WARRANTY. 



In the purchase of a horse the buyer should take with the receipt 

 what is termed in law a warranty. The best way of expressing it 

 is in this form : 



PJiilacIelphia, August 1, 18 — . 



Received of William Ingalls three hundred dollars, for a black 

 mare, warranted only five years old, sound, free from vice, and 

 quiet to ride and drive. 



$300. EDWARD RIDDLE. 



A receipt, which includes simply the word "warranted," extends 

 merely to soundness. " Warranted sound," has no greater extent ; 

 the age, freedom from vice, and quietness to ride and drive should all 

 be especially named. This warranty embraces every cause of un- 

 soundness. that can be detected, or that is inherent in the constitution 

 of the animal at the time of sale, as well as every vicious habit which 

 he has previously shown. In order to establish a breach of the war- 

 ranty, and then be enabled to return the horse or recover the price 

 paid, the purchase! must prove that it was unsound or viciously 

 disposed at the time of sale. In case of cough, the horse must have 

 been heard to cough previously to the purchase, or as he was led 

 home, or as soon as he had entered the stable of the purchaser. 

 Coughing, even on the following morning, will not be sufficient ; for 

 it is possible that he might have caught cold by a change of sta- 

 bling. If he is lame, it must be proved to arise from a cause that 

 could not have occurred after he was in the purchaser's possession. 

 No price will imply a warranty, or be deemed equivalent to one ; 

 the warranty must be expressly stated. 



A fraud in the seller must be proved, in order that the buyer may 

 be enabled to return the horse or maintain an action for the price. 

 The warranty should be given at the time of sale. A warranty or 

 a promise to warrant the horse, given at any period previous to the 

 sale, is of no effect ; for the horse is a very perishable commodity, 

 and his constitution and his usefulness may undergo a considerable 

 change in a few days. A warranty after the sale is also of no effect, 

 as it is given without any legal consideration. In order to complete 

 the purchase, there must be a transfer of the animal, or a written 

 memorandum of agreement, or the payment of some sum, however 

 email, as earnest-money. No verbal promise to buy or sell is bind- 

 ing without one of these accompaniments ; and the moment either 

 (382) 



