636 LEGAL DEPARTMENT. 



when nothing has been said on that point, a considerable degree of doubt 

 must frequently rest upon the case, and then it is only by interpreting 

 the expressions used at the time of sale that even an opinion can be 

 formed as to whether a warranty were ever intended. The general 

 rule is that whatever the vendor represents at the time of sale is a war- 

 ranty. Words, however, of expectation and estimate only do not amount 

 to a warranty. 



The statement by the seller of a horse that ' ' I never warrant, but he is 

 sound as far as I know," is a qualified warranty, and an action for breach 

 of warranty, may be maintained upon it by the purchaser, if it can be 

 proved that the seller knew of the unsoundness. (Wood v. Smith, 4 c. 

 and p. 45.) If a person at the time of sale says : " You may depend 

 upon it, the horse is perfectly quiet and free from \ice," it is a warranty. 

 If the horse is purchased for a particular purpose, and the seller knows 

 of that particular purpose, and declares that the horse is all right, such 

 a statement would amount to a warranty. 



Representations antecedent to the contract as an inducement to buy 

 are not warranties unless included in the contract. 



All affirmations made to a buyer as a ground of reliance are warranties. 

 (Stewart v. Jamieson, i M. 525.) 



There was at one time a general opinion that a "sound price " given 

 for a horse was tantamount to a warranty of soundness, but Lord Mans- 

 field considered the doctrine to be so loose and unsatisfactory tha,t he 

 rejected it and laid down the following rule : ' ' There must either be an 

 expressed warranty of soundness or fraud in the seller to maintain an 

 action." (Parkinson v. Lee, 2 East 322.) 



DEFECTS COVERED BY GENERAL WARRANTY. 



A general warranty is an unconditional undertaking that a horse or 

 any other article really is what the warrantor professes it to be. 



A general warranty of soundness, however, does not cover patent 

 defects — i. e. , defects which are so obvious that the buyer cannot help 

 observing them, but a buyer who knows of the defect cannot sue the 

 seller on the warranty. On the other hand, a buyer who relies on the 

 warranty, and omits to make a minute examination, is protected against 

 defects, which, though not apparent, may have been detected. In other 

 words : the , patent defects which the warranty does not cover, and to 



