Bell v. Rinner
Ohio Supreme Court
Error to the court of common pleas of Coshocton county. Reserved in the district court, George C, Rinner brought an action, in the court of common pleas, against James C. Bell, to recover for “work and *labor performed by the plaintiff for the defendant from the 5th day of July, 1855, until the 17th day of August, 1859,” under a written contract, for four hundred and fifty dollars a year and board.
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Error to the court of common pleas of Coshocton county. Reserved in the district court, George C, Rinner brought an action, in the court of common pleas, against James C. Bell, to recover for “work and *labor performed by the plaintiff for the defendant from the 5th day of July, 1855, until the 17th day of August, 1859,” under a written contract, for four hundred and fifty dollars a year and board. It is admitted, in the answer, that such was the contract for one year; but it is averred therein that all services after the first year were rendered under a contract for two hundred dollars a…
1Opinion of the CourtDay, J.
The deposition of Margaret Hunter was given in evidence without objection. Her competency as a witness was not questioned. No attempt was made to prove that she was of unsound' mind. The question presented by the record is, whether the credibility of a competent witness may be ^impeached by general' evidence that the -witness is not j>ossessed of ordinary intelligence or powers of mind.
It would not only be novel in practice, but would be entirely impracticable, to permit the parties, on the trial of a case,'to go into general proof as to the strength of the mental capacity of the several…
2Cases cited4 opinions
- Carpenter v. DameIndiana Supreme Court · 1858
- Goodwyn v. GoodwynSupreme Court of Georgia · 1856
- Craig v. StateOhio Supreme Court · 1854
- Brindle v. M'IlvaineSupreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1823