Western Forest Products Co. v. Woodhead Lumber Co.

HATIN, J.,

pro

tem.

This action was brought for the recovery of the sum of $1,889.88, less freight charges, claimed by plaintiff as owing from the defendant for a carload of casing lumber shipped by the plaintiff from its mills in Seattle, Washington, to defendant’s plant in Los Angeles. The answer admitted the receipt of the carload of lumber in question, totaling 28,571 feet, but claimed that the quality of the lumber was not according to agreement, and that by reason of the inferior character of a portion of the lumber, the entire carload was of the reasonable value of only

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$1,298.77. Judgment, however, went for the plaintiff for the full amount of its claim, and defendant appeals.

It appears that one W. P. Frambes, of the firm of Fletcher & Frambes, who designated himself as a “wholesale commission merchant,” took defendant’s order for a carload of casing lumber which Frambes represented would be delivered to the defendant by the plaintiff company. The order provided that the carload was not to exceed 30,000 feet, of which amount not less that ninety per cent was to be of No. 2 casing lumber, and the balance of No. 3 casing. The price, according to the order, was $66.50 per thousand feet for No. 2 casing, and $51.50 per thousand for No. 3 casing.

Upon the arrival of the car on the siding in defendant’s yard in Los Angeles, Davis Woodhead, president of the defendant company, was not satisfied with the character of the casing, concluding that over .half of the lot was No. 3, or inferior casing. He at once called Frambes on the telephone and informed him that he would not accept the lumber because of its inferior quality. Thereupon Frambes requested him to unload the car, and promised to take the matter up with the plaintiff and secure an adjustment. Relying upon this promise, the defendant unloaded the car. The first information respondent had of any dissatisfaction on the part of appellant with the casing was received when Fletcher & Frambes wrote a letter to respondent, the material portion of which reads as follows: “Woodhead Lumber Company has rejected the car of easing shipped him on account of the poor grade of stock and the very poor milling of it. The writer went out to see this stock this morning and I must say that this is is about as poor a car of finish as I have ever seen. Knowing that there was no chance to sell this elsewhere, he told them to go ahead and unload this, and that we would see that this matter was adjusted.” Respondent immediately wrote appellant advising it of Frambes ’ letter informing it of appellant’s rejection of the car, and expressed surprise that there was any criticism of the grade of the lumber. In the somewhat extended correspondence that followed between appellant and respondent, respondent vigorously contended that the lumber was up to grade, and appellant was just as positive that less than half was No. 2 grade. It was finally agreed that an inspector from the Pacific Lumber Inspection Bureau should make an inspection