Boardman

This is an appeal by the plaintiff from a judgment against him in an action in which he sought to rescind a certain agreement entered into between him and the defendant, and to have restored to him certain instruments and to have other instruments canceled. Said instruments were delivered by plaintiff to defendant in pursuance of the terms of said agreement herein sought to be rescinded. The ground relied upon for rescission of said contract is that the defendant induced the plaintiff to make the agreement in question by means of duress, menace, fraud, and undue influence. The case was tried without a jury, and the findings and judgment were in favor of defendant.

Briefly, the facts show that the plaintiff and defendant had known each other since about 1908. Plaintiff was a business man, engaged in numerous enterprises, among which was the promotion and building of gas plants on the Pacific coast. Defendant was an attorney at law, and some twenty years younger than plaintiff. During the first few years of the acquaintance, defendant was engaged to attend to a few business matters for the plaintiff, but none of these seem to have been of much importance. Mr. Board-man, the…