221 
SALE AND WARRANTY OF HORSES. 
of two horses, and the defendant offered a less sum than was de¬ 
manded, but at length sent word that ‘ the horses were his, but 
that, as he had neither servant nor stable, the plaintiff must keep 
them at livery for him;’ the plaintiff, upon this, removed them 
out of his sale stable into another stable; and it was held that 
there was here a sufficient delivery to satisfy the statute. The 
key to this and similar cases seems to be, that the vender, by the 
terms of the bargain, is converted into an agent for the vendee , 
and thus occupies the double character of principal during the 
sale, and servant upon its completion. It is also sufficient evi¬ 
dence of a delivery, if a purchaser, with the privity and approba¬ 
tion of the vender, exercises any act of ownership over the goods, 
though their local situation remains unchanged ; as by selling (or 
even showing the animal out for sale) to a third person, or mark¬ 
ing the animal in any manner. Delivery to a servant or agent is 
equivalent to a delivery to the employer himself.” 
In regard to Earnest, 
“ It would seem that giving a piece of money, however low its 
value (supposing it to be ‘ altogether parted with’), is sufficient 
to bind the bargain.” 
In regard to any sigried Note or Memorandum . 
“ It may be useful to observe that, although the names of both 
parties must appear upon the face of the memorandum, or, at 
least, in some writing capable of being connected therewith by 
sound legal inference, yet the signature of the part) sought to be 
charged, or of his agent, is sufficient. And this term, signature , 
be it observed, is not here used in the limited sense of subscrip¬ 
tion , so as to require the party to sign his name at the end of the 
instrument, but is equally applicable in whatever part the name 
is written. Whether sales by public auction are within the Sta¬ 
tute of Frauds has long been a disputed point; the later opinion 
is in favour of their being so ; and it, therefore, becomes neces¬ 
sary to mention here that the auctioneer is, in such sales, the 
agent of both parties.” 
u Upon the regular completion of the sale, the property in the 
article is transferred to and absolutely vested in the vendee ; and 
the purchaser thenceforward stands by all risks, and is the sole 
sufferer from any injury which may happen to the animal, other¬ 
wise than through the negligence of the vender. As in the ex¬ 
ample given by Blackstonc : If A sells a horse to B for £10, and 
B pays him earnest, or signs a note in writing of the bargain, 
and afterwards, before the delivery of the horse or money paid, 
