Troughton

Plaintiffs had judgment for the sum of $6,330, which they had paid defendant on a contract for the sale of real estate in Colusa County executed on September 6, 1918. The portions of said contract material to the inquiry herein are as follows:

Plaintiffs did not pay the taxes for 1919 and they did not pay the money that was due on October 1, 1920.

To excuse their failure to pay said taxes they allege that “defendant had taken barley belonging to plaintiffs of the value of $330, for the purpose of paying the said taxes, but the defendant had willfully neglected to pay said taxes, notwithstanding that she had received the said property of plaintiffs so to do, and that plaintiffs, notwithstanding that defendant had already received more than enough money to pay said taxes, made a second offer far in excess of the amount required.” This was denied in the answer, but as the other point is of decisive importance, we pass to its consideration.

In view of the plain language of the contract it cannot be doubted that plaintiffs could not put defendant in default without paying or offering to pay the sum of money that was due on said October 1, 1920. The parties were very careful to…