WATERS v. CRAWFORD

Clayton for the respondent moved to dismiss the appeal. An appeal does not lie in cases determined on the report of auditors where the debt and damages do not exceed £5, 2 Del. Laws 1046, c. 250, s. 12. And the amount of the debt and damages cannot be shown by any matter dehors the record to be greater than five pounds, so that, if upon the report of referees judgment be rendered for the defendant or for the plaintiff and for less than £5 in amount, no appeal lies from the court below: and so it was adjudged in [ ___ ] he said. Blank in manuscript. Ridgely, contra. The construction of the Act contended for leads to this gross absurdity, that the greater the injury the plaintiff suffers from the report, the less right has he to a remedy. Suppose plaintiff claims $50.00 and recovers £6, he may appeal, but if he recover nothing he cannot. The equitable and fair construction of the exception in this Act is that the amount of the debt and damages claimed must be to a greater amount than £5, and not the amount of debt and damages awarded.