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41 S.C.L. 124

Kennedy v. Barnwell

Court of Appeals of South Carolina

Decided January 15, 1854

Court of Appeals of South Carolina · decided 1854-01-15

Before O’Neall, J., at Charleston, Spring Term, 1853. Assumpsit on a written contract, whereby the plaintiff, for the sum of $1,225, (no time of payment being mentioned,) agreed to dig a canal for the defendant. The contract bore date January 5, 1850.

Decided 1854-01-15

¶1The opinion of the Court was delivered by

O’Néall, I.

¶2In this case, it is only necessary to refer to the rule stated by my brother Withers, in Dotterer vs. Bennett, 5 Rich. 298 :

¶3“ A promise in writing to pay a sum of money at a certain time, and that is certain which can be rendered certain, is (according to our own and other American decisions) a contract that carries interest as a legal incident.”

¶4Here the promise to pay $1,225 is in writing. The law fixes that that sum was due the moment the work was completed. It was only necessary to fix that period, and the rule was complied with.

¶5But an additional written contract was entered into, when Mr. Barnwell paid to the plaintiff $875. They then agreed that the work should be finished, under a penalty, by the 1st of February, 1851. Beyond all doubt, this gave the party the right to interest from at least that period.

¶6The motion is disrnissed.

Wardlaw,Withers, Whitner, Glover, and Munro, JJ., concurred.

¶7Motion dismissed.

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