470 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[June 1, 1913. 



interpreted by the courts?" These points will be taken up in 

 detail in the paragraphs which follow. 



AGREEMENT. 

 In order to make an agreement which shall be valid in the 

 eyes of the law, it is essential that all the parties to it agree 

 upon the same thing in the same sense. For example, a promise 

 to deliver "good quality Para rubber" cannot be construed to 

 mean "fine Para rubber," as fine Para nnplies a grade of rub- 

 ber superior to those grades which might ordinarily be accepted 

 as "good quality." Again, if a buyer orders ten barrels of anti- 

 mony sulphide on 60 days' credit and (he vendor or merchant 

 sends two barrels on 30 days' credit, the goods if lost on the way 

 need not be paid for by the person sending the order. In con- 

 struing a contract, the court takes into consideration the honest 

 and actual intention of the parties as expressed in the contract. 

 The common law, or that which prevails on the authority of 

 usage and the decisions of courts, plays a very important role 

 in the adjudicating of disputes on contracts. 



.VCCEPT.ANCE. 

 The surest and most binding form in which to accept an offer 

 is to use a simple affirmative, without stating any new condi- 

 tions or terms. Thus, goods which were sent as directed by the 

 buyer, and which were lost on the way, had to be paid for by 

 the purchaser. In the matter of offers which are not accepted 

 at once. Parsons notes that it is not necessary that the accept- 

 ance should follow the offer instantaneously. If "A" makes an 

 offer to "B," the latter may take time to consider this offer, and, 

 though "A" may expressly withdraw his offer at any time before 

 acceptance, yet, if he does not do so, "B" may accept within a 

 reasonable time. /Vnd if "B" accepts, "A" cannot say, "I have 

 changed my mind." "A" may, if he so desires, stipulate a certain 

 time for which his offer holds good; in fact, this is a safeguard 

 very frequently adopted by merchants when offering materials 

 for sale. A factor may offer goods for sale at a certain price, 

 the offer to hold good for 30 days. This offer may be withdrawn 

 at any time before the expiration of the 30 days, but if it is not 

 withdrawn, the factor is bound to sell the goods at the price 

 originally mentioned by him. 



TR.ADE CUSTOMS. 

 A very large part of the mercantile law of the present day is 

 the product of old established trade customs which have been 

 recognized as valid by the various trades and professions, and 

 which have been confirmed as reasonable by the courts. The 

 Supreme Courts of several States have repeatedly refused to 

 recognize as "trade custom" any practice which is opposed to 

 the statute laws of the land, or which is oppressive and unreason- 

 able. In the same manner, a custom which violates the prin- 

 ciples of common honesty and the public welfare, will not be 

 recognized by the courts. This, it will be seen, is of interest in 

 cases involving such questions as : What is meant by a "barrel," 

 or a "cask," or a "case"? Thus a contract for the delivery of 

 "cotton" without any qualifying phrase made it possible for a 

 mill to deliver a fabric made from "sick cotton" (abnormal 

 cotton), as there did not appear to be any well-defined trade 

 custom covering the point. 



WHAT IS AN ACTUAL SALE? 

 An actual sale is always understood to be a contract which has 

 been executed, although payment for the chattels or the delivery 

 of the same may not yet have been made. A sale is the exchange 

 of goods for money. An exchange is the transfer of chattels 

 for other chattels. Thus, if the ownership in a thing be trans- 

 ferred to another person for money (or a price) a sale has 

 taken place. Thus, if Smith agrees with Blank that the owner- 

 ship in a certain property will be transferred to Blank for a fixed 

 price, an agreement and a sale have been consummated and 

 Blank owns the property wherever it may be. 



"CAVEAT EMPTOR." 

 "Let the buyer beware" : that is the warning which the law 

 gives to all who trade and it is one which is only too often un- 

 known, forgotten or neglected. If an article is offered and a 

 sample of that article is submitted, the vendor thereby war- 

 rants that the goods will conform to the sample. If then the 

 delivered goods do not correspond in quality with the sample, 

 the buyer may sue for the breach of warranty. When the buyer 

 orders an article and specifies the purpose for which it is to be 

 used, the supply house which fills the order implies a warranty 

 when it supplies the goods to the buyer. Thus if the buyer re- 

 ceives a sample of 98 per cent, magnesium oxid and places an 

 order based on the sample, and then receives a shipment con- 

 sisting of 25 per cent, magnesium carbonate and 75 per cent, 

 magnesium oxid, the supply house is liable to damages for losses 

 which may, arise from the use of the impure magnesium oxid. 

 In this case it is important that the buyer convince himself 

 through a chemical test that the sample is actually 98 per cent, 

 pure magnesium oxid. Again, if the buyer can show that the 

 seller contemplated fraud when closing the contract, that con- 

 tract will be held to be null and void. On the other hand, a 

 thing which cannot be proved is equivalent to a thing which does 

 not exist. 



INDIA-RUBBER GOODS IN COMMERCE. 



EXPORTS FROM THE UNITED STATES. 



/^FFICIAL Statement of values of exports of manufactures 

 ^-^ of india-rubber and gutta percha for the month of Feb- 

 ruary, 1913, and for the first eight months of five fiscal years, 

 beginning July 1 : 



Belting, Boots All 



Months. Packing and Other Total. 



and Hose. Shoes. Rubber. 



February, 1913 $182,997 $103,906 $644,077 $930,980 



July-January 1,583,069 973,423 4,695,696 7,252,188 



Total. 1912-13.... $1,766,066 $1,077,329 $5,339,773 $8,183,168 



Total, 1911-12.... 1,491,121 1,139.181 4,640,177 7,270,479 



Total, 1910-11.... 1,354,060 1.699,371 3,899,406 6,952,837 



Total, 1909-10.... 1,233,910 1,437,252 3,053.753 5,724,915 



Total, 1908-09.... 896,362 1,013,544 2,454,707 4,364,613 



The above heading, "All Other Rubber," for the month of 

 February, 1913, and for the first eight months of three fiscal years, 

 beginning July 1, includes the following details relating to tires: 



For All 



Months. Automobiles. Other. Total. 



February, 1913 values $276,253 $367,824 $644,077 



July-January 2,050,843 2,644,853 4,695,696 



Total, 1912-13 $2,327,096 $3,012,677 $5,339,773 



Total, 1911-12 1,641.373 349.372 1,990,745 



Total, 1910-11 1,194,720 368.029 1,562,749 



BAKELITE PATENT RECOGNITION. 



As a result of negotiations between the General Bakelite Co. 

 and the Condensite Co. of America, the suits brought by the 

 former against the latter and its customers for alleged infringe- 

 ment of the Bakelite patents, have been withdrawn, and the Con- 

 densite Co., recognizing the pioneer character of Dr. L. H. 

 Baekeland's work, has acknowledged the validity of the Bakelite 

 patents in suit and some others, and will pay substantial royalties 

 thereunder. 



The General Bakelite Co. will continue the manufacture of 

 Bakelite under its numerous patents, and the Condensite Co. will 

 manufacture Condensite under the Aylsworth patents, as well as 

 the license just granted for such of the Baekeland patents as are 

 broad enough to cover Condensite. 



