For the prevention of fraud, a code of laws called The Statute of Frauds, has been enacted in every state throughout the Union. These statutes, while very similar, vary slightly in different states, so it will be of advantage to the plumber to look up its provisions in the state where he is located. Whatever the language used, the general tenor of the three principal sections of the various statutes is as follows:

1. "Any contract for the sale of land, or for the sale of any interest in land, to be binding, must be in writing and subscribed by the party to be charged therewith, or his agent duly authorized in writing."

2. "No agreement for the sale of goods or chattels of the value of fifty dollars or more, will be binding unless some note or memorandum of the agreement is in writing and signed by the party to be charged therewith or his duly authorized agent."

3. "No promise to answer for the debt, default or miscarriage of another shall be valid, without a written memorandum, stating the consideration and signed by the party to be charged therewith."

It will be noticed that in each of the paragraphs cited, in order to make the contract valid, it is not necessarily to be signed by both the parties, but only the one to be charged therewith. For instance, if the contract were in the form of letters, in which the plumber offered to furnish all labor and material for an operation for a stipulated amount, and the owner had consummated the agreement with an unqualified acceptance, either letter would prove a sufficient memorandum to bring the contract within the re-quirements of the Statute of Frauds, the particular one depending on which party to the contract was to be charged therewith. If the plumber were sued on the contract, his signed offer would be the memorandum required, while if the plumber sued for the contract price the owner's letter of acceptance would be the signed memorandum required by the Statute of Frauds.

Analyzing Section No. 1 it will be seen that any contract for the sale of land or any interest in land, to be binding must be in writing and signed by the party to be charged therewith, or his agent, duly authorized in writing. This, of course, refers to the party who agrees to purchase the land as well as to the one who agrees to sell, but so far as the scope of this work is concerned, the plumber is not interested in the purchase end of the agreement. Owing to the fact, however, that many operations in large cities are conducted by dummies, or nominal agents, it behooves the plumber to know their right to act, and be sure that where an interest in land is concerned, the person signing the contract has a power of attorney duly sealed, acknowledged and recorded with the register of deeds of that county. For example, to explain the section, assume that a builder has been empowered to sign contracts for certain work with sub-contractors, but has no power of attorney to sell or convey an interest in land. Suppose, then, that this agent agreed to give as purchase money one of a row of buildings to the plumber, in return for his doing the plumbing work in all the row. Such a contract could not be enforced, for the agent has no authority to sell or convey an interest in land and while if the owner of the buildings was responsible the plumber could recover for the value of the work, he could not recover the building according to the terms of the contract. Again, suppose the builder agrees to give in return for the work when completed, a first or second mortgage on the premises. Such an agreement would be void because a mortgage is such an interest in land as to bring it within the requirements of the Statute of Frauds.

The second section declaring that no agreement for the sale of goods or chattels of the value of fifty dollars or more will be binding unless some note or memorandum of the agreement is in writing, and signed by the party to be charged therewith, or his duly authorized agent, has two conditions which should be carefully noted. First, while no verbal contract for goods of the value of fifty dollars or more can be enforced, the plumber is not without a remedy at law. He cannot set up a promise to pay an amount of say $200 in return for material furnished and work performed, but he can bring action to recover that amount as the actual value of the work performed. Where there is no express agreement as to the price to be paid, the rule of law is Quantum Meruit - as much as he deserves, or the value of the work and materials.

The second condition has reference to the appointment of the agent. In this respect there seems to be an exception to the general rule that to sign a certain document, the agent must be. authorized by a written document of equal dignity with the one to be signed. That is, in order to sign written contracts, the agent would have to be authorized by a document in writing, and to affix a seal to a document, the agent would have to be authorized by a written power under seal. In the case under consideration, however, the agent need be only "duly authorized." For instance, a salesman for a jobbing house might, and probably would, be engaged orally; yet, having been "duly authorized" he can sign orders or contracts to deliver thousands of dollars worth of goods, so long as he acts within the scope of his authority, and the contract would be valid and enforceable.

The third section cited in the Statute of Frauds is of particular importance to plumbers, for ignorance of its provisions may lead to heavy losses when he believes himself most secure. Read again the provision: "No promise to answer for the debt, default or miscarriage of another shall be valid without a written memorandum stating the consideration and signed by the party to be charged therewith." Take for instance the case where the plumber not caring to trust a certain individual, asks security for the payment of his contract price before beginning work. Some friend or relative of the owner comes to the plumber and says "I understand you will not do Blank's work without security. What's the matter? He's all right. You go ahead and put in the plumbing and if he doesn't pay you, I will." That looks secure enough and the plumber fulfills his part of the contract only to find that the owner can't pay and the surety will not, and safely hides behind that provision of the Statute of Frauds, which requires any agreement or promise to answer for the debt, default or miscarriage of another to be in writing.

But assume that the plumber insists that the promise to pay be in writing, and the surety writes and signs an obligation like the following:

"Philadelphia. Pa., Aug. 25th, 1910.

Mr. Henry Leader, Plumbing Contractor.

Dear Sir:-I understand you will not do the plumbing work in Blank's house without your contract price being guaranteed. I have known Blank for a long time and feel sure you will not lose anything by the contract. You may go ahead with the work and in case he does not pay you, I will.

Harvey B. Rivers."

Again the plumber feels perfectly secure, only to find on default of both parties that he cannot recover payment from the surety, Harvey B. Rivers, because the memorandum in writing does not state a consideration. Two things to bear in mind therefore is, that when a person agrees to go security for the debts of another, the agreement must be in writing, and must state the consideration. A form of surety which would be perfectly secure and binding would be a brief statement, such as follows:

"Philadelphia, Pa., August 25, 1910. Greeting:-Know all men by these presents that I, Harvey B. Rivers, in consideration of one dollar in hand paid and other valuable considerations, the receipt of which I hereby acknowledge, pledge myself, my estate, heirs and assigns and agree to pay unto Mr. Henry Leader, the contract price for the plumbing in the residence of August Blank, in case the said Blank should neglect, refuse, or fail to pay the said contract price, upon completion of the work.

Harvey B. Rivers."

In some states the Statute of Frauds only requires a promise to answer for the debt of another to be in writing, but does not require the consideration to be stated; notwithstanding this, it is well always in all agreements to state the consideration.

As was previously suggested, it will pay the plumber wherever he may be to familiarize himself with the provisions of the Statute of Frauds of his state, as well as the lien laws of his commonwealth.