Price        ¦1,409 24¦
                ¦Brothers' overdraft                                                 ¦        ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Cash and sundry small items                                         ¦150 85  ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦One note signed by James Price, Fred C. Price, Nell Price and       ¦6,000 00¦
                ¦others, for                                                         ¦        ¦
                +--------------------------------------------------------------------+--------¦
                ¦Making a total of                                                   ¦$57,857 ¦
                ¦                                                                    ¦59      ¦
                +-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
                

Above amount being turned over to us by said Fred C. Price to reimburse us for the moneys taken from us and the Bank of Poynette, and discovered at this date, May 28, 1906. Said moneys having been fraudulently taken and misappropriated by said Price.

Jameison Brothers and Bank of Poynette,

H. P. Jameison, Cashier.”

The jury returned the following verdict: “(1) Did the defendants, or any of them, to induce the signing of the bill of sale threaten to have the plaintiff's son prosecuted criminally, unless the plaintiff signed the bill? Answer: Yes. (2) If to the above question you answer, ‘Yes,’ then answer this question; if to the above question you answer, ‘No,’ you need not answer this question: Was he induced by such threat to sign the bill of sale? Answer: Yes. (3) If you answer question No. 1, ‘Yes,’ then answer this question; if you answer question No. 1, ‘No,’ you need not answer this question: Did such threat so affect the plaintiff's mental condition that at the time he signed the bill of sale he was incapable of the free exercise of his will power? Answer: Yes, partially. (4) Was the plaintiff, at the time of the execution of the bill of sale, the owner of the two hundred dollar certificate of deposit described in the complaint? Answer: Yes. (5) Had the plaintiff, during all the time Fred Price was running the farm, been the owner of any of the cows described in the bill of sale? Answer: Yes. (6) If you answer ‘Yes,’ to the question above, then state the number of cows so owned and their value. Answer: Number, two. Value, seventy-five dollars. (7) What was the value of the wood included in the bill of sale? Answer: Ninety-six and seventy-five hundredths dollars. (8) Did the plaintiff, at the time the bill of sale was signed, own the rest of the personal property described in the bill of sale? Answer: Yes. (9) If the above question you answer, ‘Yes,’ then state the value of the rest of the property included in the bill of sale. Answer: Seven hundred and seventy-seven and seventy-four hundredths dollars ($777.74). (10) Did the consideration of twelve thousand dollars expressed in the deed of the plaintiff's farm and house and lot include the personal property situated on the farm? Answer: No.”

Motions by defendants for nonsuit, directed verdict, to change answers to the questions in the special verdict, and for a new trial were denied, and judgment ordered for plaintiff on the verdict. Judgment was entered accordingly, from which this appeal was taken.

H. E. Andrews and John A. Aylward, for appellants.

Daniel H. Grady, for respondent.

KERWIN, J. (after stating the facts as above).

The defendants, H. P., A. J., and J. C. Jameison, were the owners of the defendant bank of Poynette and also the owners of a large amount of other property at Poynette, Arlington, and in that vicinity. Fred C. Price, a son of plaintiff, had been in the employ of defendants for several years prior to 1906 in the capacity of clerk, bookkeeper, and general utility man of the defendant bank. Early in 1906 it was discovered that Fred C. Price had misappropriated a large amount of money belonging to the defendant bank. Fred admitted his guilt and turned over such property as he had to the defendants. Other relatives of Fred also turned...