Munroe v. Woodruff

Goudsborougii, J., delivered the opinion of this court. The appellees instituted suit in the circuit court for Prince George’s county against the appellant, to recover the amount of five promissory notes, of which George W. Harrison was the drawer, and the appellant, together with James M. Benton and Elizabeth Harrison, were endorsers. The appellant pleaded that he did not promise as alleged, and the appellees, by their replication, joined issue thereon. At the trial of this cause, the appellees offered in evidence to the jury, the testimony taken under a commission to Jonathan S. Ely, of the city of New York, for the purpose of showing a sufficient demand of payment and notice of dishonor to the appellant, as endorser, but the appellant’s counsel objected to the sufficiency of said proof for the purpose for which it was offered, but the court overruled the objection and permitted the proof to go to the jury as sufficient evidence to prove a demand and notice, to bind the appellant, as endorser.

The defendant then offered the evidence of James ¹⁶⁴ M. Renton, contained in the second exception, and prayed the court to instruct the jury that if they should find from the evidence that the names of James M. Benton and of Elizabeth Harrison, as alleged endorsers, on said notes, were not in their proper handwriting respectively, but were forgeries, and made by the said maker of the notes, without their knowledge or consent, that then they must find a verdict for the defendant, but the court refused said prayer of the defendant, but instructed the jury, that notwithstanding they may find that the names of James M. Benton and Elizabeth Harrison, the alleged first and second endorsers on said notes were forgeries, yet if they found from theevidence that the signature of John H. Munroe, the defendant, the alleged last endorser, was in his own proper handwriting, or made by his authority, that the plaintiffs were entitled to recover in this action. To which opinion of the court, and to its instruction to the jury, the defendant excepted, and the verdict and judgment being against him, he appealed to this court. The ruling of the court below in the first exception, we approve. By reference to the commission and the testimony taken under it, and which was submitted to the jury, it will appear that the several notes in controversy in this suit, were regularly protested, and the several protests, under the