Impossible Considerations, are those which cannot be performed.

Moral Considerations, are such as are sufficient to support an executed contract.

Valuable Considerations, are those which confer some benefit upon the party to whom the promise is made, or upon a third party at his instance or request.

Consideration, is the life-blood of a contract; and a contract or promise, for which there is no consideration, is void. See CONTRACT.

CONSIGNEE.

Consignee.-One to whom a consignment is made. When the goods consigned to him are his own and he has ordered them to be sent, they are at his risk the moment the consignment is made according to his direction. When the goods are not his own, he takes no risk, so long as the directions of the owner are obeyed.

CONTEMPT.

Contempt.-Courts of justice have an inherent power to punish all persons for contempt of their rules and orders, for disobedience of their process and for disturbing them in their proceedings.

CONTRACTS.

Contracts.-A contract is an agreement between two or more persons, upon a sufficient consideraation, to do or not to do a particular thing.

To constitute a valid contract or agreement, there must be: 1st. The mutual assent of two or more persons competent to contract; an intelligent meeting of the minds of the parties.

2d. A good and valid consideration: i. e., motive or induc

ing cause to make the promise upon which the party is to be held or charged.

3d. A subject matter of the contract: i. e., a thing to be done or omitted. And the thing agreed to be done must be one not forbidden by law; or if the agreement be to omit or forbear from doing a certain thing, it must be a thing not enjoined or made a duty by law.

Different Kinds of.-Contracts are divided into agreements by specialty, made by a written instrument under seal, and agreements without specialty, made either by a written instrument without a seal or verbally without any writing. In practical effect, the only difference between a written contract without a seal and a mere verbal agreement is, that the former is more easily proved. In certain cases agreements by specialty are of higher consideration in the law than agreements without specialty; and it is therefore advisable for laymen, who are not supposed to know in what cases a seal may be dispensed with, and for what purposes it may be desirable, to add a seal whenever they draw their own contracts or act without a legal advice.

Execution of. In this state, a seal made of a foreign substance and affixed to the document, is not necessary, and a stamp or impression upon the paper is a good seal. A mere scrawl with a pen made upon the paper in the form of a seal, with the initials of the party written within the outline of the seal, has been held to be sufficient by the supreme court of California.

What Constitutes.-The essence of an agreement is the intelligent assent or union of the minds of the parties, and in its construction the actual intent of the parties is to be regarded. But, if the terms of the contract are clear, it will be binding even though contrary to the intention of the parties; for parol proof cannot be resorted to to modify the language of a written contract where it admits of a sensible construction. Only where there is a doubt or ambiguity in the terms of the written instrument, can parol proof or extrinsic circumstances be invoked to aid in its construction. Mistake in.-If, however, a written instrument fails to

express the real contract designed to be made by the parties, in consequence of a mistake in the words or language used, courts having equity jurisdiction will generally reform the contract by making it conformable to the intention of the parties.

Who may contract.-Incapacity to contract arises, among other causes, from infancy, from marriage (on the part of the woman) and from insanity. Infants are incapable of binding themselves by contract, except for necessaries. The contract entered into by an infant may be repudiated at his option, either before his majority or within a reasonable time after it. He may also ratify and confirm it. This, however, must be done by a new promise, made after he has attained his majority. If the promise be a conditional one, the party seeking to enforce it must show the fulfillment of the condition. The contract of an infant may also be confirmed without an express new promise; and where he has neither disavowed nor affirmed it by words, a ratification is sometimes inferred from his acts. The question as to precisely what act or omissions amount to a confirmation, is one which would require too much space and is in its nature too nice to be capable of proper discussion in a work of this kind.

Exceptions.-The exception to the rule permitting an infant to repudiate contracts made by him, is the case where the promise or agreement is for necessaries.

What Invalidates.-Fraud vitiates and annuls all contracts which are tainted by it, and the party guilty of the fraud cannot enforce the contract; nor can he, on the other hand, himself avoid it for his own benefit if it is sought to be enforced by the other party. Even one who executes a fraudulent bill of sale to a third person, with intent to defraud his creditors, cannot set the bill aside though the creditors may do so.

Statutory Provisions, California, Nevada and Idaho.1st. Every contract for the leasing for a longer period than one year, or for the sale of any lands or any interest in lands, shall be void unless the contract, or some note or mem

orandum thereof expressing the consideration, be in writing, and be subscribed by the party by whom the lease or sale is to be made.

2d. Every instrument required to be subscribed by any person, may be subscribed by the agent of such party, lawfully authorized.

3d. In the following cases every agreement shall be void unless such agreement or some note or memorandum thereof, expressing the consideration, be in writing and subscribed by the party charged therewith: 1. Every agreement that by the terms is not to be performed within one year from the making thereof. 2. Every special promise to answer for the debt, default or miscarriage, of another. 3. Every agreement, promise or undertaking, made upon consideration of marriage, except mutual promises to marry.

4th. Every contract for the sale of any goods, chattels or things in action, for the price of two hundred dollars or over, shall be void, unless: 1. A note or memorandum of such contract be made in writing, and be subscribed by the parties to be charged therewith; or, 2. Unless the buyer shall accept or receive part of such goods, or the evidences or some of them, of such things in action; or, 3. Unless the buyer shall, at the time, pay some part of the purchase money.

5th. Whenever goods shall be sold at auction and the auctioneer shall, at the time of sale, enter in a sale-book a memorandum specifying the nature and price of the property sold, the terms of the sale, the name of the purchaser and the name of the person on whose account the sale is made, such memorandum shall be deemed a note of the contract of sale, within the meaning of the last section.

6th. Every sale made by a vendor of goods and chattels in his possession or under his control, and every assignment of goods and chattels, unless the same be accompanied by an immediate delivery, and be followed by an actual and continued change of possession of things sold or assigned, shall be conclusive evidence of fraud as against the creditors

of the vendor or the creditors of the person making such assignment, or subsequent purchasers in good faith.

7th. Every instrument required by any of the foregoing provisions to be subscribed by any party, may be subscribed by the lawful agent of such party.

8th. The term "lands," as used in the foregoing statutory provisions, is to be construed as coextensive in meaning with lands, tenants and hereditaments; and the terms "estate and interest in lands," are to be construed to embrace every estate and interest, present and future, vested and contingent, in lands, as above defined.

Of Certain Contracts in which Officers are Prohibited from being Interested. *-1st. It shall not be lawful for any officer of state or member of legislature, alderman or member of the common council of any city in this state, or for the trustees of any city, town or village, or for the supervisor of any county, to become a contractor under any contract or order for supplies authorized by or for the state or any department thereof, or the legislature or either branch thereof, or by or for the aldermen or common council, board of trustees or board of county supervisors of which he is a member, or to be in any manner interested directly or indirectly as principal in any such contract.

2d. It shall not be lawful for any town, city, county or state officer, or member of the legislature, to be interested in any contract made by such officer or legislature of which he is a member or be a purchaser, or be interested in any purchase at any sale made by such officer, or a seller at any purchase made by such officer, in the discharge of his official duties.

3d. All contracts made in violation of the provisions of the first and second sections of this act may be declared void, at the instance of the city, town or village, or county interested, or of any other party interested in such contract, except the officers prohibited in said sections from making or being interested in such contract.

The law on this subject is substantially the same throughout the United States.

10