91 Me. 17 | Me. | 1897
This is an action of covenant broken brought upon the following instrument:
“Newport, Jany.-14th 1895.
Know all men by these presents that I, Susan H. Nichols of Newport Co. of Penobscot and state of Maine. I do hereby agree & obligate myself my heirs and executors that I will release the town of Palmyra, from further support of Enoch H. Clark, & further promise & agree that I will maintain said Clark through his natural life, & pay all Drs. bills & funeral expenses. The condition of this obligation is such that if said Susan H. Nichols shall indemnify the said town of Palmyra from all expenses, costs & damages which may accrue by reason of said Clark. Then this obligation is void, otherwise if said Susan H. Nichols fails to fulfil this obligation said town of Palmyra will sue said Susan H. Nichols or her heirs or executors & recover for the support of said Clark with expenses added thereto.
Susan H. Nichols (Seal.)
Signed sealed in the presence of
Mary J. Kelley & F. L. Brown.
Penobscot ss. Newport Jany. 14th 1895.
Personally appeared Susan H. Nichols & made oath to the above statement to be her free act. Before me
F. L. Brown, Justice of the Peace.”
I. The defendant, the verdict being against her, contends that the instrument is so inartificially drawn that it means nothing; in short, that it is not a contract, and has excepted to the construction placed upon it by the presiding justice in his charge to the jury in the following language:—
“I give you this ruling and construe this instrument to be an obligation upon the part of Mrs. Nichols, a contract between her and the town of Palmyra, so far as the instrument shows upon its face, to indemnify the town of Palmyra against all expense that it may subsequently be put to at any time for the relief of the person therein named, Enoch H. Clark, as a pauper.”
In this connection, the defendant urges that the contract is not enforceable, “ because no one is named as obligee in it or bound by it.” We think it sufficiently appears that the contract was made with the town of Palmyra.
II. The defendant contends, in the next place, that the contract is void, because neither the 'municipal officers, nor even the town of Palmyra itself, had authority to make sueh a contract.
The instructions of the presiding justice to the jury, upon this point, to which exceptions were taken, were, that, the instrument
We think these rulings are unexceptionable. We have construed this contract to be one of indemnity merely, and these exceptions must be considered in the light of that interpretation. The language of the presiding justice last quoted must be read in connection with his previous instruction that this is a contract of indemnity.' It is not a contract for the support of a pauper.
The argument of counsel is largely directed to the point that a “town has no authority to raise money to relieve itself from the possible, contingent or future liability of one of its citizens becoming a pauper, who at the time was not a pauper, nor in want.” Conceding this to be so, nothing appears in this case to which such an argument' can be directed. This is not a question of the power of a town to raise money. This is not a contract by which the town is to incur, but rather to avert a liability. The contract does not show that any money was paid or required. It is under seal which of itself imports a sufficient consideration. The defendant, from motives of family pride, or kindness, may have been willing to enter into a contract to indemnify the town against the expense of the support of Clark, who was her brother, but that matters not.
The naked question is, can a town indemnify itself by proper contract against the contingent liability of furnishing pauper supplies to one who at the time of the contract has a pauper settlement within the town, and this without regard to whether he is in
The contract here being within the proper exercise of municipal authority, the only question remaining is whether the overseers of the poor were authorized to take it, without instructions from the town. We think they acted within the scope of their power. Overseers of the poor have the care and oversight of the poor, and in the discharge of their duties, they are the authorized agents of the town. Necessarily, they may transact a variety of business, incidental to their general powers. To prevent the town from becoming subjected to expense for pauper supplies on account of one who has his legal settlement in their town seems not only lawful but meritorious. Peru v. Turner, 10 Maine, 185; Unity v. Thorndike, 15 Maine, 184. Moreover the town has adopted this contract and brought suit upon it.
Motion and exceptions overruled.