Brown v. Constant Gray
Supreme Court of North Carolina
Action on the case, for a deceit in the sale of a slave, tried before Peeson, J., at the Spring Term, 1857, of Wilkes Superior Court. The plaintiff proved the sale by a bill of sale from the defendants to him, dated 20th of Eebruary, 1855. There was no evidence of what took place at the sale, except that it was by public auction. It was proved that the slave was unsound at the time of the sale, and that the defendants knew it.
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Action on the case, for a deceit in the sale of a slave, tried before Peeson, J., at the Spring Term, 1857, of Wilkes Superior Court. The plaintiff proved the sale by a bill of sale from the defendants to him, dated 20th of Eebruary, 1855. There was no evidence of what took place at the sale, except that it was by public auction. It was proved that the slave was unsound at the time of the sale, and that the defendants knew it. The defendants’ counsel contended that, admitting these facts, the plaintiff could not recover, for that, in order to charge the defendants he must prove either, that…
1Opinion of the CourtPeaeson, C. J.
In the sale of a chattel, the rule of our law is caveat emptor, and if the thing be unsound, to entitle the purchaser to maintain an action, he must prove, either, a warranty of soundness, or a deceit.
In regard to a deceit, the distinction is:: where the unsound^ 'ness is patent, that is, such as may be disco vered by the exei> ■cise of ordinary diligence, mere silence, on the part of the vendor, is not sufficient to establish the deceit, although he knows of the unsoundness, because the thing speaks for itself’, and it is the folly of the purchaser not to attend to it. So that, in such a…
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