Varnum v. Thruston
Court of Appeals of Maryland
Appear from the Equity Side of the Circuit Court for Allegany county. The bill- in this case was filed on the 6th of August 1856,, by the appellee against the appellants and The Ocean. Steam Coal Company, James L. Graham and Jerry Cowles.
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Appear from the Equity Side of the Circuit Court for Allegany county. The bill- in this case was filed on the 6th of August 1856,, by the appellee against the appellants and The Ocean. Steam Coal Company, James L. Graham and Jerry Cowles. From the record in the case, it appears that prior to January 1853, the defendant, Jerry Cowles, of the city of New York, by various contracts with the owners of coal lands in Allegany county, became entitled to a very large body of the-Big Vein of coal, which had been purchased by him at prices-deemed by him and others as greatly less than the…
1Opinion of the CourtTuck, J.
The only subject before us on this appeal, is, the construction of the agreement of January 24th, 1853.
The rules of interpretation asserted on the part of the appellee, cannot be questioned; but they are all subordinate tothe leading principle, that the intention of the parties, to becollected from the entire instrument, must prevail, unless inconsistent with some rule of law. And the maxim, that thewords of a writing shall be taken most strongly against the-party employing them, “applies only to-cases of ambiguity in-the words, or where the exposition is requisite to give them-lawful effect.…
2Cases cited2 opinions
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