Practice, Civil, Exceptions. Evidence, Relevancy and materiality. At the trial of an action of contract upon a judgment the only question at issue was, whether the plaintiff had actual notice of bankruptcy proceedings of the defendant, and the defendant introduced evidence tending to show that, in the course of proceedings in the poor debtor court to enforce the judgment sued on, his attorney in March of a certain year had told the plaintiff's attorney of such proceedings and that consequently there had been a continuance of the case in the poor debtor court to March 15. The defendant offered a record of the poor debtor proceedings which showed that they were instituted before the bankruptcy proceedings, that there had been a large number of short continuances until the March 15 referred to, when there was a continuance until May 14, on which day the proceedings were dropped. Subject to an exception by the defendant, the judge excluded the record but permitted the defendant to introduce other evidence as to everything that took place in the poor debtor proceedings including the details of the continuances. Held, that, even if the exclusion of the record was erroneous, the exception should be overruled, as the defendant was not shown to have been harmed.
HAMMOND, J.
Apparently the only question of fact really in dispute was whether, as contended by the defendant, "the plaintiff had actual notice of the bankruptcy proceedings in time to prove his claim."
The facts stated in the record of the poor debtor court had only a very remote bearing, if any, upon that question. Moreover, while the presiding judge declined to admit the record, he permitted the defendant to introduce other evidence as to everything that took place in those proceedings, including the details of the continuances, "and such other evidence was introduced." It does not appear that the facts stated in the record were in dispute. Even if the exclusion was erroneous, the defendant does not show he was thereby prejudiced. On the contrary the fair and legitimate inference from the bill of exceptions is that he was not prejudiced.
Exceptions overruled.