204 Ky. 696 | Ky. Ct. App. | 1924
Opinion of the Court by
Reversing.
This suit was commenced by H. B. Eagles as treasurer of Daviess county and the three commissioners composing the fiscal court of that county against Hafendorfer to recover of him upon three notes aggregating $500.00 which he executed to Eagles as a part of a fund to be raised by the county to induce the state and federal governments to locate and construct a highway from Louisville to Paducah, the same to be located through the neighborhood in which appellee’s farm was located. Appellee Hafendorfer admits the execution of the notes and that he has ^ot paid them, and defends the action against nim upon tlie grounds, (1) that there was no consideration for the notes, and second, that the highway was not located along the line indicated by those who solicited his subscription and that the consideration had failed. A general demurrer was filed to each paragraph of his answer and overruled by the court. The first paragraph of the answer averred that the note sued on was executed without consideration. This was a sufficient pleading standing alone. The general demurrer when applied to the first paragraph alone was properly overruled to it, but not so when the whole answer is considered together, as it must be. The second paragraph is much longer, but in
The answer then avers that the road was not constructed along the lines indicated by the solicitors of the donation and that the road located was no benefit to Hafendorfer or his farm; that the note was executed entirely without consideration and only as evidence of a gift and donation in aid of the location and construction of said highway; that the note was to be paid only upon condition that said highway was to be located and constructed upon the said line and route by and in front of defendant’s said farm; that the location of said highway has since been located and determined by officers in authority and that it does not run in front of his said farm; that the said road is now being constructed and will be completed by the state government and the federal government. The pleadings must be construed strongest against the pleader. It avers that the funds were solicited by persons who had no connection whatever with the state or federal governments, or the county government of Daviess or Henderson counties, and the representations as to the location of said road were made by persons having no authority to speak.
The pleadings are in a most unsatisfactory condition and the parties should be allowed to amend and plead to an issue, if they desire to do so. The answer is too indefinite and uncertain, although it contains quite a lot of surplusage matter.
For the reason indicated the judgment is reversed.