Sinsheimer v. Whitely
Before: Britt
Synopsis
Warehouse Receipt — Weighing Tags — Pledge of Stored Goods r— Insufficient Delivery—Attachment.—In order to constitute a warehouse receipt, a transfer of which will pass title and constructive possession of goods stored thereunder, there must be something on the face of the instrument to indicate that a contract of storage has been entered into; and mere weighing tags given by a company that makes no charge for storage, which only show the weight and number of sacks of beans weighed on the company’s scales, for the person named therein, are not warehouse receipts, and the transfer of such weighing tags to a pledgee thereof does not transfer possession of the beans, and they may be attached by a creditor of the pledgor.
Id.—Warehousemen—Power to Issue Warehouse Receipts.—It is only persons who pursue the calling of warehousemen, by receiving and storing goods in a warehouse as a business for profit, that have power to issue a technical warehouse receipt, the transfer of which is a good delivery of the goods represented by it.
Id. —Levy of Attachment—Possession by Keeper—Parol Evidence to Aid Return.—Goods stored in a warehouse are sufficiently levied upon under a writ of attachment by taking actual possession of them and placing them in charge of a keeper, and the return of the officer may be aided by parol evidence showing that he remained in possession of the goods by his keeper.
Britt, C. Replevin for two hundred and seventeen sacks of beans. Defendant Whitely is constable of a certain township in San Luis Obispo county, and as such levied on the beans as the property of one Costa in virtue of a writ of attachment to him issued out of the justice’s court of said township at the suit of one Lial against said Costa. At the time of the levy the [379]beans were stored in a warehouse at Pismo, in said county, owned by the Jordan Bituminous Rock and Paving Company, a corporation, which is joined with the constable as a defendant in this action. In November, 1893, said Costa, who was then the owner of the beans, caused them to be weighed at said warehouse aud deposited therein, receiving from said paving company at that time five certain instruments, which plaintiffs style “warehouse receipts,” and which defendants call “ weighing tags”; these were in the following form, varying as to the number of sacks specified: “Jordan Bit. Rock and Pav. Co.’s scales, Pismo, Cal., 11-2, 1893. Weighed for F. J. Silva. Gross, 5,080. Tare, 1,570. 40 sks. beans. Net wt. 3,510. Marked F. J. S. A. Klatt, weigher.” They were issued at Costa’s request in the name of one F. J. Silva, with consent of the'latter, but were delivered to Costa; Silva never had possession of them and had no interest in the beans. A Mr. Stevens, agent of said company, and who had charge of the warehouse, testified at the trial: “ The tags in evidence were issued by our company at Pismo, and are the only kind issued by our company, the only receipts given. They are given by the weigher; the tags, or whatever you call them, were given by the weigher at the scales when the beans were weighed and were placed in the warehouse”; also, that the company took the beans as a warehouseman, but had no charge against them; that it does not charge storage.
On December 6, 1893, Costa delivered said instruments, though without indorsement, to plaintiffs as security for a debt then owed by him to them. He also gave them a written order for the beans addressed to “Agent Pismo Wharf and Warehouse.” December 11th, following, the constable seized the beans pursuant to said writ in Dial’s suit against Costa; Dial obtained, judgment in that action and an execution issued thereon, under which the constable was about to sell the beans when plaintiffs for the first time notified him and also the paving company of their claim to the property in [380]
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