Samuel Freeman Miller

“ This attempt to play fast and loose with a supposed right of action, against parties who were mere agents or trustees, and who had no interest in the cause, while through a series of years the value of the matter in contest went up and down in the scale of public market prices, does not commend itself to the conscience of any one. The truth is that, conceding the first sale to have been simply void and ineffective, the bonds remaining in the hands of Forstall's Sons, it became their duty to sell those bonds at as early a time as possible, and place the proceeds in the hands of Baring Bros. ”

“ Nothing hindered them from bringing their action at law at any time. To say that they could delay for any length of time, within the period of prescription, and bring this suit in equity when the securities bore the highest price in the market, would be very unjust, even if they had given no consent and taken no part in the sale of the bonds. ”

“ The defendants deny any fraud in the sale of the securities, but admit that, finding it necessary on the failure of the bank to sell the bonds held under the foregoing agreement, they put them into the hands of a broker to be sold on the market in the usual way, and instructed another broker to see that they were not sacrificed, authorizing him to say that they would pay oneeighth of 1 per cent. more for them to the purchaser than they would sell for. ”

“ It is so spoken of by counsel in the argument, and the authorities referred to as furnishing the measure of damages are all in cases of actions at law for what is equivalent to a conversion of property held for another's use. ”