14 Ga. App. 718 | Ga. Ct. App. | 1914
The jury returned a verdict in favor of the plaintiff for $205.35 principal, and the costs of suit. A motion for a new trial was made by the defendant on the general grounds, that the verdict was contrary to evidence, etc., and on the following grounds, which are in effect an enlargement of those grounds: First: Because the verdict and judgment are contrary to evidence and without evidence to support’ the same, for the reason that the testimony of both plaintiff and defendant shows that the defendant was entitled to a credit of $27 for bagging, ginning, and ties, for the cotton in dispute. Second: Because the verdict and judgment are-contrary to evidence and without evidence to support the same, for the reason that the testimony of both plaintiff and defendant showed that the defendant was entitled to a credit of eight per cent, interest from the eighth day of January, 1911, on $100, borrowed money, until December 1,1913, making the sum of $23.16.
The plaintiff alleged, that he was a cropper on the lands of the defendant, and that, besides other crops, which were divided in accordance with their contract, he made, gathered, ginned, and delivered to the defendant 18 bales of cotton, one half of which was his property, after the indebtedness which he owed the defendant
The defendant swore that the plaintiff was indebted to him as follows: Borrowed money $100, with interest at 8 per cent, thereon, from January 8, 1911; cash $30; cash $10; cash $10; cash $27; corn $8; an axe and handle $1.60; $20 in cash; $20 by check; $30 in cash; $15 in cash; $6 by check; $25 in cash; $96 for one-half of 8 tons of guano at $24 per ton, and $25 for ginning, bagging, and ties; total $423.60. Adding to this total the further sum of $23.16 claimed by- the defendant in the motion for a new trial as interest, according to the testimony of the defendant himself the sum total diie the defendant by the plaintiff (including the sum of $25 as above, alleged to be due for ginning, bagging and ties) was $446.76. Deducting this amount from the $678.35 which the defendant owed the plaintiff, according to the testimony of the latter, there is a balance of $231.59 due by the defendant to the plaintiff, which the jury could have found against the defendant had' they charged the defendant with the highest price for the cotton proved by the testimony of the plaintiff and of one of his witnesses,— 12% cents per pound. The jury evidently fixed the price of cotton at 'a price less than 12% cents per pound, or allowed some other charges against the plaintiff besides those shown by the evidence of the defendant, or perhaps refused to allow the plaintiff all the items included in his bill against the defendant for labor, etc. However that may be, the verdict actually found by the jury is one that could be found under the testimony of both plaintiff and defendant; and this is as far as we are authorized to go in investigating the questions raised by the motion for a new trial.
The evidence nowhere discloses what was the average weight per bale.of the cotton made by the plaintiff and delivered to the defendant; and but for admissions in the plea of the defendant, it would, for this reason, be impossible to sustain the verdict rendered, or in fact any verdict that might have been rendered, since the court can not assume, without proof, that a bale of cotton means a bale weighing 500 pounds, where nothing is shown as to the weight thereof. The following appears, however, in the fifth paragraph of the defendant’s answer: '“Defendant denies the allegations contained in paragraph 5 of the plaintiffs petition, and, further answering said paragraph, says that on the 7th day of March, 1912, this defendant purchased of the plaintiff five bales of said cotton at 10 cents per pound, amounting to $250 to the part of the plaintiff, and four bales at 7 cents per pound, amounting to $140 to the part of the plaintiff.” The amount of $250 for 5 bales of cotton at 10 cents per pound necessarily meant that the 5 bales aggregated 2,500 pounds of cotton. The amount of $140 for 4 bales of cotton at 7 cents per pound necessarily meant that these 4 bales aggregated 2,000 pounds. So that the cotton belonging to the plaintiff, which, as appears by the allegations and admissions in his plea, the defendant recognized as the plaintiff’s property in his hands (subject of course to the indebtedness of the plaintiff thereon), amounted in the aggregate to 4,500 pounds, or to 9 bales of 500 pounds each. Other issues raised by the pleadings need not