by John Marshall

“ Justice Bayley is not entirely free from doubt. If, by 'insufficient excuse,' he means an excuse which in itself implies an admission that the debt remains due except for the bar created by the act of limitations, the proposition is undoubtedly supported by the general course of the cases. But if his declaration extends to an excuse, which, if true, furnishes a real objection to the payment of the claim, in whole or in part, we think it is laid down too broadly. ”

“ Lord Ellenborough said, 'If a man acknowledges the existence of a debt barred by the statute, the law has been supposed to raise a new promise to pay it, and thus the remedy is revived; but no such effect can be given to an acknowledgment where the cause of action arises from the doing, or omitting to do, some act, at a particular moment, in breach of a contract.'
But, without placing the cause on this distinction, the Court is of opinion, that the original cause of action is not revived, and that there is no error in the judgment. ”

“ A verdict was taken for the plaintiff; and, on a motion for a new trial, Lord Ellenborough said, 'As to the sufficiency of the evidence of the promise, it was an acknowledgment by the defendant that he had not paid the bill, and that he could not pay it; and as the limitation of the statute is only a presumptive payment, if his own acknowledgment that he has not paid be shown, it does away the statute.' Bayley, J. said, the acknowledgment was evidence of a debt; acknowledging his acceptance, and that he had not paid it, creates a debt. ”