Wallace v. Bentley

Sharpstein, J, — This appeal is from a judgment rendered in favor of the defendants, after sustaining their demurrer to the complaint of the plaintiff, and his failure to amend within the time granted for that purpose. The only question which we have to determine is: Does the complaint state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action ? That is the sole ground of the demurrer.

The complaint states that on the eighteenth day of March, 1887, one Swan Carlson was the owner of a certain tract of land in San Bernardino County, together with ten shares of stock of the Redlands Water Company, and that on that day the defendants represented to the plaintiff that they were the agents of said owner, authorized and empowered to sell said property for the sum of three thousand dollars, for which sum said owner was then offering to sell said property. Plaintiff was willing [20]and desirous of purchasing said property at that price, and relying on the represenations of the defendants, and having no knowledge of the truth or falsity of such representations, plaintiff accepted the offer of defendants, and paid them one hundred dollars as part of the purchase price of said property; at the same time taking from them an instrument in writing, of which the following is a copy:—

“San Beenaedino, Cal., March 18, 1887.

“Received from J. C. Wallace the sum of one hundred dollars as first payment upon five acres in lot 8, block H, in Redlands, the purchase price of which is three thousand dollars, payable as follows: One third cash, less the above-mentioned one hundred dollars; the balance to be paid on or before two years, with interest at Un per cent per annum, on condition that an acceptable title and abstract be furnished.

“ Bentley & Jeffbey,

Agents for S. Carlson.”

The plaintiff, relying on the truth of the representations made by the defendants, did not seek to purchase said property from any other agents nor from the owner, though for two weeks afterward said property could have been bought for said above-mentioned sum from a duly authorized agent of said owner.

It is further alleged that all such representations of the defendants were false, and that they had no authority whatever from the owner of said property to sell or negotiate a sale of the same, or any part thereof. Plaintiff for the first time on April 8, 1887, discovered that such representations were false. That within three weeks after the eighteenth day of March, 1887, said property had become of the value of four thousand dollars, and is still of that value. That the owner refused to ratify the contract made between defendants and plaintiff, and about the first of April sold said property to some person other than plaintiff for the sum of four thousand dol