To illustrate the general doctrine, suppose that a man is
desirous of having a cask of brandy carried from Boston to
Cambridge, and that a truckman, either out of kindness or from
some other motive, says that he will carry it, and it is
delivered to him accordingly. If he carelessly staves in the
cask, there would perhaps be no need to allege that he undertook
to carry it, and on principle, and according to the older cases,
if an undertaking was alleged, no consideration for the assumpsit
need be stated. /1/ The ground of complaint in that case would be
a wrong, irrespective of contract. But if the complaint was that
he did not carry it as agreed, the plaintiff's difficulty would
be that the truckman was not bound to do so unless there was a
consideration for his promise. Suppose, therefore, that it was
alleged that he promised to do so in consideration of the
delivery to him. Would this be a sufficient consideration? The
oldest cases, going on the notion of benefit to the promisor,
said that it could not be, for it was a trouble, not a benefit.
/2/ Then take it from the side of detriment. The delivery is a
necessary condition to the promisor's doing the kindness, and if
he does it, the delivery, so far from being a detriment to the
promisee, is a clear benefit to him.
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