after stating the case, delivered the opinion of the court.

Wе concur with the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania that the limitation of § 5057 of the Revised Statutes did not apply. That limitation is applicable only to suits growing out of disputes in respect of property and of rights of property of the bankrupt which came to the hands of thе assignee, to which :adverse claims existed while in the hands of the bankrupt and before assignment. In re Conant, 5 Blatchford, 54; Clark v. Clark, 17 How. 315, 321; Phelps v. McDonald, 99 U. S. 298, 306 ; French v. Merrill, 132 Mass. 525.

It is well settled that assignees in bankruptcy аre not bound to accept property which, in their judgment, is of an onerous and unprofitable nature, and would burden instead of benefiting the estate, and can elect whether they will accept or not .after due consideration and within a reasonable time, while, if their judgment is unwisely exercised, the bankruptcy court is open to compel a different course. Sparhawk v. Yerkes, 142 U. S. 1, 13 ; Glenny v. Langdon, 98 U. S. 20; American File Co. v. Garrett, 110 U. S. 288; Smith v. Gordon, 6 Law Rep., 313; Amory v. Lawrence, 3 Clifford, 523; Ex parte Houghton, 1 Lowell, 554; Wash v. Simpson, 78 Maine, 142; Streeter v. Sumner, 31 N. H. 542. The same principle is applicable also *516 to receivers and official liquidators. Quincy &c. Railroad v. Humphreys, 145 U. S. 82; St. Joseph due. Railroad v. Humphreys, 145 U. S. 105; Sunflower Oil Co. v. Wilson, 142 U. S. 313; United States Trust Co. v. Wabash &c. Railway, 150 U. S. 287; In re Oak Pits Colliery Co., 21 Ch. Div. 322, 330. And see Bourdillon v. Dalton, 1 Esp. 233; S. C. Peake’s N. P. 312; Turner v. Richardson, 7 East, 336;. Domat, vol. 2, part ‍‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‍2, Boоk I, Title I, sec. v.

If with knowledge of the facts, or being so situated as to be chargeable with such knowledge, an assignee, by definite declaration or distinct action, or forbearance to act, indicates, in view of the particular circumstances, his choice not to take certain property, or if, in the language of Ware, J., in Smith v. Gordon, he, with such knowledge, “ stands by without asserting his claim for a length of time, аnd allows third persons in the prosecution of their legal rights to acquire an interest in the property,” then he may be held to have waived the assertion of his claim thereto.

In Sparhawk v. Yerkes we held that as the conduct of' the assignees was such as to show that they did not intend to take possession of the assets in controversy; as they avoided assuming any liability in respect thereof; and as they allowed the bankruрt after his discharge by the expenditure of labor and money to save the assets and render them valuable, the could not be pеrmitted to assert title against him. That was a suit directly against the bankrupt, and this is in effect the same, for Beall does not appear tо occupy any better position than Tinstman himself. The judgment of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ‍‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‍proceeded, upon the ground that the assignee delayed too long in the assertion of his claim; that the litigation against the railroad company was protraсted, uncertain, and expensive; and that as the assignee did not appear to have intervened in the matter until, as is stated, December 11,. 1890, although the litigation began in the summer of 1882, he must be held to have elected to abandon the claim, and could not come in at so late a day and share in the fruits of litigation carried on by others; and on that view of the facts this conclusion would seem to be correct if the record showed on *517 the part of Tinstman’s assignee knowledge of the facts or wilful blindness in relation to them.

The Suprеme Court manifestly referred to the intervention, in this proceeding, of Dushane, as assignee; which was, according to the case stated, September 11, 1890; but McCullough had intervened ■ as assignee August 10, 1888, and he having died August 31,1889, the cause was continued for the appointment and аppearance of another assignee.

It is said by counsel for the assignee that the original litigation was commenced Aрril 29, 1878, by a bill in equity, filed for the benefit of all the owners of the telegraph line, which it was decided January 9, 1882, would not lie; that thereupon the аction at law, which resulted in judgment, was brought July 10, 1882, in the name of Shaw alone, the contract being under seal, but for the benefit of his assigns as well, who were very numerous; that afterwards some, but not all, of the “ use plaintiffs ” were added to the record; and that ‍‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‍Tinstman’s assignee jiist as much participated in the litigation, from April, 1878, to its end in 1888, as any of the others, whether named as plaintiffs or not. The difficulty with this is that very little, if any, of the matter stated can be deduced from the record, which fails to disclose that the assignee was represented in the litigation agаinst the railroad company, or asserted his claim to his share of the fruits thereof, whether as a party of record under Shaw or оtherwise prior to his intervention in this action, August 10, 1888.

The case stated does show that Tinstman was made one of the “use plaintiffs” in Shaw’s action, October 2, 1885, but there is no explanation of how that entry came to be made, and nothing to indicate notice thereof to thе assignee, or to charge him with notice assuming that he was ignorant of the claim.

On the other hand, the bankruptcy proceeding was involuntary, and it appears that the schedule of assets (the term schedule being used in the case stated as the equivalent of the invеntory) was made by the assignee, the law providing that the order of adjudication should require the bankrupt to deliver a schedule of сreditors and an inventory and valuation *518 of his estate, and if the bankrupt were absent of could not be found, such schedule and inventory should “ be prepared by the messenger and the assignee from the best information they can obtain.” Bev. Stat. §§ 5030, 5031. And this inventory, thus prepared by thе assignee, the record affirmatively shows, did not embrace the bankrupt’s interest in the telegraph line, as we must presume it would, if the assignеe had had, or been able to obtain, information in respect thereof. Nor can we find elsewhere in the ‍‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‍record any evidence that the assignee knew or was informed of Tinstman’s interest prior to August 10, 1888. Counsel for the assignee argues that the fact is that Tinstman’s interеst was the ownership, of certain shares of stock in the telegraph company which were included in the inventory and delivered to the assignee, but the exact contrary appears from the case stated. Nor does the fact appear, which hе'likewise insists upon, that the'assignee not only did not abandon, but actively asserted, his claim.

The question whether the assignee in bankruptcy wаs entitled to this claim was clearly a Federal question. Williams v. Heard, 110 U. S. 529. And if all the facts stated in the record before us do not, as matter of law, warrant the conclusion at which the highest court of the State arrived upon this question, it is the duty of this court so to declare, and to rendеr judgment accordingly.

¥e must take the record as we find it, and are constrained to the conclusion that the assignee should not have been held to have exercised the right of choice between prosecuting the claim and abandoning it, in the ‍‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‍absence of any evidence whatever to justify the conclusion that he had knowledge, or sufficient means of knowledge, of its existence prior to August 10, 1888 ; and that therefore there was error in the judgment.

Judgment reversed, and the cause remanded, that the judgment of the Court of Common Pleas may he reversed, and further proceedings had not inconsistent with this opinion.